Our Impact
We are the leaders in proven youth environmental civic engagement. Explore the real-world impact of the Environmental Applied Civics framework.
Earth Force is setting the national standard for Environmental Applied Civics. Discover how our framework is validated by NOAA, NAAEE, and over 230 organizations nationwide.
IMPACT AREAS
IMPROVING THE FIELD
Setting the global standard for Environmental Applied Civics
Since 2008, we’ve received over $3.5 million from the EPA and NOAA to train others in our effective approach. We helped deepen programs like NOAA’s MWEE, University of Florida’s 4-H CAPE program, and NYLC’s new service-learning framework.
RAPID EXPANSION
5x Growth in 6 years by practitioner demand
Our network has expanded to over 220 partner organizations that support over 2,100 educators and reach more than 83,000 young people each year. In 2020, 40 organizations were delivering EAC across the country - now we partner with five times as many.
A RECOGNIZED BEST PRACTICE
Identified as high-quality environmental education PD
The Earth Force approach is named as a best practice in multiple frameworks from the North American Association for Environmental Education, including the Professional Development of Environmental Educators: Guidelines for Excellence.
From Mapping Litter to Changing City Policy
At Wentzville Middle School, students turned classroom learning into real-world change — using data, mapping, and civic engagement to improve their community.
As part of their EAC-integrated curriculum, the students monitored a local creek, mapped conditions using ArcGIS, and discovered that much of the litter in the creek was recyclable — mostly plastic bags. Digging deeper, students uncovered a gap in local recycling access. While single-family homes had curbside pickup, multi-family residents did not — creating a barrier that contributed to waste in waterways.
The students proposed a two-part plan to address the root issue. First, they worked with community partners to distribute 1,000 reusable shopping bags. Then, partnering with city officials, they developed and advocated for a Multi-Family Recycling Policy. In 2017, the policy was adopted.
Today, the program diverts hundreds of tons of waste from landfills each year. What began as a classroom investigation became real-world impact — demonstrating how integrating EAC into existing curriculum can empower students to drive lasting community change.
NATIONWIDE LEADERSHIP
“Community, collective, effervescence.” That’s how Colorado educator Julia Fliss described Earth Force. We’re proud to be part of a network shaping best practices in environmental education.
National Training Partner in ee360+
With 24 other organizations, Earth Force is a Training Partner for ee360+ - a multi-year NAAEE initiative that supports a cadre of environmental educators to increase environmental literacy for everyone.
A Model Practice in Climate Resilience
Named a model practice in Centering and uplifting youth voice in planning for a more resilient climate future in rural Colorado: a case study of a student resilience team asking for change (Front. Clim., 16 October 2024)
Bringing Action to Watershed Education
We’ve partnered with NOAA to refine their signature MWEE (Meaningful Watershed Education Experience) framework and educator guides, embedding a focus on civic action-based learning into national standards.
Collaborate with us!
Partner with Earth Force to bring real world learning to the next level. We empower districts and organizations to enact deep change through dynamic and impactful learning integration.
JOIN OUR MISSION
