EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grantees

Ibadan, Nigeria

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Environmental Education Programme

ISNAD-Africa’s Environmental Education Programme (EEP) will engage secondary school students in three African countries to identify environmental challenges and needs in their communities and develop solutions to them through critical thinking, peer learning across student teams, mentorship from international experts, and hands-on community projects. Student teams will identify a local environmental need, design and implement a project over the course of 4 months, receive guidance and mentorship from regional experts, and share their results through a webinar with the participating classrooms across 3 countries.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Tell us a bit about yourself!

I am a renewable energy researcher, the founder of the…

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
BEYH 2021: Bookers Environmental Youths Heroes 2021

Bookers Environmental Youths Heroes 2021 will provide 300 students with weekly environmental education lessons in Ifo, Ogun, Nigeria. These lessons will focus on providing theoretical knowledge about the importance of natural resources and their conservation. We will examine major environmental issues from local, national, and international points of view. Participants will also be trained on how to assemble, build, and manage “biodigesters,” which are devices that convert organic waste into biogas and bio-fertilizer. The biogas can be either used for cooking or to generate electricity, while bio-friendly fertilizer can be used by small farm holders.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Ifo, Nigeria
Age: 29

Damilola leads innovative…

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Weaving a net to restore the Sierras de Cordoba Native Forest

Our goal for this project is to raise awareness about the importance of conservation and restoration for the maintenance of ecological services provided by our native forest, conducting workshops in different localities of the region that are in recovery from fires or deforested areas, involving the entire community in restoration processes to generate changemakers across generations. We are an interdisciplinary group of professionals and students volunteering with the Jane Goodall Institute Argentina, and we strongly believe in the transformative potential of environmental education to empower children, youth, and communities.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Córdoba, Argentina               
Age: 28

Sara is the regional…

Copenhagen, Denmark / Cyprus

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Professional Development for Educators through Eco-Schools, Adopting NAAEE's Guidelines for Excellence

This project will provide professional development in environmental education for National Operators of the Foundation for Environmental Education’s Eco-Schools program across 68 countries. Using NAAEE’s Guidelines for Excellence on Professional Development of Environmental Educators as a foundational framework, a series of training modules will be developed around the guidelines’ six themes for competency in EE: Environmental Literacy, Foundations of Environmental Education, Professional Responsibilities of the Environmental Educator, Planning and Implementing Environmental Education, Fostering Learning and Promoting Inclusivity, and Assessment and Evaluation. The project intends to implement this through the lens of the Eco-…

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Peace of Nature: Empowering Youth in STEM Learning & Environmentalism

A Peace of Nature aims to equip traditionally excluded communities with resources and knowledge to act sustainably in their everyday lives and advocate for sustainable behavior in their communities. Youth will receive kits that include a book directly related to an activity that features a typically excluded/underrepresented audience (e.g., girls in STEM, POC); all the resources required for the feature activity; and video tutorials with detailed, step-by-step instructions. The kits will provide interesting and engaging hands-on learning activities and encourage literacy in young audiences to help address the STEM learning gap and drive diversity in the field.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Baltimore, MD, United States
Age: 30

Symone works to…

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Environmental education in a COVID-affected rural community

Green Hope Foundation’s project is using environmental education to build resilience in a rural community impacted by COVID-19. The project’s overall goal is to teach the children about their local environment, hygiene, and sanitation education that will improve their health of the village. They will learn how to segregate and dispose of their household waste, reducing pollution of their water source and thereby ensuring conservation of its biodiversity. In this manner, this project is creating a scalable model that creates resilient communities, that are low-carbon and in balance with a healthy eco-system.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Toronto, Canada
Age: 18

Tell us a bit about yourself!

I am the Founder and President of the…

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Generation Wild: An Exploration of Youth-led Conservation in Canada (with Erinn Drage)

Generation Wild is an online educational digital media series designed to showcase the work of young Canadian environmentalists as they seek to address and mitigate the biggest environmental issues impacting our planet; the climate crisis and biodiversity loss.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Connel is a British/Canadian conservationist currently living in British Columbia, Canada. He works as a Wildlife Education Manager for Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society, where he has set up and now runs free wildlife education programs and nature walks young people on Vancouver Island, his programs have reached over 35000 people.

Connel graduated with…

Bay Area, CA, United States

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Environmental Escape Room Games - Making EE Fun

The project aims to make climate change education fun through immersive environmental education in the Bay Area of California, including a hands-on exhibit and game-style workshops where children can physically experience with all their senses. An interactive escape room (a cross between game, puzzle, and science museum) will allow children to work in teams to solve challenges related to the carbon cycle and their carbon footprint. Next, a series of interactive games with easy-to-find materials will be developed and shared to help schools and parents easily integrate environmental education into daily activities. The project will also pilot workshops in 10 schools, develop an open-source curriculum, and build a permanent environment-themed escape room with free admission for low-…

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Generation Wild: An Exploration of Youth-led Conservation in Canada (with Connel Bradwell)

Generation Wild is an online educational digital media series designed to showcase the work of young Canadian environmentalists as they seek to address and mitigate the biggest environmental issues impacting our planet; the climate crisis and biodiversity loss.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Halifax, NS, Canada                               
Age: 24

Erinn works to connect others to the natural environment through outdoor guiding and storytelling. 

