I believe one of the most pressing environmental challenges the world can face today is the removing of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch that remains in the ocean of our planet. This is a massive region of water in the Pacific Ocean that is saturated with plastic debris. This was caused by years of people littering leading to trash accumulation in the oceans. These polluted waters will lead to the increasing deaths of marine life and a potential environmental collapse for human life. I have spent a considerable amount of time researching this Great Pacific Garbage Patch for essays in the past, and I have learned the fairly reasonable destruction it can cause due to human carelessness and inactiveness to make a change about it. The biggest cause of this concentrated area of polluted waters is because of people who throw recyclable materials in trash bins, sewer systems, and reserves. These materials, usually plastic, will eventually be dumped into the ocean and currents will push this debris to certain regions forming the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. These plastic materials will break down into a form called micro plastics which contaminate the waters of the ocean and will eventually enter every human body over time. These micro plastics are known to researchers to cause cancer and promote blood clots. With more micro plastics entering our environment by the day, we continue to endanger ourselves and the environment we live in. With this knowledge in mind, there are a few ideas a single individual like me can do to make a difference. I will contribute to solving this challenge by making it known to people. I know increasing an individual’s knowledge about the dangers of littering and incorrectly recycling is one small step to prevent the increasing pollution in ocean waters. Showing the research done about the dangers of plastic patches of trash in the ocean will expose how it can harm all forms of life from coral reefs to coastlines. I will be glad to write out articles to post on the internet and share it to encourage friends and families to contribute to environmental efforts to reduce the use of plastic in our lives, and most of all, correctly recycle plastic products. I can contribute to street cleaning and park cleanups to prevent plastic waste from accumulating in sewer systems and nearby rivers. Going on hikes to remove trash on the side of trails is another step one can take. But, I believe the biggest contribution I can make is making these facts known to others. In addition to what I aim to do currently, I believe the best method to reduce these polluted waters is to directly retrieve the remaining massive piles of floating plastic debris and ship them to recycling plants. This process may seem economically insane and an unreachable goal, but I hope such a project similar to that can be done one day.

I am very aware of the serious and unpleasant threats climate change has brought to our planet today. I have always lived my life to my best ability to maintain a small carbon footprint and help my family maintain a small carbon footprint. This scholarship will aid me in paying for college as I major in environmental sciences. I have researched into different approaches to climate change and I believe international action and cooperation for mandatory recycling is necessary. Atmospheric patterns in many regions have been altered throughout recent years that adjusted average global temperature and weather. These slight adjustments have a strong negative impact on many environments threatening plant, animal, and human life to a concerning extent. Global action must be mandatory to reduce and possibly prevent a devastating disaster to our environment and planet we know today. A mandatory recycling program is essential to greatly reduce pollution throughout land and sea. Landfills have poisoned soils, contaminated water sources, and released greenhouse gases. Fewer landfills are required to prevent contamination of our planet and achieving such a goal is possible through mandatory recycling. Recycling programs will also reduce litter and trash in the oceans that poses a threat to many sea creatures alike. In conclusion, my statement is that this scholarship will help me in my goals of researching into environmental solutions to reduce climate change. It is true that mandatory recycling will greatly limit the consequences of a polluted planet. Each individual is capable of recycling and maintaining a small carbon footprint to have a greener planet in the future.

Playing Super Mario 3D World on the Wii U console with two brothers was one of the most chaotic, funniest, and most amusing times I ever had. It really was a fun, classic, exciting game to play with my brothers. I would always play as Luigi and I even adopted my voice and personality with him. I would voice whatever Luigi said. When he grunted, I grunted, when he screamed, I screamed especially when falling off course. It was an adventure Mario, Luigi, and Toad went on that I would never forget. A particular course I remember playing was the final level called “Champions Road.” Thanks to the infinite 1-up glitch we found in the level back in World 1, we had 999 1-ups to complete the course before getting the Game Over screen. We struggled a lot. We would always accidently pick each other and chuck the character off to oblivion. After losing well over 300 lives, each of us mastered each section of the level whether it was long jumping from platform to platform, swimming by spiky blocks, dashing across disappearing blocks and jumping over laser rays. We were almost there to the finish several times, but then we would hit the time limit. It was sad to see the flagpole in the distant, but there were only 5 seconds on the clock. We worked together to reach the end of the final level. It was an astonishing sight from spending hours of completing this one level. Mario, Luigi, and Toad jumped to the flag pole and it was game. That was one of my most memorable moments of playing Super Mario 3D World. We died a lot, but it was all fun despite the casual screaming and shouting. That was my experience of playing a multiplayer Nintendo video game session with my brothers.