Project Learning Tree and Sustainable Forestry Initiative Join Forces to Expand Youth Environmental Education Programs

The Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc. (SFI) and the American Forest Foundation (AFF) announced today that SFI has become the new home of Project Learning Tree (PLT). PLT is an award-winning environmental education program that uses trees and forests as windows on the world to increase youth understanding of the environment and actions they can take to conserve it. PLT’s integration into SFI provides an opportunity for the program to expand its reach and impact. And SFI’s role as a sustainability leader will be bolstered by PLT’s expertise in education, an increasing focus in SFI’s community engagement work. PLT was previously housed at the American Forest Foundation.

PLT has consistently received prestigious awards and recognition from leading educational and community organizations. PLT state coordinators, workshop facilitators, and educators have won the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching and the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators. More than one quarter of U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools are PLT GreenSchools. PLT’s instructional materials are aligned with state and national academic standards and meet or exceed the North American Association for Environmental Education’s Guidelines for Excellence. PLT’s Environmental Experiences for Early Childhood curriculum won a Learning Magazine Teachers’ Choice Award and PLT has also received straight A’s in environmental education from the California Department of Education. More than 20,000 educators attend PLT workshops every year and this partnership between PLT and SFI will help the program grow and reach new audiences across the globe in diverse ways.

“SFI has enthusiastically supported Project Learning Tree for years. Formally making PLT part of the SFI Program offers an exciting opportunity to strengthen SFI’s growing youth education efforts and to build on PLT’s enormous success. We begin this relationship from a position of strength given SFI’s role as a leading sustainability organization focused on responsible forestry, conservation and community engagement” said Kathy Abusow, President and CEO of SFI Inc. “We have big plans for the future and are committed to continuing PLT’s work as a high-quality education program. Ultimately, we would like to be able to say that every teacher across North America and beyond recognizes Project Learning Tree as an invaluable resource for professional development, environmental education curriculum, and taking children outdoors to learn.”

The benefits of educating youth about responsibly managed forests are not just environmental. Experiencing nature through forests and other means at an early age are important components of a healthy lifestyle. The majority of PLT lessons get teachers and their students outdoors and active. This helps to address common health issues in children today, such as obesity, attention deficit disorder, and depression.

read more/source: http://www.sfiprogram.org/media-resources/news/project-learning-tree-and-sfi-join-forces-to-expand-youth-environmental-educational-programs/

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