Launching Our New Gen:G Program!

This year, we are starting a new summer program for youth and recruiting for our first cohort of Generation Green (Gen:G) Junior Champions! In partnership with our community programming, Our Backyard Detroit (OBD),  Junior Champions will have the opportunity for a paid experience where they will gain leadership, sustainability, and community-building skills. 

Sunsetting our Student Recycling Ambassador Program

Since 2021, we have had wonderful cohorts participate in our Student Recycling Ambassador program (SRA). For a week in the summer, we would work with a dozen or so students at a time, discussing sustainability, beautifying spaces, and aiding participants in supporting their communities through recycling and waste reduction efforts. Over the course of those four years of SRA, over 50 remarkable Detroit students combined their passions for sustainability and justice with their love for their communities and learned more about how to truly make a difference.

Students from Detroit and Hamtramck show that they are certified Student Recycling Ambassadors during a 2023 ceremony.

We have worked with many great partners and organizations over the years, and believe one of the most powerful aspects of the SRA program was being able to connect kids with resources across the City. As with all of our programming, we believe that when communities and individuals have agency over their own spaces and learning, deeper impacts can be made. In the SRA program, students were able to work on environmental projects that were meaningful to them, and we supported them in bringing their own unique perspectives and identities into their work. Some projects focused on waste reduction and the 5 Rs, others on poor air quality, and several highlighted issues of environmental justice in Detroit.

Student Recycling Ambassadors, Reign and Maliah, canvass the Grixdale neighborhood to educate residents and sign them up for a free recycling cart.

We have always believed in supporting the students after the SRA program as well. Whether we write letters of recommendation, help students sustain educational or professional connections with our partners, or ask them to participate in our other programs, we want the best for our past SRA students. Indeed, our alumni have gone on to do great things, whether that’s designing and creating environmental murals at their schools, studying architecture at the University of Michigan, or attending Wayne State University with full funding. We hope to continue to work with and for our alumni as they work towards changing their own corners of the world. 

New Horizons and Bringing Ideas to Fruition

We have long been thinking about ways to expand SRA, to increase the amount of time we work with students, to provide more resources, and to make it more impactful for the students who participate. This also comes from years of listening to feedback, where SRA participants wanted the programming to be longer. 

A child smiles while helping clean up trash at Van Antwerp Park at an OBD event.

After receiving a generous grant from the Gilbert Family Foundation, we finally had the resources we needed to do just that. It became clear that we can give them more. We wanted to take the best of the SRA program and extend the possibilities for impact. Our OBD program has been doing stewardship work in parks and is designed to empower residents to take ownership of Detroit’s public green spaces. It was a no-brainer to fuse the programs together to create something magical.

In the Gen:G program, students will develop a sense of responsibility and life experience throughout a whole summer of all-encompassing educational experiences. While we will be providing a lot of support and scaffolding, we have left a lot of room for students to gain autonomy over their learning. As we have it set up, the interactive experiences from Gen:G (field trips, networking with our partners, student-led projects, etc.) will not only enable students to learn deeply, it will also turn them into educators in the process. Gen:G students will have a space to make use of resources and their own talents to better their community and make a difference through supporting each other, Detroit, and residents; recycling cart sign-ups and canvassing; beautification projects; and providing valuable youth perspective on curriculum updates. 

These students are the best possible advocates for themselves and for other youth in the City. At the same time, we want students to have the opportunity to see perspectives of Detroit sustainability veterans. Participants will receive mentorship from our OBD Park Champions, who are leaders in community-led environmental initiatives and stewardship. We believe that this intergenerational learning and connection with the Park Champions can help to build up the upcoming generation of Detroit leaders and stewards.

We need programs like this

We have high hopes for this program and its impact on Detroit’s youth. Programs like these–where out-of-school education gets kids outside and provides opportunities for them to develop their sense of responsibility through practices of care for the land and their community–can make a difference. 

Detroit’s students are generally underserved, and a lack of resources at the community and family level can disenfranchise students and negatively impact their learning and participation in school. According to Data Driven Detroit, the graduation rate of Detroit youth sits at 73 percent. This is about 7% lower than the rate of graduation in Wayne County and 10% lower than the state’s. What's more, the rate of Detroit youth who go on to earn a Bachelor's degree or higher is about half that of the state. 

