This project provides funding to cornell cooperative extension association of jefferson county to implement its project, which will design, demonstrate, and disseminate environmental education…

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 2 awarded $133,333 through the Environmental Education Grants Program (CFDA 66.951) to Cornell Cooperative Extension Association of Jefferson County, effective September 1, 2025, through April 30, 2027. The grant supports an Energy Navigators Training Program designed to increase environmental literacy and promote clean energy awareness among middle and high school students in Jefferson and Lewis Counties, New York. The project will train three staff members to develop and deliver a comprehensive curriculum consisting of ten two-hour educational sessions to 50 students in grades 7-12, supplemented by at least six field trips to renewable energy sites including wind farms, hydroelectric dams, solar facilities, and clean energy career training institutions.

Implementation of the project occurs through five school district sub-awardees—Watertown, Indian River, Carthage, LaFargeville, and Beaver River Central School Districts—which will conduct the educational sessions and coordinate field trips while connecting student families to environmental resources. The project is expected to deliver increased public awareness of environmental issues and clean energy career opportunities across both counties while equipping participating students with the knowledge and decision-making skills necessary to take informed environmental action and pursue clean energy-related careers.

This project provides funding to cornell cooperative extension association of jefferson county to implement its project, which will design, demonstrate, and disseminate environmental education practices, methods, and techniques, that will serve to increase environmental literacy and encourage behavior that will benefit the environment in jefferson and lewis counties of new york state. The grantee will do this by offering 50 middle to high school students an opportunity to participate in an energy navigators training program. IT is designed to improve the students' knowledge of energy efficiency and clean energy careers by the end of the 2 year program, and by proxy their family or household's awareness of the same topics. Activities:this project will increase public awareness and knowledge about environmental issues and careers a in jefferson and lewis counties and provide students grade 7-12 the skills necessary to make informed decisions and to take responsible actions for their future. Activities to be performed during this project period include: training, program development, program implementation, facilitating connection to nceh resources, and administrative tasks to facilitate trips and activities. Subrecipient:subrecipients will implement aspects of the program such as the ten (10) 2 hour education sessions for the middle- high schoolers, participation in the field trips, and connecting students' families to resources. They are watertown county school district (CSD), indian river CSD, carthage CSD, lafargeville CSD, and beaver river CSD.outcomes:IT is anticipated that this project will result in the following deliverables: 3 staff trained, a developed curriculum, 10 2-hour sessions with 50 unique students in attendance, at least 6 trips to sites such as wind farms, hydroelectric dams, farms with solar grazing, agrivoltaics, methane digesters, or colleges and trade schools that offer degree and certification programs tied to clean energy careers, and presentations from county non-profits, development of a home energy efficiency tool'. Expected outcomes of the project include: measured increase in the awareness of careers and stewardship opportunities in clean energy, increased knowledge about increasing home efficiency, and homes become more energy efficient thereby improving the family finances of families with students enrolled in the program. The intended beneficiaries include 7TH - 12TH grade students in the schools serving the 10 communities surrounding fort drum, lafargeville, croghan, the city of watertown and carthage.