Green Partners update: Take our survey to provide feedback on Green Partners grants plus grants and training opportunities

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green partners

Provide feedback on the Green Partners environmental education grants program: take our survey

The Green Partners environmental education program provides funding, training and support to organizations to implement projects that motivate residents to take action to protect the environment.

Planting pollinator garden

Over the past five years, we have worked with 133 grantees and awarded more than $1.3 million in grant funding. These projects have successfully engaged audiences throughout Hennepin County in learning about and taking action to reduce waste, recycle, reduce household hazardous waste, conserve energy, protect pollinators, and improve our air and water quality.

Evaluating the program to ensure continued success

Waste sorting

To ensure the program continues to be successful, we are currently conducting an evaluation of the grant program. The evaluation will reassess goals, analyze outcomes, check alignment with community needs and county goals, look for efficiencies in program management, and develop recommendations for future environmental education grants.

Take our survey

We invite anyone familiar with the Green Partners environmental education grants program - whether or not you have received a grant - to take our survey.

The survey is an opportunity for community partners, current and former grantees, and other stakeholders to provide feedback on four areas of the program:

  1. Program reach – are we reaching important audiences?
  2. Application and contracting process – is the program accessible?
  3. Project outcomes – are behaviors changing?
  4. Program and project support – is the support we provide addressing the needs of our partners?

The survey should take 15 to 30 minutes to complete and will be available through March 2. Thank you for providing your feedback!

Save the date: input meeting on March 20

Once the survey has closed, we will summarize the information and hold a meeting in late March to gather additional feedback.

The meeting will be held March 20 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Minnesota National Wildlife Refuge in Bloomington. Attendance during the entire timeframe will not be required. The meeting will feature an open house to learn more about the program accomplishments, hear from grantees about their recently completed projects, and network with fellow educators. The meeting will also feature roundtable discussions to provide feedback on the Green Partners environmental education grants program.

Stay tuned to this newsletter or the Green Partners web page for more information.

If you have any questions, contact Patience Caso at patience.caso@hennepin.us or 612-348-9352.

Get recognized for your efforts: EPA environmental education awards

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has environmental education awards that recognize outstanding environmental projects by K-12 youth and teachers.

The youth award honors a wide variety of projects developed by young individuals, school classes (kindergarten through high school), summer camps, public interest groups, and youth organizations to promote environmental awareness. Recent award-winning student projects included forming recycling programs for pencils and books, starting an environmental news YouTube channel, and creating a better method to protect migratory birds from airplanes.

The educator award recognizes teachers who employ innovative approaches to environmental education and use the environment as a context for learning for their students. Winning teachers receive up to $2,500 to further their professional development in environmental education and $2,500 for their local education agency to fund environmental education activities and programs.

Applications for both student and teacher awards are due March 30, 2018.

Grant funding available

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency environmental education grants

The EPA has $3 million in funding for locally focused environmental education grants available through their 2018 EE Local Grant Program. The EPA will award three to four grants in each of the EPA's ten regions. Grant awards will range from $50,000 to $100,000 each.

The 2018 EE Local Grant Program supports projects that reflect the intersection of environmental issues and agricultural best-practices, conservation of natural resources, food waste management, and natural disaster preparedness. Funded projects will increase public awareness of those topics and other environmental issues and help participants to develop the skills needed to make informed decisions.

Proposals are due by March 15. A teleconference to learn more about the grant program and application is scheduled for February 14, and a final informational webinar will be held February 21. Learn more.

Events and training opportunities

Community-based social marketing training

Doug McKenzie-Mohr, the author of Fostering Sustainable Behavior, will be offering introductory and advanced community-based social marketing training in St. Paul in May. Anyone working to promote behavior change related to preventing waste, recycling, protecting land and water, conserving energy, and other environmental issues will benefit greatly from this training.

The introductory training will be held May 21 and 22, and the advanced training will be May 23 and 24 on the Hamline University campus in St. Paul. Learn more and register.

Community environmental education fellowship program

The North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) is offering a new environmental education fellowship program that will create a diverse and energetic cadre of educators and community leaders working to address environmental issues at the local, state, and national level and deliver real results.

Each fellow will use innovative and creative education strategies to design a community action project that helps tackle a specific community environmental issue using the power of education. Projects will emphasize community engagement, sustainability, and resilience.

Fellows get access to training and networking opportunities throughout the nine-month fellowship, including a five-day national leadership institute and NAAEE’s national conference. Applications are due March 1. Learn more and apply.

Talk climate workshop

Climate Generation is offering a two day intensive workshop designed to empower people to talk about climate change. Discover your own personal climate story and learn how to use it as a tool to find common ground. Learn about the psychology of behavior change, and gain practical strategies to inspire commitments to solutions.

The workshop will be held March 12 and 13 at the Wilder Center in St. Paul. Learn more and register.

Summer Institute for Climate Change Education

Climate Generation’s Summer Institute for Climate Change Education helps educators gain the tools and skills to bring climate change into their educational setting, whether it be a classroom, nature center, or museum. The institute this summer will be held June 26 to 28 at St. John’s University in Collegeville.

The institute will be an opportunity to:

  • Hear from experts and scientists on their research on climate science and climate change solutions
  • Dive deep into Climate Generation’s Next Generation Climate curriculum that supports Next Generation Science and Minnesota Science Standards
  • Experience Minnesota’s biomes in St. John’s University’s 3,000 acre Arboretum, learn how they use their solar array as a teaching tool, and tour LEED certified buildings
  • Network with other educators who are incorporating climate change into their teaching

Learn more and register.

Project Learning Tree workshops for K-8 teachers

Project Learning Tree uses trees, forests, and the environment as a window to the world to teach math, science, language arts, social studies, and art. Fun, engaging activities are correlated to Minnesota academic standards and the Common Core for ELA and math.

Workshop attendees get hands-on instructions, Project Learning Tree K-8 activity guide, continuing education credits (CEUs), and supplemental materials.

The following workshops are being offered this spring:

  • Saturday, March 24 from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge in Bloomington – register 
  • Saturday, April 21 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Ney Nature Center in Henderson – register

Learn more about Project Learning Tree workshops and resources offered by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

Contact us

612-348-3777

environment@hennepin.us

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