BECOME A CHANGEMAKER
Here’s how you can join the Eco-School Network to help make your elementary school greener and healthier.
Changemaker Training
This 4-session online training will help you align your passion and skills with a specific need at your school.
Best for: parents, teachers, and school staff who love to garden, reduce waste, or connect kids with nature – this is for you!
What you’ll get: You’ll identify a project to focus on as you learn more about your school, yourself, project management skills, and inclusive engagement of all students. You’ll become part of a thriving and supportive network of Changemakers.
Free Online Training
- Learn to design and start your own school sustainability project.
- Four online evening sessions in October and November
- Gain leadership, project management, and equity skills
- Caring mentors and a resource library help you succeed!
QuickStart Workshop
This 1-session online workshop will connect you with resources and support to help your school thrive.
Best for: experienced teachers or sustainability advocates in elementary schools. (i.e. School Sustainability Leads, Oregon Green School Leaders, Garden Leads)
What you’ll get: You’ll learn to request project support, get event invites, access our robust online resource library, celebrate your school’s successes and engage with other motivated Changemakers!
Join the Network
- Share ideas, success stories and motivation
- Access the Member Library
- Connect with others for support
- Join the loving community of sustainability advocates
Get Started
- Sign up for more info on the training or workshop here. Join an online Info Session or connect with us one-on-one to learn more. No commitment and we never share your contact information.
- Check your email for a registration link. If you decide to join, sign up for the training or workshop.
- Meet us online and start making change! You’ll be energized by our community and be a stronger leader for your school.
Get More Info
- Join us for a 45-minute online intro to our program
- Stay for a 15-minute Q&A to answer your questions
- Learn the next steps to get free support for your school
- No commitment if this isn’t for you.
- Sign up now to connect for more info!
Eco-School Changemaker Training
Eco-School Changemaker Training is a series of four online workshops to help Oregon parents, teachers, and elementary school staff start a project that:
- meets a pressing sustainability need at your child’s school
- follows your own talents and passion
The next training course is Fall 2023.
Click below to enter your name and email to receive the info-session link or save your spot at the training!
Do you want to help your kids’ school become healthier and greener?
Want your child to connect with nature and learn sustainability at school?
Want to connect with parents and teachers who are action-oriented and full of hope?
The Eco-School Network can set you up with the tools, encouragement, and support you need to make your vision a reality! You’ve got this, friend. And this network has got YOUR BACK.
What will we do in the 4-session training?
During a four-session online training, you will build your confidence as a changemaker. You’ll explore what’s possible for your school, getting clear about your gifts, sources of motivation, and vision for change. Next, we’ll learn to get others in your school engaged.
The training will be facilitated by Amy Higgs, Executive Director of the Eco-School Network, as well as other Network parents who will be guest presenters. You’ll even get a personal mentor (an experienced Eco-School leader) to support you with coaching and pep talks!
Quick-Start Training Option for Experienced Advocates
Are you already a sustainability leader in your school who could use some more support? Join the Eco-School Network to be part of a caring community of advocates. We offer a bno-cost evening workshop for leaders like you to learn about our network and the resources we offer. Sign up for the info session to get in touch. Let’s work together to make schools greener and healthier!
What is this Network?
The Eco-School Network is a community of students, parents, teachers and school staff in Oregon working to make elementary schools greener and healthier. Over the past decade, this training has inspired hundreds of parents to lead important initiatives in their children’s schools including:
70 school garden and habitat projects- 60 outdoor classrooms
- 200 waste reduction programs
- 25 walk and bike programs
- 50 student green teams
…and other innovative projects! One person starting a project often engages others and leads to big school culture change. Together, our parents are preparing a critical mass of young Oregonians to be stewards of the Earth and their community.
Until 2022 the Eco-School Network has focused primarily on schools in the Portland Metro region, and through our online training, we are excited to engage schools around the state of Oregon this coming school year!
But you’re so busy and stretched thin. We get it.
We are parents and teachers ourselves. We don’t want to add to your stress or start unnecessary projects. You can also come up with your own project – an easier one or an ambitious initiative.
We and are ALL ABOUT saving each other time and finding efforts that energize you. We’ll share the best tips our community has learned. You’ll access our library of ready-to-use guides and templates and there will be no long homework assignments. Whether you’re a PTA president or have never volunteered at a school, this training will bring energy and positive change to your life and your school community.
BIG BONUS
After the training, you’re invited to join our network of changemakers from other schools to see what’s possible. You’ll get no-pressure invitations to online gatherings with parents across the state to share what’s working best in our schools. You’ll also be invited to professional development workshops, an annual overnight retreat and a family camping trip!
About your trainer, Amy Lyons Higgs, M.S., M.Ed.
Executive Director of the Eco-School Network
As a kid, Amy spent her days on a lake in the Maine woods, where she developed a fierce connection to nature from her woodsy Dad. From her mom, a public school teacher, Amy saw the power that educators have to shape lives and futures. Amy combined her passions for education and the environment in college, where she and her now-husband, Steve, co-taught environmental education in local elementary schools.
At the University of Michigan, Amy got her Masters in Education Leadership and a Masters in Natural Resource Management and Behavior. Later, she managed an international network of environmental educators at Conservation International and engaged students in learning about biodiversity hotspots. In Portland, Amy helped start the Greater Portland Sustainability Education Network (GPSEN), and then learned organizational leadership as Vice President of LCA Community Engagement.
Ten years ago, she became an Eco-School Network parent volunteer, discovering that the Network motivated even a super busy working mom to make rewarding change. The incredible community of parent leaders kept her engaged and motivated. Now she gets to support and grow this community of parents and students every day.
Amy plans and oversees programs, raises funds, and builds relationships for the Network. She has facilitated the Eco-School Network training for many cohorts over the years. Parenting through a pandemic and climate crisis is not for the weak of heart, so Amy keeps working to refill parents’ buckets with hope, gratitude, and inspiration. After work, Amy is a sometimes-successful handy-person, a scrappy crafter, and with her husband and teen kids, a weekend chaser of water, snowflakes, and sunsets.
This training is a community effort. Other facilitators include:
- Sasha Rose, program coordinator or ESN
- Audrey Schaab, long-time ESN facilitator and Beaverton district liaison
- Celeste Lewis, board member and volunteer coordinator and strategist
- And a cast of beloved trainee mentors
When is the training?
The next training will take place in October and November, 2023. The dates are Oct 9, Oct 23, Nov 6, Nov 20, 2023. There may also be a second cohort on Tuesdays of the same weeks. We will meet via Zoom online for four sessions. The training class will be on a weekday evening from 7:00 to 8:30, and participants will determine which night of the week works best.
Ready to sign up or learn more?
Schedule a complementary one-on-one phone call to see if it’s right for you, or email sasha@ecoschoolnetwork.org for a link to a recorded info-session.