This Project Grant award from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Environmental and Climate Justice Community Change Grants Program (CFDA 66.616) provides $1,200,000 in funding to Special Service for Groups, Inc. (SSG) to train and empower youth in climate change, environmental advocacy, leadership development, and civic engagement. The project aims to enable youth to play a meaningful role in local government decision-making on environmental issues.
Key activities include developing and implementing a comprehensive curriculum, establishing a youth outreach and recruitment strategy, and preparing youth to serve on collaborative governance bodies such as environmental advisory boards. SSG will closely collaborate with several community entities, including Active San Gabriel Valley, Arlington Garden, LA Compost, Nature for All, and TreePeople, to support the program design, delivery, and community engagement. The anticipated outcomes include increased staff capacity, established community partnerships, a well-defined curriculum, and successfully recruiting 90 youth over three years to participate in the program.