An animated public service announcement, “Henry and Fred Learn About Lead,” produced by the Healthy Environments for Children Initiative in the Department of Extension, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, has won second prize in a national video contest sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The awards were announced at CDC’s National Environmental Health Conference on Oct. 27, 2009, as part of the observance of National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week. The purpose of the contest was to raise public awareness of lead poisoning, and the winners were selected for their ability to help educate the public about the adverse health effects of lead poisoning, how lead exposure occurs, and ways to prevent lead poisoning.

The “Henry and Fred” video was produced by the Healthy Environments for Children Initiative, in cooperation with staff, faculty, and students from the Department of Extension (text, Joan Bothell; consultant, Mary-Margaret Gaudio); the Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering (animation, Phillip Caron); the Department of Dramatic Arts (voiceovers, Karen Ryker, Sarah Murdoch Billard, and Daniel Seigerman); and the Design Center (original graphics, Mary Banas and John Paul Chirdon).