Challenge 5

Welcome to the middle school challenge page for Challenge 5 of the Fairchild Challenge! Read below to find challenge information, entry requirements, resources and more for the challenge.

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Challenge D: Botanical Sculptures 

Title: “Journey of Sustainable Soles” 

For individuals or Groups | Maximum points: 200 

Due Date: Fri., March 13 by 5 p.m. 

Download the Challenge 5 Rubric

Your Challenge:

This challenge invites you to reflect on your personal journey toward sustainability while expressing your creativity through sculpture. Shoes tell powerful stories—they carry us through everyday routines, major life changes, and the paths we choose for the future. Your task is to design and create a 3D sculpture of a pair of shoes (heels, sneakers, boots, sandals, or any style you choose) that represents your journey in sustainability. Think about where you started, what you’ve learned, and where you hope to go. How have your habits, values, or awareness around the environment changed over time? 

Your shoe sculpture must be made entirely from reused or recycled materials, transforming items that might otherwise be discarded into something meaningful. As you design, consider how the materials you choose connect to your message. Consider how your design represents obstacles, growth, progress, or hope. Your sculpture should be both a personal reflection and a statement about the importance of sustainability. 

Along with your sculpture, you will write a brief description explaining your concept, materials used, and personal sustainable narrative. Take time to think deeply about how your artwork reflects sustainability in your own life and why this topic matters to you. 

Materials for the sculptures cannot be purchased new; they must be found at home or school, recycled, or purchased from a secondhand store. We highly recommend visiting the Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse for a wide variety of sculpture-crafting materials! (Please do not use food or living materials.) 

Select sculptures from this challenge will be featured in Phipps’ 2026 summer show – Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Therefore, each sculpture MUST be original and include a photo and description. A very limited number of well-made sculptures will be displayed.

Entry Requirements: Deliver to the high school programs coordinator at Phipps in person or via certified mail (electronic submission is not accepted): 

• Challenge Entry Form 
• A sculpted pair of shoes created using found, recycled, or thrifted materials (NO LIVE PLANT MATERIAL OR GLITTER). 
• Sculptures should be creative, well-constructed, and COLORFUL!  
• Sculptures must be 3D and no larger than 2ft by 2ft and free standing. 
• Include the school name and the participating students’ names. 

*Along with each sculpture, please submit a photo of the designer(s) and a written description. The description should include: 

• A bio for each designer (name, grade, school, and a little bit about yourself and your interests). 
• The materials you used and where they came from. 
• An artist statement (50–250 words) explaining how your shoe sculpture represents your personal sustainability journey and the meaning behind your design choices. 

School Submits: Challenge Entry Form, 3 sculptures MAXIMUM, photo of designer(s), description/bios.

Address:
Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
The Fairchild Challenge c/o Alyssa Mulé
One Schenley Park
Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Resources: The following list of online resources may be used when preparing your entry:

• Sustainability Topics - Sustainability - Research Guides at UCLA Library 
• Topics - Sustainable Earth 
• Sustainability: Protecting Nature and Promoting a Healthy Planet | World Wildlife Fund 
• Young people take the lead for a more sustainable future | UN News 
• EU–UNESCO Partnership: Empowering Youth for a Sustainable Future 
• Youth - United Nations Sustainable Development 
• Youth Empowerment for Sustainable Development Goals 
• Shoe Sculpture Examples

• Grade Six – Eight

Grade Six – Eight

• 3.4.6-8.D Students who demonstrate understanding can gather, read, and synthesize information from multiple sources to investigate how Pennsylvania environmental issues affect Pennsylvania’s human and natural systems. 
• 3.4.6-8.G Students who demonstrate understanding can obtain and communicate information to describe how best resource management practices and environmental laws are designed to achieve environmental sustainability. 
• 3.4.6-8.H Students who demonstrate understanding can design a solution to an environmental issue in which individuals and societies can engage as stewards of the environment. 
• 3.4.6-8.I Students who demonstrate understanding can construct an explanation that describes regional environmental conditions and their implications on environmental justice and social equity. 
• 3.5.6-8.D Students who demonstrate understanding can analyze how the creation and use of technologies consumes renewable, non-renewable, and inexhaustible resources; creates waste; and may contribute to environmental challenges. 
• 3.5.6-8.FF Students who demonstrate understanding can demonstrate how systems thinking involves considering relationships between every part, as well as how the systems interact with the environment in which it is used. 
• 4.1.6.D Explain the costs and benefits of recycling in controlling resource use. 
• 4.3.7.A Explain how products are derived from natural resources. 
  • Describe the process of converting raw materials to consumer goods. 
  • Differentiate between renewable and nonrenewable resources 
• 4.3.7.B Explain the distribution and management of natural resources. 
  • Differentiate between resource uses: conservation, preservation, and exploitation 
• 4.4.8.A Identify and describe how food safety issues have impacted the food and fiber system. 

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