Tell us about yourself!

I was born and raised in the coastal city of Halifax, Nova Scotia, but…

Akpugoeze, Enugu State, Nigeria

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Akpugoeze Community Awareness and Waste Clean-Up Campaign

This project will establish a community-wide campaign and clean-up initiative using environmental education to raise awareness and harness citizen engagement in waste management in the Akpugoeze community complex of southeastern Nigeria. A lack of waste management services in the community poses a health risk to both humans and the endangered Sclater’s monkey, which is endemic to southeastern Nigeria. By harnessing community engagement, the project aims to alleviate pollution, increase community pride, and form the foundation for effective waste management in the community.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography
Emmanuel builds awareness in Nigeria to improve environmental health and human well-being and to protect the endangered Sclater's monkey…

Cameroon 

2023 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Blue Children Initiative: Empowering the Next Generation of Ocean Warriors through Interactive Ocean Education in Cameroon

Ayamba is promoting ocean education among youth by organizing public events that facilitate knowledge exchange and inspire collective action, aligning with the overarching goal of the UN Ocean Decade (2021-2030): to “Change (restore) humanity’s relationship with the Ocean.” Participants in these events will learn about marine, coastal, and aquatic ecosystems, green career opportunities, and participate in marine debris removal and tree planting activities. Ayamba’s project is expected to directly impact over 5,000 youth and indirectly reach over 10,000 individuals.

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Ayamba empowers his community members to sustainably manage, conserve, and protect marine and…

Raleigh, NC, United States

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Training teachers to empower students through water quality action

Through this grant, Lauren will train 20 high school environmental science teachers from across North Carolina to implement a curriculum that teaches students about water quality issues and empowers them to engage in community action to address those issues. The project aims to increase teacher capacity to incorporate student-led, project-based environmental education in the classroom, with the long-term goal of empowering youth for environmental action.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

For over seven years, Lauren has dedicated herself to environmental education through youth-focused environmental activism and mentorship. In 2009, she founded and began leading the Carmel Green Teen Micro-Grant Program (…

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Nimiipuu’neewit: Lifeways of Our Homelands

Nimiipuu'neewit: Lifeways of our Homelands is a community-based program promoting the healing (restoration) and protection (conservation) of our homelands through culture, science, and education. The program objectives are to strengthen participants' cultural identity, connection to place, and stewardship of the land; improve community health by promoting subsistence consumption and outdoor activity; and introduce education and career pathways that connect us to our homelands. Both participants and partners engage in a unique experience to learn about Nimiipuu culture, our homelands from different perspectives, and generate relationships to our homelands that will permeate to the future generations.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

“The earth is part of my body I belong to the land out of…

Brigitta is a visionary leader who empowers communities to take meaningful actions to protect the ocean through environmental education, habitat restoration, and science.

Indonesia, Age 19 

Panguru, Aotearoa (New Zealand)

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Food Systems for Resilience & Regeneration

Through a series of hands-on educational modules, this project will empower community members with the knowledge, skills, motivation, and resources to build and expand local food systems that mitigate and are resilient to climate change. The modules will engage community members to build organic no-dig garden beds and a perennial food forest, and each module will combine both theory and critical hands-on learning and creating to equip participants with the ability to scale the approaches to their own contexts. The resulting food forest and organic garden beds will serve as a living resource where seeds, plants, trees, compost, and knowledge will be propagated and offered to the wider community, to ensure community members have the means to replicate such systems.

Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of the Congo

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Urban reforestation and environmental education in 40 schools across Lubumbashi

Working with schools in Lubumbashi, DRC, an area largely degraded due to mining and population growth, the project will engage students in urban reforestation and educational activities about climate change, the impact of deforestation, and effective practices for planting, monitoring, and caring for trees. The schools will plant both fruit trees and copper-resistant species, and to foster student ownership the project will form student environmental committees in each school to help lead their educational and reforestation activities.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography
Mariam works to blend education and reforestation in the Congo Basin.

Tell us about yourself!…

Los Angeles, CA, United States

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Student-led projects to greenify low-income elementary schools and reduce carbon dioxide emissions

Through the University of Southern California (USC)'s Joint Educational Project (JEP) and Young Scientists Program (YSP), this project will engage elementary school students in the Los Angeles Unified School District to learn about their carbon footprint and sustainable solutions to reduce it. The project will also enable students in seven elementary schools to greenify their schools through student projects that promote carbon capture and carbon footprint reduction. Along with planning and implementing their projects, students will also be able to track the direct impact of their solutions using carbon dioxide sensors.

