At the core of our work --be it revolutionizing the way adults work with young people; championing the role of young people in their communities; or building cutting-edge programs that put young people in the driver’s seat around addressing local issues -- is a commitment to engaging youth in taking civic action.

Every year, our evaluation shows that our six-step process ignites the voices of young people and gives them the skills, knowledge, and confidence to take leadership roles in their community.

We have seen the power of our Earth Force process at its best when it is embedded in a community, such that young people have repeated opportunities to engage in meaningful ways. Focusing on low-income communities where both the environmental and educational needs are most pressing, Earth Force has developed an approach that brings the best of community development and civic engagement theory together with what we know is effective environmental education. The result is a community-wide network of organizations that shares goals related to youth voice, and has the capacity to effectively engage youth in civic life.