PORTLAND —Ecomaine will commemorate Maine’s bicentennial in 2020 a contest for students to compete for a $2,020 prize for their school’s green team or Project Graduation.

Ecomaine’s Outreach & Recycling Board Committee Chairman Caleb Hemphill said he hopes the “upcycling” contest forces students to “think about waste in a new light – as a resource.”

Students will have until March 13, to unveil their upcycled inventions. Finalists will be chosen on the following criteria: incorporation of post-consumer materials; ingenuity and functionality of a new upcycled invention and inclusion of students in the design and construction process. Projects must have school leadership approval and students must attend school in an ecomaine member community.

Finalists will then be selected by popular vote on social media by Earth Day 2020.  More information is available at ecomaine.org/upcycle2020.