**********

2019 Biography Update: "Where are they now?"

Currently I’m working on a…

Age: 25

Sierra Leone

2023 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Teach for Climate Project

The Teach for Climate project is a school-based initiative that aims to educate 5,000 students across 20 schools in Makeni, Northern Sierra Leone, about climate change, its impact on ecosystems and society, and steps to mitigate its effects. The project will host a 10-day training for a cohort of 10 volunteer climate peer educators, primarily university students pursuing climate and environmental-related degrees, to become certified environmental educators capable of facilitating and engaging secondary students in discussions about climate change and environmental sustainability. 

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Musa (he/him) mobilizes young people and local communities, activating positive change for sustainable livelihoods.

How are you…

Anghy is a dedicated environmental educator who actively leads projects, engages in various programs, and collaborates on platforms aimed at creating a sustainable future for all.

Peru, Age 24 

Regional Ambassador, Tunza Eco Generation; ClimateScience Teacher Ambassador, ClimateScience; PIM promoter on "Programa de Integración Minera" (Mining Integration Program)

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Empower Rural Women Leaders for Climate Action

Rural populations and most particularly women in rural India have greater vulnerability to the impacts of environmental degradation and climate change. They also have different perspectives, concerns, and ideas for change. For environmental sustainability and to develop climate resilience, this project aims to train elected women leaders at the grassroots level with knowledge about and tools to address prevailing environmental concerns, to equip them to make informed decisions for their communities and even integrate climate actions into the annual plans of the local government where these women are leaders.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Kolkata, India                                 …

Pittsburgh, PA, United States
Age: 30

2023 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Future-Visioning and Arts-Based Learning at the Intersections of the Food Justice and Climate Justice Movement(s)

This project will use Hadestown—a Broadway musical that explores themes of hunger, survival, climate change, collective action, solidarity, and karma—as a catalyst for discussing environmental and social issues. Program participants will:

• Recognize and articulate how their own values, interests, identities, and actions relate to the broader food justice and climate justice movements.
• Recognize and articulate areas of sameness, difference, and solidarity with the values, interests, identities, and actions of people in other roles within the food justice and climate justice movements.
…

Wendy is a passionate young woman from the global south championing climate action, quality education and gender equality.

Kenya, Age 29  

Guatemala City, Guatemala

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Reconnecting children from coastal communities for mangrove forest conservation in the Guatemalan Pacific

Implemented through Semillas del Océano, the project will reconnect children from schools along the Guatemalan Pacific coast with local mangroves, to ignite their curiosity about the environment and community conservation actions. Through environmental education and a citizen science program, students will be empowered to collect their own data and share conservation messages with their own communities. Using both the mangrove and an educational laboratory, activities will center around raising awareness, making observations, experimentation and analysis, and student empowerment.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography
Alerick is sowing the seeds of marine conservation through environmental education in…

Tanahun, Nepal

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Behavior change tiger conservation campaign in Bardia National Park, Nepal

This project aims to develop harmony between growing tiger and human populations in the Terai lowlands of Nepal to prevent violence against tigers, ensure human safety, and improve livelihoods. A training workshop will work to enhance the knowledge and skills of 20 local educators (including school teachers, community leaders, park staff, and others) located near the human-wildilfe conflict zone, and will be accompanied with a training manual on human-tiger coexistence for the participants to apply what they learn in their communities. Following the training, participants will be asked to organize educational activities around tiger conservation in their communities, using the knowledge and skills gained from the training and manual.

**********

EE 30…

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Climate Literacy Collaborative

The Marine Mammal Center identified a gap in support for environmental educators and a continued need for capacity-building and created the Climate Literacy Collaborative. New capacity-building initiatives will develop a series of workshops and a climate solution toolkit that address current deficiencies in environmental education and will support resilient communities and healthy ecosystems through climate adaptation and mitigation strategies. The Climate Literacy Collective will serve as a resource for capacity building, program exhibit design, and message development. It will also serve as a community-scale model for efforts to tackle climate change education at a collective level.

