Our Mission

Our mission at Upcycled is to create a more environmentally conscious community through the collection of post-consumer plastic waste and upcycling into long-term products. We give single-use plastics that most traditional recycling plants cannot process a long-term purpose by turning them into building materials.

Our main program, Waste to Wonder, emphasizes community engagement by organizing clean-ups of local natural areas, setting up drop-off locations for recyclables, upcycling those recyclables into building materials, and donating built structures such as picnic tables, benches, and garden beds back to the community.

Upcycled Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. All donations are tax deductible. ​A copy of the current financial statement of Upcycled Inc. is available by emailing us at Admin@goupcycled.com


  • Oakland Mills High School - (2) Benches and (1) Shorty Picnic Table

  • Running Brook Elementary School- (1) Bench

  • Oakland Mills Middle School- (1) Bench

  • Swansfield Elementary School- (1) Bench

  • Phelps Luck Elementary School- (1) Planter Box

  • Gorman Crossing Elementary School- (1) Bench

  • Deep Run Elementary School- (2) Planter Boxes

  • Howard County Community College- (1) Bench

  • Carroll Baldwin Hall- (3) Benches and (1) Bike rack

  • Savage Mill- (1) Bench

  • Columbia Montessori School- (1) Bench

  • Freetown Farm- (3) Shorty-Benches, (2) Benches V3 and (1) Shorty Picnic Table

  • United Way Family Center- (2) Shorty-Benches and (1) Picnic Table

  • Howard County Conservancy- (1) Planter Box and (1) Bench V3

  • Cradlerock Elementary School- (1) Bench and (1) Bench V3

  • Owen Brown Interfaith Center- (1) Bench

  • Longfellow Elementary School- (1) Planter Box

  • Clemens Crossing Elementary School- (1) Bench

  • Howard High School- (1) Planter Box

  • Howard County EcoWorks (Jessup Garden)- (2) Shorty Picnic Tables

  • Long Reach High School- (1) Bench V3

  • Hammond High School- (1) Bench V3

  • Mt. Hebron High School- (1) Bench V3

  • Monarch Mills- (1) Picnic Table and (2) Shorty Benches

  • Roger Carter Community Center- (1) Bench V3

  • North Laurel Community Center- (1) Bench V3

  • Historic Ellicott City- (1) Bench V3

  • Raffled (owned by residents)- (1) Shorty Bench

  • Donated and Auctioned (owned by residents)- (1) Shorty Bench, (1) Bench V3 and (1) Shorty Picnic Table

Visit Our Structures

Meet the Team

CO-FOUNDERS

Orlando Goncalves (Left) and Alfred Striano (Right) began the mission of Upcycled Inc. in September of 2019. Since the start the two have built partnerships with manufacturing companies, local businesses, and residents with the goal to incorporate the organization as a non-profit. Prior to starting Upcycled Inc. the duo started an entertainment business hosting various events such as chili-cook offs, field days, bar crawls and trail clean-ups. The clean-ups quickly became a favorite and the focus of the company. Upon learning about the Precious Plastic community and the possibilities of recycling plastic the pair decided to switch paths and adopt the open-sourced process and start Upcycled Inc. with the mission of giving single-use plastic a long-term purpose!

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Darryl Pastor is the owner and operator of Deep Roots Movement, a fitness studio in Ellicott City, Maryland. He is a lover of nature and spends his free time exploring Patapsco Valley State Park and growing food.  Darryl is passionate about nature, sustainability, and re-imaging systems that no longer work for humanity and the rest of the planet. He has been an admirer of Upcycled throughout the years, participating in trail clean ups, attending fundraisers, and cheering them on through social media. He looks forward to pushing forward the Upcycled mission and goals as a member of the board.  

Brittany Wisniewski is a best selling author of “Keeping Well: An Anti-Cancer Guide to Remain in Remission”, a detoxification therapist and Co-Founder of trash cleanup organization Hands On HIIT . After losing her mother to breast cancer, she transformed her pain into a passion by studying natural health which opened her eyes to The Earth’s severe environmental issues. She started Hands On HIIT with friends during the global pandemic to provide Baltimore City citizens the opportunity to take care of themselves and give back. The event connects the community through fitness classes, cleanups and happy hours . So far, Hands On HIIT has removed over 4,700 lbs of trash and counting from cities and beaches all over the United States.

Andrew Sherman is the Owner and Co-founder of American Bully Manufacturing. With 10+ years of experience in the manufacturing industry, Andrew took his love for creating and innovating and opened a business to develop groundbreaking products for clients. With his entrepreneurial spirit, he is determined to change the way people look at manufacturing and focus on bringing back US-made products. He is fully involved in the surrounding manufacturing community and volunteers his time for young adults in the Manufacturing industry. In his spare time, you'll find him going on adventures with his rescue dog, Chevy.

Kelsey Abernathy, an environmental scientist, has always had an interest in sustainability. She has a PhD in Environmental Molecular Biology and is a co-founder of the living technology company, AlgenAir. Kelsey has expertise in early product development, fundraising, and strategic planning for startup growth. She is thrilled to be joining Upcycled as part of the board.

Alec Bovill, a father of two, resides locally to Upcycled near Howard County, MD. Working for 84 Lumber, the largest privately owned building supply company, Alec is constantly problem solving and finding new innovative ways to source building materials. With his attachment to the environment, Alec is eager to incorporate everyday building knowledge to our team to expand and share Upcycled's ultimate mission to give single use plastics a long term purpose.

Dan Fuchich holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Molecular Biology from the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science ‘20 and a B.S. in Biology from Duquesne University ‘15. Trained as a scientist, loves solving problems related to engineering. Dan fell in love with decentralized additive manufacturing early in the cofounding of AlgenAir, a company that builds living machines to improve indoor air quality.