Earth Force, Inc.

We see a future where 1 million young people participate in environmental policy making every year.

To get there we’re on a mission: infuse civic experiences into environmental education to create environmental citizens. Earth Force is working to change how we approach environmental problems from a focus on changing individual behavior to a focus on changing systemic causes of environmental degradation. We are doing that by changing how educators approach environmental education.

Our model is key to doing just that. In Earth Force classrooms, students lead their learning, address real problems, and develop civic efficacy. And educators are right there beside them, honing their own skills in project management and inquiry-based learning. For many educators incorporating civic action into environmental education represents a pretty big shift in our thinking. Our expertise is in easing that transition and helping educators create learning laboratories.

In a time when communities face increasing environmental challenges, we believe it is critical that young people develop the civic skills necessary to be effective environmental citizens.

The cornerstone of Earth Force’s success is our innovative framework and hands on approach to training and support for educators. Our framework, the Community Action and Problem-Solving (CAPS) Process, asks youth to identify root causes of an environmental issue they care about, develop an action plan, and work with decision makers to implement that plan. The CAPS framework excels at helping students learn essential STEM concepts and gain the experiences necessary to ensure that students become active, effective citizens.

The framework is delivered through ongoing educator professional development. Educator professional development begins with a 20-hour experience-based training session. Educators learn how to manage unstructured classrooms while guiding students to specific learning outcomes. The training is followed up with ongoing support for educators through classroom visits and online courses. Our process has undergone continual evaluation and substantial refinement over the last 19 years.

Over the last five years Earth Force has been training other nonprofit organizations to infuse civic experiences into their environmental education. Beginning in 2021 Earth Force has begun bringing these organizations together to build a robust community of practice that establishes standards for incorporating action civics, inspires research, and lays the groundwork for supportive educational policies. Members of the network freely share what they learn with one another and take best practices from other network members.

Earth Force is committed to ensuring that young people become civic participants who bring their environmental values to public decision-making. Our strategy is to focus on three levers of change:

Alliance
Create a robust community of practice for environmental action civics

Progress to date:
50 organizations are delivering environmental action civics to educators and young people across the country.

2026 Goal
300 organizations will be part of our Environmental Action Civics Alliance and engage 135,000 young people.


Youth Challenges
Provide funding and recognition for young people engaged in civic action to address environmental issues.

Progress to date:
Currently hosting three youth challenges that reach 4,000 young people a year

2026 Goal:
Our Youth Challenges will engage 15,000 young people each year.