On April 26, Captain Planet Foundation partnered with the Harris County Department of Education’s CASE for Kids after-school program to host the 2025 Houston Green Heart STEM Challenge Finale at the Leonard E. Merrell in Katy, TX. The 2024 WIND Challenge (circular economy solutions focused on fast fashion waste, e-waste, or single-use plastic waste) was made possible through funding provided by Susan J. Klein and Accenture.
The top three Middle School finalists had the opportunity to pitch their WIND-related project solutions and answer questions posed by judges Larry Moses II, Program Coordinator at CASE for Kids, and Riya Santra, Packaged Application Specialist at Accenture.
Additionally, students participated in a “Networking Bingo” professional development activity where they practiced introducing themselves, connected with peers who shared similar interests, described their strongest traits, and engaged with peers from different teams.
As a finalist, each team was granted the opportunity to take part in Captain Planet Foundation’s Idea Incubator – a two week program that supports winning teams by connecting them with mentorship workshops provided by CPF team members and Accenture consultants. At the Idea Incubator, students are able to refine their project plan timeline and budget with the intention of doing their project over the next 3 to 6 months.
“I am looking forward to the Idea Incubator because then we get to bring our idea to life and we will be able to help people,” said Nathan, a member of The Pollution Police team from Ross Sterling Middle School.
As the 2025 Houston Green Heart STEM Challenge Finale drew to a close, Clear Creek Intermediate 8th Grader, Natalie couldn’t help but note how elated she was to know that Captain Planet Foundation impacts youth directly.
“As someone who really likes forests, deforestation and ocean pollution has made me really upset,” she explained. “But learning that there was an organization that empowers youth, as opposed to only adults being able to make change, that makes me really happy.”
Finalist Teams and Teacher Interviews
Listed below are project descriptions for each of the Houston Green Heart STEM Challenge finalists. Click the attached audio to hear from each team’s teacher!
1st Place- “Pollution Police” Ross Sterling Middle School
With the HEART element at the center of their project, The Pollution Police team created a solution that would decrease shoe waste in their community, inspire kids to learn a new skill while expressing themselves creatively, and make owning fly kicks (cool sneakers) an affordable endeavor. Partnering with their school, as well as local shoe restoration businesses, this team wants to encourage their classmates to restore old shoes instead of throwing them away.
Hear from Ms. Washington below:
CC: Our group came last year, so this is our second time coming, and we placed third place last year. That was really challenging because we didn’t know what to expect, we had never done anything like that before! So then this year, because we got to watch other groups present and get ideas, and we put that into place! So our team really grew in their public speaking from last year to this year. They were super scared last year, and then this year they were only a little bit scared.
2nd Place- “Trash2Trends” Humble Middle School
Inspired by their love for fashion, entertainment, and all things trending, this team is looking to institute school-wide clothing swaps and upcycling workshops, in addition to installing donation boxes at their school. As a part of their pitch, this team created an original rap music video— with lyrical rhymes about fast fashion and its harmful effects on the environment.
Hear from Ms. Holmes below:
CC: Over the course of the last couple of months, I’ve been able to have conversations with them, I’ve been able to see their personality, and I was also able to witness how creative, how inspiring, and how amazing these four girls are. They had so many ideas to where we kind of had to, you know, ‘X’ them all out! Like “we’ll keep this” but “we got to move on with that.” And so it was really cool to see that the kids were being creative, they were coming up with their own original ideas, and I was just there to motivate them. And that was the best part for me because they were motivated themselves to accomplish this task and complete this mission.
3rd Place- “The Creek” Clear Creek Intermediate
Inspired by the Met Gala, this group of artists wanted to take their passions for design, crafting, and drawing to create runway-ready products to be displayed at their very own fashion show in June. Utilizing fabrics and designs from an antique ball-gown, this group has already created a wardrobe of jeans, wreaths, skirts, dresses, sweaters, and even a piece of artwork. They hope to inspire their peers to also learn how to upcycle clothing, and in turn, raise awareness of the environmental impact and dangers of fast fashion.
Hear from Mr. Meade below:
CC: They’re artists. And so the process of looking at clothing and fast fashion, allowing them to be who they are, but also to look at the awareness that they want to present, because they wanted to make a statement. Their ideas are amazing. And you know as artists, they also can be advocates for the environment as well.