Welcome, Educators!

Our education team equips tens of thousands of K-12 students, teachers, and communities to take bold steps to address climate change, explore green careers, and promote environmental equity.

Our unique framework builds upon experiential, problem-based learning and nature stewardship to prepare participants to be change-makers in their communities. Students learn how nature-based solutions can improve sustainability and resilience, and real experiences in nature connect students to the ecosystems and cycles they learn about in their classrooms.

Our education program offers:

    • Teacher professional learning opportunities, offered in person and virtually throughout the school year
    • An annual Youth Summit for middle and high school students to share service-learning successes and engage in environmental workshops
    • Paid spring and summer internships for students in specific geographic regions
    • Field trips and on-campus programs that prioritize social-emotional learning, align with NGSS disciplinary practices, and support CTE, Linked Learning, and college/career readiness through solutions-based projects

In 2024 Alone...

23,500

students engaged

350

in-classroom projects

370

tours completed

230

schools reached

BOOK YOUR EXPERIENCE HERE

Eco-Tour

TreePeople’s Eco-Tours are fun, educational, age-appropriate learning adventures that take school groups on a journey to discover the forest that exists within our city. Led by our expert Eco-Educators, these field trips are a great way to get SoCal students outside and immerse them in a beautiful natural space. During the tour, students learn about trees, water, mulch, natural resources, native plants and more through hands-on exploration. Bring your lunches with you to enjoy a picnic in the park after the tour!

Eco-Tours are offered at $10 per attendee. There is a 10 student minimum and 100 students maximum. TreePeople’s chaperone policy is 1 adult for every 10 students.

View available dates and request an Eco-Tour through our calendar. Book here.

Traveling Dirt Doctor

Can’t make it up to TreePeople’s Coldwater Canyon Park? Our Traveling Dirt Doctor can come to you!

Help TreePeople’s Dirt Doctor heal our sick city soil through the magic of mulch medicine. During this interactive, on-campus presentation at your school or library, students will learn about the importance of healthy soil, hear a story about trash-reducing items in a special treasure chest, and plant an Italian Stone Pine seedling to take home and care for. This 1-hour experience is engaging, educational, and fun.

For K – 5th grade students.

Natural Connections Tour

Free field trips for middle and high school students from specific communities, TreePeople’s Natural Connections Tours are an offshoot of our award winning Eco-Tours program. Where Eco-Tours brings students to Coldwater Canyon Park, Natural Connections takes young people to seek the natural cycles and resources within their community as well as Coldwater Canyon Park.

Generation Earth

Generation Earth is a free, environmental education program dedicated to helping middle and high school students explore waste, water and forestry topics in a fun and engaging way. Our team works with teachers and comes to schools to engage students in service-learning projects on their campus or community.

For 6-12th grade students. View available dates and request a classroom project/presentation through our calendar.

Educator Workshops

Through our Generation Earth program, we offer free professional development workshops for 6-12th grade educators and administrators. These workshops are themed around water, waste, and forestry topics. Most of our workshops take place on Saturday mornings in natural locations throughout Los Angeles County. In addition, we also host a free annual two-day Summer Institute for educators. Our engaging, hands-on workshops provide the tools and confidence for educators to initiate environmental service-learning in their classrooms and communities. You can find upcoming educator workshops listed on this calendar and below.

Taking Action for a Greener LA County

When: Saturday, October 25 from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Where: Placerita Canyon Nature Center
19152 Placerita Canyon Rd.
Newhall, CA 91321

This free Generation Earth workshop for secondary educators explores how urban forests mitigate urban heat, support mental health, and promote sustainability through native plants, water conservation, and wildfire resilience.

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Resources

Videos, Eco-Club Kits, & More

TreePeople has nearly 50 years of leading-edge resources and education material for you to learn from and take action with. Transform your community with our handy videos, project kits and downloadable resources.

Toolkits for Teachers

We provide downloadable project toolkits and guides on a variety of environmental topics including water pollution prevention, waste reduction, e-waste collection, textile recycling, food rescue, composting and more. These guides provide the instructions and support materials needed to implement meaningful environmental projects in the classroom, on the school campus or out in the community.

Questions about TreePeople Education & Outdoor Equity

Yes! We offer Eco-Tour field trips at our Coldwater Canyon Park Campus for grades K-12 and community groups. You can learn more and request an Eco-Tour on this calendar.

For middle and high schools located in high park need areas, we offer Natural Connections field trips to natural areas across Los Angeles County. You can learn more and request a field trip on this calendar.

Yes! For grades K-5, our Traveling Dirt Doctor can visit your classroom for an engaging, interactive one-hour presentation about soil and mulch. You can request a visit from the Traveling Dirt Doctor via this form.

For grades 6-12, our Generation Earth program offers campus projects and presentations themed around water, waste, and forestry. You can learn more and request a classroom visit using this calendar.

We offer paid spring and summer internships for high school students from specific geographical regions. Our spring semester internship is open to students from Huntington Park, San Fernando, and the surrounding areas. Our summer internship is geared toward students in El Monte and South El Monte. The application cycles for these internships are late fall and early spring. Interns must be at least 16 years old. If you’d like to inquire about our internship programs, please email EcoOpportunities@treepeople.org.

Through our Generation Earth program, we offer free workshops for 6-12th grade educators and administrators. These workshops are themed around water, waste, and forestry topics. Most of our workshops take place on Saturday mornings in natural locations throughout Los Angeles County. In addition, we also hold an annual two-day teacher Summer Institute. Our engaging, hands-on workshops provide the tools and confidence for educators to initiate environmental service-learning in their classrooms and communities. You can find upcoming educator workshops listed on this calendar.

Please visit our volunteer page to learn more about volunteer opportunities. Please note that all volunteers 15 years old or younger must be accompanied by an adult chaperone who is at least 21 years old. There must be at least one adult chaperone per 10 volunteers ages 15 or younger. TreePeople staff can approve community service hours for individual students or groups.

Questions about the park, click here. If you have more education-related questions, contact us at education@treepeople.org