The Nature Conservancy LEAF Program
Paid summer conservation internships for urban high school students, offering hands-on stewardship work and career exposure with The Nature Conservancy at sites across the country.
You might also like
Student Conservation Association (SCA)
The largest provider of hands-on youth conservation programs in the U.S. High schoolers can join short-term summer conservation crews doing trail building, habitat restoration, and wildlife protection in national parks and community green spaces.
Youth Conservation Corps (YCC)
A month-long paid summer program placing teens in national parks, forests, wildlife refuges, and hatcheries for conservation work including trail maintenance, ecological monitoring, and invasive plant removal.
NCF-Envirothon
North America's largest high school environmental education competition. Teams of five test their knowledge across soils/land use, aquatic ecology, forestry, wildlife, and a rotating current environmental issue, plus an oral presentation, progressing from local to state to the international NCF finals.
EarthEcho International Youth Leadership Council
A competitively-selected leadership council (ages 15-22) founded by Philippe Cousteau Jr. that leads campaigns and programs on ocean and water conservation.
Jane Goodall's Roots & Shoots
A global youth-led service-learning movement with local chapters/groups tackling projects that benefit people, animals, and the environment, providing curriculum, tools, and a project framework for student-led environmental action.
National Geographic Slingshot Challenge
Global youth environmental-action challenge where individuals or teams create a one-minute video proposing an innovative solution to protecting nature, cleaning air, restoring the ocean, reducing waste, or addressing climate change. Top submissions receive $10,000 each.