The Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden, in partnership with Pepsi and Aquafina, are inviting all Oklahoma students, K-12, to participate in this year’s annual Pepsi Vending Machine Art Contest now through Saturday, April 16, 2022, for an opportunity to win prizes and have their original art design displayed on a Pepsi vending machine at the Zoo. Finding inspiration from this year’s contest theme, Make Oklahoma Litter Free for Wildlife, contest goers are encouraged to illustrate the importance of keeping Oklahoma’s natural spaces litter free for its amazing animals, insects and plant life.
Preventing litter and keeping Oklahoma clean, green and healthy is up to all of us. Through the Pepsi Vending Machine Art Contest, the OKC Zoo hopes to engage students to become advocates for the natural world around them by expressing their ideas to support litter prevention through a creative outlet. Litter has a direct impact on all living things and waterways, and disposing of trash and recycling properly helps contribute to the conservation of Oklahoma’s wildlife and wild places. Together, the Zoo and Pepsi aim to encourage recycling among Zoo guests and have it made easy by providing recycle bins throughout the park for easy disposable of plastic and aluminum containers.
“We are excited to partner with Pepsi and Aquafina and continue the tradition of this anticipated contest,” said Candice Rennels, OKC Zoo’s director of public relations. “Year after year, I’m inspired by the artistic approach these young Oklahomans take for bringing awareness to environmental issues and creating change in their communities, ultimately helping to build a better world.”
The OKC Zoo also emboldens students and all Oklahomans to take conservation action each and every day with the help of technology. Using the interactive app, Litterati, individuals, students, community groups and organizations can track litter collected in their areas. App users then photograph a piece of litter and upload the image along with the location of where it was found to the Litterati database. Participation is free. Learn more at litterati.org.
Oklahoma students in grades K through 12 are eligible to enter through their school, home school, civic group (e.g. Scouts), or on their own. Contest designs will be judged on creativity, originality, meeting art specifications and relevance to the contest theme. Official entry forms and complete contest details are available online at okczoo.org/pepsicontest. Entries become property of the Oklahoma City Zoo and must be postmarked by Saturday, April 16, 2022.
Both contest grand prize winners, one for K-5 division and one for 6-12 division, will receive a $300 gift card to a select OKC Outlets store and their illustration will become the cover art of a Pepsi machine in the Zoo’s entry plaza for an entire year to be viewed by thousands of Zoo patrons. Winners from all award categories will receive a certificate and have their designs on display at the OKC Zoo and OKC Outlets. Contest details and entry forms will be available on the Zoo’s website, okczoo.org/pepsicontest.
