Yan-Da Lee (李彥達) (he/him)

How are you using education to build more sustainable and equitable communities? Tell us about your EE work and impact. 

I use environmental education to help people build meaningful relationships with the places they live and turn those relationships into lasting action.

At Zhishan Cultural and Ecological Garden in Taipei, I design learning experiences that connect urban communities with nearby nature through biodiversity exploration, citizen science, habitat stewardship, and sustainable living. Children and families may begin by observing insects, birds, trees, or aquatic ecosystems, while volunteers and community members learn to monitor species, collect ecological data, restore habitats, and eventually guide others.

I also work with schools, community groups, cultural institutions, and local partners to bring environmental learning beyond our site. I adapt programs for different ages, abilities, and backgrounds so that more people can participate meaningfully in environmental education.

My goal is not simply to deliver one successful program, but to create pathways from curiosity to participation, stewardship, and leadership. When participants gain the knowledge, confidence, and opportunities to contribute, environmental action becomes less dependent on a few individuals and more deeply rooted in the community.

Tell us about your journey to where you are today. What inspired you? What has your path been like? 

I grew up exploring nature in places that have since changed or disappeared as cities expanded. Those experiences made me curious about the natural world and taught me how easily our connections with local environments can be lost.

My path into environmental education was shaped by both ecology and the humanities. Ecology taught me to observe relationships within ecosystems, while the humanities encouraged me to think about the relationships between people, places, culture, and memory. Eventually, I found environmental education to be a space where these perspectives could come together.

As I began working with children, families, volunteers, and communities, I noticed that many environmental initiatives depended on a few passionate individuals. When they stepped away, the action often faded. This led me to ask a question that continues to shape my work: What happens after an environmental education program ends?

Today, I see my role not only as an educator, but as someone who helps create opportunities for people to build their own relationships with nature, develop confidence, and carry environmental action forward themselves.

How can people learn more about or support your work? 

The best way to support my work is to connect, exchange ideas, and explore opportunities to collaborate.

I am always interested in learning from educators, community organizations, cultural institutions, and conservation practitioners working in different places and contexts. I am especially interested in exchanging approaches to urban environmental education, citizen science, community stewardship, and ways of connecting ecology with culture and local stories.

People can learn more about my work through Zhishan Cultural and Ecological Garden and the Wild Bird Society of Taipei, where environmental education, biodiversity monitoring, volunteer engagement, and community partnerships come together in practice.

I also welcome opportunities to share experiences across communities and countries. Whether through a collaborative project, an educational exchange, or simply a conversation, I would be happy to connect and learn together.

A Little More About Me

If a genie granted you one wish, what would it be?
I would wish for the ability to fly, so I could experience nature from a bird’s-eye view. Perhaps seeing the world from a different perspective would inspire new ways of thinking about our relationship with nature.

What makes you most excited to be an EE30U30 awardee?
I am most excited to meet environmental educators from different cultures and ecosystems, exchange ideas, and discover how our diverse experiences might inspire new possibilities for one another.

What are you grateful for on this journey? 
I’m grateful to everyone I’ve met—and those I have yet to meet—who has shared their time, ideas, resources, and experiences with me. I’m happy that environmental education has brought our paths together, and I look forward to continuing to learn from one another and contribute, in our own ways, to the planet we all call home.