Elaine Blatt and the Bad Apple Campaign was nominated by Sanne Stienstra of Oregon DEQ. Sanne had this to say as she presented the award: 

"I am so happy to help present a Sustainable Oregon Award to Elaine Blatt and the Bad Apple Campaign project team, which also included former DEQ employee Julie Miller and a wonderful team from RockIt Science Agency. As DEQ’s communications manager, Harry Esteve, said in the nomination letter, Elaine was the “creative brains and engine” that pushed forward this consumer-facing campaign developed through research, rigorous testing and collaboration.

The Bad Apple uses humor and tested messages to reach people across Oregon and bring more attention to the issue of food waste. Through television, streaming, social media and webpage views, Elaine and the project team achieved an impressively wide reach with a modest budget. Elaine’s creativity also led to additional opportunities to spread the Bad Apple Campaign’s messages even further, including through partnerships with local governments in Oregon and across the nation through Food Waste Prevention Week.

And Elaine hasn’t stopped there – now she is working with RockIt Science to consider the next phase of the campaign, which will create deeper engagement with local communities, continue to broaden the campaign’s reach, including with Spanish-speaking audiences. Thank you so much for your commitment to addressing food waste not only in the residential sector but across all phases of the food system, and for bringing so much care and thoughtfulness to how DEQ and our partners across Oregon do this work."