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| Teens for Planet Earth is an international program developed by the Education Division of the Wildlife Conservation Society at the Bronx Zoo. We support teens as they develop and implement environmental service-learning projects in their local communities. Service-learning has been shown to have positive effects on academic as well as social development. Our website, www.teensforplanetearth.org, has the latest environmental news, stories of role models in conservation, resources such as websites and books, and three interactive guides that help teens discover their conservation personality, decide which type of service-learning project they want to do, and then create an action plan to make it happen. One major component of TPE is the training of educators and youth leaders to serve as advisors to the teens. These Leadership Institutes are workshops designed for teachers, educators from living institutions (e.g., zoos, botanical gardens, nature centers), and leaders from national and community-based organizations to provide effective Teens for Planet Earth programs for young people in their communities. The training provides teens with the skills and support necessary to execute meaningful conservation-based service-learning projects in their communities. We explore the challenges of team dynamics, how to network with experts and legislators, how to motivate teens by using zoos and other living institutions, how to help teens choose a project, research, set goals, implement, reflect, celebrate, and more. |
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