NEWS RELEASE: San Diego Unified and Rob Machado Foundation Celebrate Earth Day at District’s Top Recycling Elementary School

San Diego Unified and Rob Machado Foundation Celebrate Earth Day at District's Top Recycling Elementary School

SAN DIEGO (April 22, 2025) - To celebrate Earth Day, students at Sandburg Elementary School in Mira Mesa received600 reusable water bottles from the Rob Machado Foundation, the latest donation of reusable water bottles to San Diego Unified District schools by the foundation.

The water bottles were handed out in UTK-through-5th Grade classrooms in between Shows that Teach's "Crazy Bottles and Cans" performances, which are interactive shows that use songs, humor, and competitions to give students lessons about why it is important to recycle. The company chose to perform at Sandburg Elementary for Earth Day because it was named the district's elementary school recycling challenge winner this academic year.

"We worked hard for the recognition, and we are so proud of our students," said Principal Lindsay Burningham. "The reusable water bottles are just icing on the cake."

Board of Education Trustee Sabrina Bazzo joined Kindergarten teacher Candace Bouchard, who taught her oldest daughter at Sandburg when she was elementary-aged, to hand out the water bottles.

"It's special to reunite with Ms. Bouchard since she played such a critical role in my daughter's early education," said Sabrina Bazzo, Board of Education Trustee for San Diego Unified. "I am thrilled to encourage students to think about clean water by giving out these reusable water bottles. We are grateful for our partnership with the Rob Machado Foundation."

View: Video of Sandburg Elementary School Student Assembly and Students Receiving Reusable Water Bottles

One of the world's most recognizable surfers, Machado is an environmentalist who started the foundation in 2004 to support environmental programs for youth. In support of San Diego Unified School District's clean water initiative to replace old drinking water outlets with high-quality, filtered hydration stations, his foundation has donated 45,000 reusable bottles to students across 97 schools in the last three academic years. It plansto donate more, eventually reaching every San Diego Unified student.

"This year alone, we donated 15,000 reusable bottles to San Diego Unified students at29 schools," said Machado. "And we're not done yet."

Encouraging students to drink more water and cut plastic pollution from local landfills, waterways, and the ocean, the reusable water bottles and filtered hydration stations have made access to water at San Diego Unified better than ever before.

As a result of a district initiative to provide clean drinking water to all students, the high-quality filtered hydration stations replace old, unfiltered drinking water outlets at all San Diego Unified schools. While all San Diego Unified schools have received temporary filtered water bottle fillers, construction continues to install additional permanent filtered hydration stations and remove all unfiltered drinking water outlets districtwide. In total, 4,492 filtered drinking water outlets have been installed districtwide.

Supported by the facilities bond program, San Diego Unified set a public health goal of water with lead content below one part per billion (ppb) and an action level of 5 ppb - three times the federal standard.

To read other recent bond program stories, please visit: https://www.sandiegounified.org/about/newscenter/school_bond_program.

ABOUT SANDBURG ELEMENTARY

Located in the heart of Mira Mesa, Sandburg Elementary serves students UTK-5th Grade and is one of San Diego Unified's highest academic performing elementary schools. With GATE and Leader in Me programs, Sandburg recognizes students for their hard work and leadership.

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