Participants in the 2025 Trash the Runway event on Feb. 27, 2025. (Image courtesy of Amanda Tipton Photography)
The 15th year of Trash the Runway, a recycled couture fashion event, took place on Feb. 27 at Macky Auditorium at the University of Colorado Boulder. The event featured elementary, middle and high school students creating dresses, suits, handbags and accessories out of trash.
According to its website, “Trash the Runway is a nonprofit organization that hosts a design competition challenging middle and high school students to create high-fashion garments entirely out of found, non-recyclable or non-compostable materials, culminating in a runway fashion show that rivals the beauty and creativity of professional couture shows.”
The show’s goal is “to develop resilient leaders of tomorrow who are adept at tackling global challenges by unlocking confidence, creativity and new ways of critical thinking.”
At the event, students showcased their creations onstage and explained their material choices, challenges and artistic processes.
The designs were judged in six categories: Functionality, innovation, structural integrity, overall design, transformation from their original form and if the materials would have otherwise ended up in a landfill.
The show began with program directors Tanja Leonard and Ruth Wight addressing the audience about the significance of Trash the Runway and their admiration for the students’ work.
“These students show leadership with global challenges and hope for a better future for us all,” Leonard said.“I hope this night makes you look at trash differently.”
Wiight echoed Leonard’s sentiments, emphasizing how much the event has grown over the years.
“For this 15th show, we have 8500 attendees compared to our first, which only had 30,” Wight said. “I’m proud of this organization.”
As the show progressed, master of ceremonies Simone Ross introduced the student designers, highlighting their creativity and dedication to sustainability.
“They are brilliant,” Ross said. “It’s more than making clothes from tea bags and chip bags. These designers are conscious.”
The event kicked off with elementary school students showcasing their designs made from materials such as old straws, newspaper bags, plastic bracelets, dog food bags, book covers and popped inflatable toys. These students spent about 15 minutes walking the runway, waving to their families and smiling from ear to ear before taking their seats in the audience.
Next, middle school students took the stage, presenting designs that reflected both artistic expression and environmental awareness.
One standout was Genevieve Roetter, a seventh grader at Southern Hills Middle School, who created a dress out of receipts, wires, CDs and packaging plastic.
“Throughout the entire process, I realized how much trash we actually generate because of how much stuff we buy,” Roetter said. “Everybody really needs to focus on what we’re buying and where it’s coming from. Just because it’s cheap, convenient or arrives overnight doesn’t mean we should take it for granted.”
Another middle schooler, Eira Testa, took a different approach, using color to convey an environmental message. A sixth grader at Southern Hills, she crafted a dress using foam packaging sheets, election yard signs, construction building wrap, tape and food bag nets.
“I want the audience to know that this colorful dress is more than just a piece of fashion,” Testa said. “It’s a statement about the immense beauty that exists in nature and reminds us what we stand to lose if we don’t take action. Each color represents something irreplaceable, something worth fighting for.”
Following the middle school showcase, high school designers presented their creations, pushing the boundaries of sustainable fashion even further.
In total, seventeen students from Boulder High School, Watershed School, Fairview High School and New Vista High School closed the show.
Rylan Neumann, one of the high school designers, created a dress from banners and garden edging, drawing inspiration from the idea of beauty amid chaos.
“Even though the world may seem chaotic and unpredictable right now, you can find beauty in something,” Neumann said. “And if that’s here at Trash the Runway, that’s amazing. Or anywhere else in your life — there’s always beauty, you just have to find it.”
Following Neumann’s presentation, another designer, Izzy Rhodes-Wolin, took a deeply personal approach to her creation. Drawing inspiration from her sister’s battle with Type 1 diabetes, she incorporated medical supplies into her garment to tell a story of resilience.
“My sister has been battling this disease since 2017,” she said. “Tonight, I’m wearing a dress decorated with Type 1 diabetes medical supplies collected by my sister and her community. I hope this dress represents strength and resilience for you.”
The event was meaningful for everyone involved — students creating sustainable pieces, parents watching their children’s creativity shine, judges evaluating innovation and audience members learning about sustainability through fashion.
While the show celebrated the designers’ achievements, it also underscored the pressing reality of environmental challenges and the role of younger generations in shaping a more sustainable future.
Contact CU Independent Assistant Arts Editor Lou Leclercq at louison.leclercq@colorado.edu
