2015-2016 High School Winners

Josh Joireman, a freshman at Pullman High School in Pullman, WA, created his video as an assignment in his Multimedia class. Living in the heavily forested state of Washington, family visits to Glacier National Park, and his love for the forest inspired Josh to create a video on the deforestation-population link. He believes that letting people know about the issue of deforestation is a really important step in starting to save the environment and sees his video as a step in that direction. Josh hadn’t really spent too much time thinking about population and its impacts prior to this project and “was really astonished by how many trees are cut down every year by humans.” He added that he’ll probably “start to pay more attention to what overpopulation is doing to the environment.”

Josh has created a few videos here and there, but mostly just for fun. Perfecting his message into the short one minute timeframe was the most challenging aspect for him. But when it comes to advice for future participants, he suggests they choose a topic they’re passionate about and with which they feel some sort of connection.

Josh stays busy with daily cross-country, swimming, and track practices. In his spare time, he enjoys photography and being outdoors. Josh and his dad go on a backpacking trip every year in the Cascade Mountains where he is able to do a lot of photography. This summer they will spend a month traveling in Turkey and with his prize money, Josh is toying with the idea of treating himself to a new pair of Jordans.