Eric and Karter pitch products made from sustainable materials to fellow Student Recycling Ambassadors during a practice competition with the Museum of Detroit Design.

Educators across the City are doing beautiful and important work within schools, but out-of-school time can pose its own challenges: 87.5% of Detroit students are eligible for free or reduced lunch, and 44% of youth are living in poverty. Programs that can continue to provide support for students in the summer means more of their needs are being met, and that students have more time and energy to devote to school and learning. Furthermore, providing paid summer experiences means that those youth have the opportunity to fill potential family income gaps while engaging in professional and personal development.

Beyond that, gaining skills and more experience through a summer program can transfer to academic achievement.  A 2023 study about the impacts of a summer youth employment program (SYEP) found that many academic metrics improved the following school year for students who participated in the program. Graduation rate, attendance rates, and GPA all increased within the group of students who participated in the SYEP, and chronic absenteeism and likelihood of dropping out of school decreased.

This iceberg image from NAAEE shows the consequential, wide-ranging benefits of environmental education.

On top of all this, we designed our program to be deeply rooted in environmental education, namely, environmental justice, local stewardship, and waste reduction. Research on environmental education (EE) has consistently shown that EE can improve and increase students’ academic skills, school engagement, social-emotional learning, and sense of civic responsibility. When youth increase their awareness of environmental issues, also called environmental literacy, studies have shown that this learning can empower them to both care and act for their communities AND find deeper interest and engagement in academics.

This program leverages an amazing resource that already exists. Green spaces in the City are truly invaluable and are often places that the youth already use and are familiar with. While not every kid in Detroit has a front or backyard, according to the Trust for Public Land, about 84% of residents live within a 10-minute walk to a park. Access to high-quality, urban green spaces leads to better physical and mental health, improved environmental and ecological health, and safer, more prosperous communities. These benefits can be deepened and more profound when communities develop a sense of ecological reciprocity with the land.

Community members enjoy an eco yoga event during 2025 OBD programming at Pingree Park with Park Champion, Lula.

If we show the youth that they can love their city, that their neighborhoods are theirs to improve and feel a sense of stewardship over, we think this will help them want to stay and continue to care for this place. With a history of racial segregation, displacement, and gentrification, it can be hard for Detroiters to feel like this City is worth taking care of; the relationship of care between this place and residents has not been reciprocal.  In programs that center on place-based education, stewardship, and community, we believe that students can develop a deeper sense of place and ownership. In this way, these parks can become a source of relational, generational wealth. 

To recap: summer environmental education programs have the potential to positively influence the students who participate and their communities. We want them to take what they got from this program and turn it into opportunities for their futures, and we’ve intentionally designed our program to support these outcomes in the students we serve.

This program will provide students with:

• Food during programming 

• Stipend pay

• Transferable academic, professional, and social-emotional skills

• Mentorship from community leaders and intergenerational learning 

• Project and service learning opportunities 

• Placed-based education

• Room for development of agency and responsibility

• Networking with our vast array of partners (Ecosphere Organics, Museum of Design Detroit, Belle Isle Nature Center, Detroit Zoological Society, Black Girls Do Science, buildOn, Detroit Historical Museum, WM, the City and the Department of Public Works, SEMIS Coalition, Friends of Rouge Park, the DNR/Outdoor Adventure Center, Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, and more!)

• Potential for future support, such as letters of recommendation for colleges or jobs

• Chances to connect with other like-minded youth throughout the City

We also want to take the time to acknowledge that many organizations in the City are working to provide youth with summer experiences, and we are so grateful to be just one part of a vast network of dedicated folks working to serve the youth of Detroit. For example, the new City administration has shown a commitment to prioritizing youth and education, and we are excited to see how this work, as well as the work of our partners, continues to improve the lives of the children and young adults in Detroit. 

What to expect 

If you live near one of our 7 target parks, expect to see some great events popping up throughout the summer. There will be several clean-up days per park, but OBD Champions and Gen:G Junior Champions will likely plan community engagement events for locals to attend. 

We have a feeling this is going to be a successful program. Stay tuned for more from us by following GLS on Instagram or Facebook and OBD on Instagram and Facebook!