Sam Nadol (second from right) accepts an honorable mention from the President’s Environmental Youth Award program. | Courtesy of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
A teenager from New York state received an honorable mention in the President’s Environmental Youth Award program for his work to refurbish electronics.
The program, directed by the U.S. EPA and the White House Council on Environmental Quality, awards students who “embody the connection between STEM education and community engagement,” Olivia Glenn, EPA senior advisor for equity and chief of staff, said in a press release.
Sam Nadol, a senior at the Hackley School in Tarrytown, N.Y., received the honorable mention for a project called “Reboot PC,” which refurbishes and recycles laptops and desktop computers and gets them to those in need.
Nadol started Reboot PC in 2017 and so far has refurbished and given away more than 380 computer systems, a total value over $87,000, the press release noted. Community members and business owners contribute used and new computer parts, and Nadol also collects used parts during weekly trips to local landfills.
The winner of the 2023 President’s Environmental Youth Award program was Kaitlyn Culbert, a New Jersey senior high school student who researched fatal colony collapse disorder in bees.