Announcing the 18th Annual Sustainable Santa Monica Student Poster Contest winners

April 30, 2026 10:46 AM

Winners will be honored in a ceremony at the Annenberg Community Beach House May 13.

SANTA MONICA, Calif. (April 30, 2026) - The city of Santa Monica and Sustainable Works announced the winners of the 18th Annual Sustainable Santa Monica Student Poster Contest and offer their thanks and congratulations to everyone who participated.

The theme of this year's poster contest, "Reducing Emissions While Creating Resilient Communities," educated students and the community on the positive ways Santa Monica is reducing carbon emissions and supporting residents and the community in the face of a warming climate. The contest was open to all kindergarten through 12th grade students who live and/or attend school in Santa Monica.

This year, 16 winners were selected in four categories: K-2nd grade, 3rd-5th grade, 6th-8th grade, and 9th-12th grade.

"As one of the first cities in the nation to create a Sustainable City Plan, Santa Monica is deeply committed to doing our part for the planet while caring for our community," Senior Sustainability Analyst Ariana Vito said. "This year's submissions were an impressive display of the students' understanding of the challenges and the solutions for a better tomorrow. Key themes included our zero emissions Big Blue Buses, riding bikes, driving electric vehicles, and decarbonizing our buildings with solar and clean electricity."

Through 34 presentations at public and private schools and afterschool programs, the city and Sustainable Works educated more than 653 students on sustainability issues, resulting in 400 poster submissions. Judges for the contest included representatives from the city of Santa Monica and Sustainable Works.

Congratulations to this year's 2026 Sustainable Santa Monica Student Poster Contest winners:

K-2nd grade:
Grand Prize: Phoebe Kaiser, Grant Elementary, Ms. Neumann, 2 2nd Place: Reina Bustamante, Grant Elementary, Ms. Meshel, 2 3rd Place: Sophia Berry, Grant Elementary, Ms. Meshel, 2 Honorable Mention: Beatrice Suchkova, Grant Elementary, Ms. Neumann, 2

3rd-5th grade:
Grand Prize: Daenerys Smith, Grant Elementary, Ms. Ripley, 3 2nd Place: Juniper Cogswell, Grant Elementary, Ms. Smith, 4 3rd Place: Emily Yin, Grant Elementary, Ms. Croft, 4 Honorable Mention: Amelia Chen, Grant Elementary, Ms. Ripley, 3

6th-8th grade:
Grand Prize: Eloise Alexopoulos, John Adams Middle School, Ms. Joyce, 7 2nd Place: Henry Pollock, Sycamore Community School, Ms. Mack, 8 3rd Place: Angelica Huang, John Adams Middle School, Ms. Joyce, 7 Honorable Mention: Declan Brandenberger, Sycamore Community School, Ms. Mack, 6

9th-12th grade:
Grand Prize: Mia Patricio-Ramirez, Santa Monica High School, Ms. Sunseri, 9 2nd Place: Graciela Buccioni, Santa Monica High School, Ms. Garcia-Hecht, 10 3rd Place: Sasha Lu, Santa Monica High School, Ms. Garcia-Hecht, 9 Honorable Mention: Genesis Buezo, Santa Monica High School, Ms. Garcia-Hecht, 11

All Poster Contest winners will be honored at a celebration on Wednesday, May 13, at the Annenberg Community Beach House from 3:45-5 p.m. All are welcome.

Winning posters are displayed at the Santa Monica Main Library from April 27 through May 8, and at the awards celebration. Other poster submissions will also be available for viewing at the celebration.

For more information on the poster contest, please email Gina Garcia at [email protected].

Media Contact

Lauren Howland
Communications and public information manager
[email protected]

Categories

Arts, Culture & Fun, Programs, Sustainable and Connected, The Arts, Youth And Seniors

Departments

Office of Sustainability and the Environment