Environmental groups and resources serving K–12 schools
Professional services
UnclaimedA reference grouping of environmental organizations, educational programs, building standards, government initiatives, and student resources serving K–12 schools.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
Environmental groups and resources serving K–12 schools is a reference article covering organizations, programs, standards, campaigns, and public-sector resources that connect environmental protection and sustainability with primary and secondary education. It is not a single commercial brand or incorporated organization. Instead, it brings together a broad range of formally organized groups and educational initiatives that serve schools, teachers, students, families, school districts, and youth activists. The article’s principal geographic focus is the United States, although several entries operate internationally or originated in other countries. The organizations differ substantially in purpose and structure. Some provide classroom materials and teacher training; others organize youth campaigns, competitions, or climate-action projects. A further group focuses on school buildings, energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality, sustainable construction, or facilities planning. Government programs and legislative initiatives are also included, illustrating the role of public agencies in helping school districts reduce energy use and address environmental issues. Examples of youth-oriented initiatives include Action For Nature’s International Young Eco-Hero Awards, which recognize environmental projects undertaken by young people; Kids F.A.C.E., which promotes children’s environmental awareness and participation; Green Youth Alliance; Teens Turning Green; Free the Planet!; and International Climate Champs. These initiatives emphasize student leadership, practical action, advocacy, and the development of environmentally informed communities. Campaign-based programs such as Cool the Earth encourage students and families to undertake measurable household and school actions intended to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. A second category consists of educational publications, curricula, networks, and citizen-science resources. Green Teacher publishes teaching materials and a quarterly magazine for educators working with young people. The Sustainable Schools Project and the U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development provide curriculum guidance, networks, and professional resources. Project BudBurst engages students and the public in recording seasonal biological events, such as budding, leafing, flowering, and fruiting, to support climate research. The No Impact Man curriculum uses everyday consumption and lifestyle choices to help middle- and high-school students examine environmental consequences and collective action. The article also documents resources related to school infrastructure. The Collaborative for High Performance Schools promotes energy- and resource-efficient, healthy, comfortable, and well-lit learning environments. LEED for Schools adapts the U.S. Green Building Council’s building-rating approach to K–12 facilities, including concerns such as acoustics, mold prevention, site assessment, and planning. The EnergySmart Schools Program, Energy Star for K–12 School Districts, the National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities, and Tennessee’s Energy Efficient Schools Initiative represent federal, technical, or state-level efforts to help schools plan, finance, and implement efficiency improvements. The Green Schools Fellowship sought to place sustainability officers in school districts, while the congressional Green Schools Caucus promoted green-building practices through federal policy discussion. The collection reflects the diverse and sometimes overlapping nature of environmental education. Its source material notes that many organizations duplicate or complement one another and that the entries are presented as described by the organizations rather than reconciled into a unified system. Because the article is an informational catalog rather than a continuously maintained directory, the operational status, names, funding, and reach of individual entries may have changed. The overall subject is therefore best understood as a historical and descriptive map of environmental education and sustainability resources available to K–12 schools, rather than as a unified brand with common ownership, management, products, or financial reporting.
History
The subject developed as a catalog of environmental organizations and resources relevant to schools rather than as a unified institution. The article describes a landscape in which nonprofit organizations, government agencies, professional associations, student movements, building-standard bodies, and educational publishers each address different aspects of sustainability and environmental learning. The documented initiatives span several waves of environmental education. Earlier student-activism resources, including Free the Planet!, supported recruitment, training, networking, and campus or school campaigns. Kids F.A.C.E. promoted children’s environmental information and participation through clubs and recognition of youth action. Action For Nature used awards to highlight substantial projects by young people. Other initiatives placed more emphasis on climate change: Cool the Earth worked with elementary and middle-school students and their families on measurable emissions-reduction actions, while youth networks such as Power Shift Network and Green Youth Alliance linked student organizing with clean-energy advocacy and political engagement. A parallel strand addressed the physical school environment. The Collaborative for High Performance Schools promoted facilities that use energy and resources efficiently while supporting health, comfort, lighting, and educational quality. LEED for Schools adapted green-building assessment to the special requirements of K–12 facilities. Federal and state programs, including EnergySmart Schools, Energy Star for K–12 School Districts, the National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities, and Tennessee’s Energy Efficient Schools Initiative, supplied technical guidance, efficiency tools, or potential financing. The Green Schools Caucus provided a congressional forum for green-school building and policy issues, while the Green Schools Fellowship was designed to increase district-level sustainability capacity. The collection also records the growth of curriculum-based and networked approaches. Green Teacher supplied practical teaching ideas and cross-curricular material. The Sustainable Schools Project and the U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development supported educators seeking to incorporate sustainability into formal learning. The NRDC Green Squad connected school conditions with environmental health and offered age-targeted information for students, teachers, and parents. Project BudBurst extended environmental learning into citizen science by asking participants to record plant phenology for climate-related research. Several entries were designed for international or cross-border participation. Drizzle Environmental Society, based in Vancouver, used digital media and the Youth Environmental Challenge to engage teenagers and young adults. International Climate Champs adapted a United Kingdom program for youth climate leadership and sought participation across countries. Teens Turning Green promoted environmentally sustainable and socially responsible choices and later described a school-oriented toolkit and a youth chapter initiative. The Lexus Eco Challenge used a national student competition, developed with Scholastic, to encourage middle- and high-school teams to create community environmental projects. The article’s historical material is largely descriptive and reflects information available at the time of compilation, including references to programs active or planned during the 2000s and early 2010s. It does not establish a single founding date or a common continuity for the listed initiatives. Some programs may have been renamed, transferred to other organizations, discontinued, or absorbed into newer efforts. Consequently, the subject should be treated as a historical encyclopedia grouping whose entries require individual verification before being used as a current directory.