**********

2019 #WhereAreTheyNow Update

I just entered my 11th year at The…

Englewood, FL, United States

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Puerto Rico EarthEcho Water Challenge Ambassadors Initiative

This project will increase environmental literacy in select communities in Puerto Rico by building the capacity of 10 young leaders to serve as environmental educators, engaging their local community in citizen science and restoration efforts focused on improving the health of their local watersheds. Building on EarthEcho’s Water Challenge Ambassador program, and using a peer to peer education approach, the project will bring together student leaders from the mainland U.S., EarthEcho staff, and partners at the San Juan Bay Estuary Program, to train 10 Puerto Rican high school student leaders to monitor water quality through the EarthEcho Water Challenge, a global citizen science water monitoring effort. These Puerto Rico-based EarthEcho Water Challenge Ambassadors will…

Age: 30

American Samoa

2023 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Nursery and Umu Development

This grant will be used to expand Finafinau’s plant nursery to accommodate a diverse array of vegetable and fruit plants, providing a protected haven against inclement weather, pests, and local wildlife. An expanded nursery offers more opportunities for hands-on learning, particularly for youth, allowing them to gain practical experience in planting, nurturing, and harvesting crops, teaching them about agriculture and sustainability. Additionally, the project aims to construct an authentic Samoan above-ground oven, an "umu," reviving this traditional cooking method with deep cultural significance, showcasing and celebrating Samoan culinary practices.

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Sabrina (she/her) emboldens young Pacific islanders to be…

Boston, MA, United States / Spain

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Circular Cities Week 2020

The Circular Economy Club (CEC) will host its second annual Circular Cities Week in October 2020 across 140 cities with the objectives of 1) educating citizens about the circular economy model and how to build a circular city that promotes economic development, social inclusion and ends with the concept of waste and environmental impact; and 2) creating an open-source report of challenges, opportunities, and next steps for all participating cities that city officials can use to pursue local circular strategies. The condensed time frame of "Circular Cities Week" encourages a sense of urgency and purpose designed to help stakeholders learn about the circular economy model and identify opportunities, challenges, and next steps for supporting circularity at the city level.

**********

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Building Leadership Capacity in YEAS Student Ambassadors

The Youth Environmental Action Summit (YEAS) is a community-based program that brings together 150 students each year in a forum to make positive environmental change in their communities. Since its inception, students have been involved in all aspects of the program including planning and design to ensure that it truly supports their interests. This Changemaker Grant will enable YEAS to build new capacities in Ambassadors by more thoroughly incorporating leadership development through a series of professional development opportunities and a student leadership retreat. Additionally, YEAS will put into practice a long-standing interest in compensating students for their meaningful work through stipends.

**********

2019 #WhereAreTheyNow Update

Through the ee360 Fellowship, Elise has…

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Youth Voices for OUR Ecological Constitution

Youth Voices for OUR Ecological Constitution will generate a series of meetings in all regions of Chile so that young people can define a position on the new Constitution that the country will write on environmental issues. This, coupled with a process of training and advocacy with the elected constituents, will help bring together the vision of youth from all parts of the country to build an Ecological Constitution, as well as empowering young people to be part of public discussions and democratic processes, while building long-term capacity and knowledge.

**********

EE 30 Under 30 Biography

Santiago, Chile
Age: 26

Isabella is a civil engineer who connects students and young professionals across Chile who represent the many aspects of sustainability.

How…

Bukit Mertajam, Malaysia   

2023 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Working Together for Coexistence: An Environmental Education-Based Approach to Conserving Urban Monkeys in Penang, Malaysia

Jo Leen Yap and Langur Project Penang (LPP) aim to foster coexistence between humans and urban wildlife. With this grant, environmental education and community engagement activities will be scaled up in two ongoing projects:

• Bridge to Coexist: Reducing roadkill incidents of arboreal wildlife in Penang and working with the Tanjung Bungah community to develop a management plan and recommendations for humane and sustainable approaches to mitigate negative human-primate interactions.
• Coexistence for All: Addressing issues related to humans feeding…

2021 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Reef Spawn: Broadcasting marine environmental education in Malaysia and beyond

Reef Spawn is a youth capacity development program brought to you by Reef Stakes®, the first marine-themed role-playing card game in Malaysia. Through four practitioner-led virtual sessions followed by a three-day, two-night hands-on bootcamp, Reef Spawn will equip 12 budding conservationists with the knowledge and skills necessary to contribute to the marine environment in Malaysia. The 12 selected participants are expected to broadcast the lessons learned and empower other youths in their communities to champion the marine environment.

**********

E 30 Under 30 Biography

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia                                
Age: 27

Yew Aun shares his passion for…

London, United Kingdom

2020 EE 30 Under 30 Changemaker Grant Project
Ma'na - Environmental & Resilience Training

In collaboration with the Impulsum Lab, this project will create the first environmental training program in Mexico for coffee farmers who are facing challenges due to climate change, using a participatory approach to skill development. Piloting with two coffee cooperatives in Oaxaca, the project will promote a framework for sustainable agri-food practices that guarantees food security and stable livelihoods for rural farmers, which will integrate environmental training (awareness of natural resources and environmental conservation), community-based resilience and adaptation (using circular economy models), and mitigation (sustainable agriculture practices and forest conservation agriculture). The long-term goal is to adapt the program for additional agri-food sectors.