Earth-Hero, 11, Imagines A Brighter Future On The 51st Earth Day

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, CA —Ryan Hickman has imagined a greener future for most of his 11 years. The founder of Ryan's Recycling, who began his dream for the love of a garbage truck, is now changing the way the next generation thinks about the planet.

Most recently, Old Navy brought Ryan onboard as the store's head of FUNcycling.

"I'm really passionate about recycling and taking care of our environment and that's why I'm so excited to be partnering with Old Navy to make plastic waste a thing of the past," Hickman said in a released statement. "Together we will work to raise awareness and support those that are making a difference in their communities."

"He might be 11-years-old, but he also represents a whole wave of innovative, earth-minded kids that are changing the way we think about trash," an Old Navy spokesperson said. "As part of his new role with Old Navy, Ryan will be helping the brand select kid-led GoFundMe sustainability projects to sponsor

As for Old Navy, and its parent company The Gap, the store plans on eliminating all plastic shopping bags at their U.S. and Canada stores by 2023. The hope is for kids to grow up in a cleaner, greener world, they say.

"Sustainability starts with each and every one of us," they said.

Working with Ryan, they have already identified fundraisers created by young advocates leading environmental progress in their communities to support. In Southern California, those include:

• A 1,000 tree-planting project in Long Beach
• A Perfect Plastic mobile recycling workshop in Van Nuys.

Thanks to a $11,000 donation from Old Navy, two Van Nuys area high school students fulfilled their $12,000 goal to begin collecting recycled plastics and educating others on how to transform "perfect plastic" into useable goods. That total continues to grow, as now they begin the process of buying the machines and more practical planning.

"We can't believe that our most recent donation is from Old Navy for an Earth Day event," they wrote over GoFundMe. "We feel really lucky for the opportunity they have given us."

Hickman reflected on the work the young fundraisers are doing to make their world a better place. "I am a strong believer that we can make a big impact when we all work together," Hickman says.

There is never a better time to do that than Earth Day.