young adults standing together in a line in front of trees
LEAF Interns The Conservancy’s LEAF and Healthy Trees, Healthy Cities program interns finishing a day of monitoring trees impacted by Hurricane Sandy in New York City. © Karine Aigner

How We Work

Youth Engagement

We recognize young people as vital ambassadors for the planet.

Youth Engagement programs at The Nature Conservancy aim to engage the next generation in conservation by expanding digital learning platforms for educators and growing volunteer opportunities for youth through our Nature Works Everywhere program as well as creating pathways to conservation careers through our LEAF and GLOBE Internship Programs.

Youth Engagement at The Nature Conservancy operates under three strategies:

  • LEARN – by influencing environmental learning in the classroom and using digital technology we can demonstrate nature’s value to a growing youth population. (Nature Works Everywhere)
  • ACT – by creating opportunities to engage in nature we can increase volunteer opportunities for youth. (Nature Works Everywhere Grant Program)
  • LEAD – by creating pathways to conservation careers with high school and college summer internships we can prepare students for careers in the conservation workforce. (LEAF & GLOBE Internship Program)

Youth Engagement Around the World

two young girls in a field looking up
Nevada LEAF interns study plant life at The Nature Conservancy's River Fork Ranch Preserve outside of Carson City. © Simon Williams/The Nature Conservancy
young children looking at a worm in a garden
Washington, D.C. Young volunteers look for worms in the dirt during a garden build day at Seaton Elementary School in the Shaw District. © Devan King/The Nature Conservancy
interns pouring sand into bucket
Washington LEAF interns separate smelt fish eggs from refined sand and heavy particles during a Forage fish monitoring session. © Hannah Letinich/The Nature Conservancy
girl looks into microscope in a lab
Rhode Island A LEAF intern works in a lab at the School for Ocean Sciences. © Heather Perry
students watering greenspace
Shenzhen, China 'Young Naturalists' students volunteer in their school's greenspace. © Theodore Kaye
young girl paints sign outdoors
Washington, D.C. A young student paints signage for her new school garden at Seaton Elementary in the Shaw District. © Devan King/The Nature Conservancy
interns haul large seine net
Block Island GLOBE interns haul in a 130-foot seine net during the Juvenile Fish Survey. © Courtesy of Siddharth Motwani
three women bird watch on island
Rhode Island LEAF interns and their mentor bird watch in Andy's Way in New Shoreham. © Devan King/The Nature Conservancy
hand holding oyster clusters
New York, New York LEAF interns work on the Billion Oyster Project, a citizen science project co-ordinated by the New York Harbor School with the goal of restoring one billion live oysters. © Kevin Arnold
× two young girls in a field looking up
× young children looking at a worm in a garden
× interns pouring sand into bucket
× girl looks into microscope in a lab
× students watering greenspace
× young girl paints sign outdoors
× interns haul large seine net
× three women bird watch on island
× hand holding oyster clusters

Investing in young people today protects our conservation efforts for tomorrow.

Alexis Vaughn

Director of Strategic Initiatives, Global Cities

Featured Reports

  • smiling youth in forest leaning over railing

    2017 Youth Impact Report

    Report (31.92 MB PDF)

    Discover how Youth Engagement at The Nature Conservancy has impacted students, families, educators, and the communities they call home.

    DOWNLOAD

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

Our Impact

Students from Chamblee Middle School in Atlanta, Georgia and Nature Works Everywhere garden grant recipients use the online platform to plan their garden.

LEARN

8.4M young people have gained E-STEM knowledge.

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A young girl volunteers at Seaton Elementary school for a garden build day in the Shaw District of Washington, D.C.

ACT

90K young people have gained direct access to nature through building & revitalizing gardens & greenspaces.

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Block Island GLOBE Intern, Emmanuelle Gourier records data collected from a species survey and field sampling on Great Salt Pond on Block Island, Rhode Island.

LEAD

1680 young people have gained real life conservation experience.

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National support of The Nature Conservancy's Youth Engagement programs is made possible through Lowe's.

Contact the Youth Engagement Team

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