2022 Middle School Winners

Feben Tessema and Anna Yang are in the 8th grade at East Side Preparatory School in Kirkland, Washington. The contest was an assignment in their science class. They were both not very aware of population and its impacts prior to creating their video but they learned more about it through their research. They were surprised at how big the issue of overfishing is because they hadn’t heard much about it before participating in this contest.

Feben and Anna were both interested in overfishing and they used their passions and strengths to create their video. They both worked on the script and overall concept of their video, but Feben wrote the poem and Anna did the drawings. This was Anna’s first time creating a video like this so Feben took the lead. Feben has taken many classes and used numerous video creation programs prior to the contest. The most challenging thing for Feben was compiling all the information they wanted to say in one minute. Anna noted that it was challenging and time consuming to animate every line of the poem. Feben advises future participants to map out the times and dates that each group member is going to complete everything to make submitting on time easier. Anna would like to see next year’s video contest focus on meat consumption and its impacts on the environment.

In her free time, Feben likes to write poetry; she shared that it comes naturally to her. “An idea pops into my mind and I start making a poem out of it.” She also likes to draw and enjoys outdoor activities like biking, running, and walking. Feben’s role model is her father and she aims to be more like him. She said that “he passes a lot of knowledge down to me and my siblings whether in car rides or on a walk. He talks and plays with us often, it is heartwarming.”

In her free time, Anna enjoys drawing and takes drawing classes outside of school. She also plays the piano and likes volleyball. Anna shared that her mom is her role model and that “she is really caring and gives me a lot of advice which is helpful when overcoming challenges.”