- 2012
Kids Turning Green initiative introduced
[1]Teens Turning Green was described as introducing Kids Turning Green, an initiative intended to support youth chapters and school participation.
- 2011
Project BudBurst moved to NEON
[1]Project BudBurst was described as moving from UCAR to the National Ecological Observatory Network in 2011.
- 2010
Green Schools Fellowship launched
[1]The U.S. Green Building Council launched the Green Schools Fellowship to place sustainability officers in school districts and accelerate changes to learning environments.
- 2008
Tennessee Energy Efficient Schools Initiative approved
[1]The Tennessee General Assembly approved an initiative intended to fund energy-efficiency projects in K–12 schools, with the article describing up to $90 million in available funding.
- 2007
Power Shift youth climate conference and Project BudBurst pilot
[1]Power Shift Network planned a national youth climate conference, while Project BudBurst conducted a large pilot of public observations of plant phenology for climate research.
- 2006
International Climate Champs program established as a youth climate model
[1]The International Climate Champs initiative was described as adapting a United Kingdom youth program to give school-age participants a public role in climate communication and action.
Products and positioning
A broad, noncommercial ecosystem of environmental education, youth-action, sustainable-school, energy-efficiency, and green-building resources for K–12 schools.
Youth environmental awards
International Young Eco-Hero Awards
Action For Nature’s annual awards recognize young people, generally ages eight through sixteen, who have completed substantial projects addressing environmental or sustainability problems. Applications are evaluated by judges with backgrounds in environmental science, biology, and education, with awards organized by age group.
Green-building rating system
LEED for Schools
A U.S. Green Building Council rating approach adapted to K–12 school design and construction. It recognizes school-specific concerns including classroom acoustics, environmental site assessment, mold prevention, and broader planning for healthy and efficient educational facilities.
Energy-management resources
Energy Star for K–12 School Districts
A U.S. Environmental Protection Agency resource offering tools and guidance to help K–12 school districts evaluate and implement energy-efficient technologies and practices.
Citizen science · 2007
Project BudBurst
A national field campaign in which students, teachers, and other participants record seasonal plant events such as bud burst, first leaf, flowering, and seed or fruit dispersal. The observations are collected in a database that can support analysis of local, regional, and longer-term climate effects.
Educational publication
Green Teacher
A nonprofit publication and resource program for educators working with young people from elementary through high school. Its quarterly magazine combines sustainability perspectives, practical cross-curricular activities, grade-level teaching ideas, and reviews of environmental education materials.
Climate education program
Cool the Earth
A K–8 program that teaches students and families about global warming and encourages simple, measurable actions intended to reduce household and school carbon emissions. The program was reported as operating in approximately 100 Northern California schools and using online training and tracking tools.
Student climate campaign
Campus Climate Challenge
A Power Shift Network campaign that mobilizes young people in the United States and Canada to advocate for clean-energy policies at schools and colleges, with the stated long-term objective of moving educational campuses toward zero pollution and clean energy.
School-facilities information service
National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities
A resource center providing information related to planning, designing, funding, constructing, improving, and maintaining safe, healthy, and high-performance educational facilities. The article identifies U.S. Department of Education funding.
Student environmental competition
Lexus Eco Challenge
A competition developed by Lexus and Scholastic for middle- and high-school students. Teams create and implement environmental projects in their communities, combining environmental learning with practical project design and action.
Marketing campaigns
- Campus Climate Challenge
United States · Canada
Power Shift Network used student organizing to campaign for clean-energy policies and lower pollution at schools and colleges.
- Youth Environmental Challenge
International
Drizzle Environmental Society challenged young people to complete five environmentally friendly actions during a year.
- International Climate Champs
International
The initiative selected school-age representatives to communicate climate issues and encourage action by individuals, schools, and communities.
- Lexus Eco Challenge
United States
A national competition asked middle- and high-school students to design and carry out environmental projects in their communities.
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