Issue link: http://psai.uberflip.com/i/1390352
ASSOCIATIONINSIGHT Portable Sanitation Association International News BIWEEKLY EDITION JULY 7, 2021 Page 14 Congratulations Austin! P SAI Scholarship winner Austin Amelse is the son of Michelle Amelse, Marketing Director at Satellite Industries. Austin is a recent alumnus of St. Louis Park High School located in the greater Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. He graduated in the top 25% of his class, taking a wide range of advanced placement and honors courses along the way. During his school career Austin spent four years on the Student Advisory Council, winning the Presidential award in 2017. He played varsity hockey for three years, and he served as captain of the team. Austin was also all-conference in varsity football, and he played JV basketball as well. He is a member of the National Honor Society. In addition to his school activities Austin held a part time job as a wait assistant and host for a local restaurant during high school. He also worked as a youth soccer referee, and volunteered at Treehouse Hope, a charity aimed at eliminating teen homelessness. Next year, Austin is heading for Arizona State University in Tempe where he plans to major in engineering. In applying for the scholarship, Austin shared, "I enjoy the challenging, hands-on nature of engineering and the problem-solving skills that are required. I feel that I can make an impact in the world through this course of study because many of the engineering careers provide immediate and long-term solutions in the community. I plan to complete an undergraduate program in four years and explore graduate studies. A college education is critical for an engineering career. Completion of a degree will help me succeed as an adult and as a contributing member of the workforce and in my community." Austin's winning essay can be found on pages 14–16 of this newsletter. Congratulations Austin! Changing Portable Sanitation into a Respected Alternative in the Minds of the Public By Austin Amelse I n the U.S., people see using a portable toilet as a last resort when they need to go to the bathroom. Most people view portable sanitation as dirty, foul-smelling, and undignified. Especially now in the age of COVID-19 where everyone is more cautious of situations that might lead to the spread of germs, a portable toilet is potentially seen as an even greater contaminant risk to their health. In some cases, people will "hold it" until they can use a real bathroom or relieve themselves in the open outdoors vs. using a portable toilet. It's ironic because portable sanitation is meant to provide people a private and safe option to go to the bathroom in public spaces, yet the public still struggles to view it as such. The first issue is that most people in the U.S. don't realize what their life and experience would be like without portable sanitation. As such, they take it for granted and do not view portable sanitation as a respected alternative to an in-home bathroom. However, if portable sanitation was not an option in the U.S., there would be waste and open defecation everywhere causing safety issues, disease, and death. Ultimately a lower quality of life. Not only that, but we would end up paying a substantially higher cost to clean waste from public places because people would not have another option when they "had to go." This would clearly be less sanitary than our current situation. Continued on page 15