Into the woods with ECO_Wasim Muklashy.jpeg

We connect students to nature to empower generations of young people as stewards and leaders working to build stronger, resilient communities.

Connecting students to nature

We’re taking education outdoors - into our communities and nature, deepening students' sense of place and fostering stewardship. We develop hands-on ecology curricula and programs designed to grow over a student’s schooling to connect academic content to real-world challenges and human action to environmental health.

What sets us apart
Place-based education

Since 2005, we have delivered place-based ecology programs in Oregon during the school day, in classrooms, and outdoors. We are now working to make our comprehensive and multidisciplinary curricula more widely available through an online hub for use by educators anywhere, complete with free lessons for everyone.

Explore programs
Rooted in community

Our mission is made possible by a network of community partnerships, grant funds, and donations from businesses and individuals committed to accessible, high-quality programming for all students and eliminating the opportunity gap by prioritizing under-resourced schools.

Our impact

Bridging cultures for conservation

Aves Compartidas, our newest program for Spanish immersion classrooms, connects students from the Willamette and Laja River watersheds through the migratory paths of birds and shared conservation efforts. Students engage in a multidisciplinary curriculum, bringing together the cultures and ecosystems of these distinct regions and a unique perspective on environmental stewardship and climate action.

Aves Compartidas

Learn more

I see students taking more ownership of their environment after ECO lessons. Students begin thinking of our community, our ecosystem, and our planet differently. They begin asking deeper questions and express a deeper understanding of how humans have a responsibility to care for our environment.
— Teacher, Kelly Elementary School
ECO has expanded on lessons that we create or use already and they have exposed teachers to new ideas and new ways to teach concepts. In addition, they have taught us (teachers) new ways and concepts that kids can learn outdoors and connect to nature.
— Rebecca Hall, Rachel Carson School of Environmental Science
Before today, when I saw plants and trees, I just thought that’s all they were, but today I learned they are so much more.
— 4th-grade student, View Acres Elementary
More than 90% of students who participate in our programs believe they are capable of positively benefiting the environment.
— Post-program surveys
Talent and Passion and more Talent. ECO is a wonderful team of hardworking, passionate educators and visionaries. They do so much to get children out into nature, and to help kids appreciate and value their wonderful world - my favorite nonprofit in Portland, hands down.
— Donor, Great Nonprofits