High School

2007-2008 CLC News

Pittsburgh's Conservation Leadership Corps (CLC), is seeking new members who are interested in adventure, meeting new people, having fun, and learning about conservation in the Pittsburgh community.

The CLC is looking for youth who are willing to commit to events one weekend per month for five months. Following their first year, students will have the opportunity to be engaged with CLC and other SCA programs throughout high school and beyond. CLC students are recruited from a variety of local area high schools including Bethel Park, Oliver Westinghouse, Wilkinsburg, Woodland Hills, Gateway, Moon Township, Carrick, Allderdice, Peabody, Perry, and Schenley. However, as always, the CLC welcomes students from all schools surrounding Pittsburgh.

What is CLC all about?

CLC Backpacking Students will also get to learn new outdoor skills as they participate in various outdoor excursions. Last year, for example, first year students learned about gear, cooking, and camping on a 10 mile backpacking trip in May while second and third year students challenged themselves on a February camping trip where they learned valuable winter camping skills.

Leadership in Action

The CLC program strives to provide students with valuable leadership skills. Therefore returning members, second and third year students, play a key role in organizing events and training first year CLC members. This December 8th, in Raccoon State Park, students will work with a Master Trainer of the Leave No Trace (LNT) program to become certified trainers of LNT ethics. Students will then teach new members the guidelines of LNT. Last year's second and third year CLC students also tested their leadership abilities by organizing events, including a tree planting event in Frick Park, an Earth Day project in Schenley park, and other community gatherings. During the tree planting event, which was made possible by a grant from the NiSource Foundation, all CLC members participated in planting seventy native trees. This years CLC members hope to continue this urban forestry mission.

Youth Mission: Beautify Pittsburgh

After spending their summers working on the SCA's national crews 15-18 returning CLC members, have expressed interest in working closely with urban organizations that carry out conservation projects in the heart of Pittsburgh. They want to take the skills they learned in amazing natural places such as Yellowstone and beautify the urban landscape. This year's CLC youth have already begun working on projects throughout Pittsburgh. The first weekend of November, students worked with GTECH Strategies Inc., a local non-profit group focused on abandoned lot reclamation by growing biofuel producing crops like switchgrass in empty spaces throughout the city. CLC youth have committed to working with groups like GTECH to help transform abandoned lots into community gardens, urban pocket parks and green spaces for the adjacent neighborhoods to enjoy.

CLC gives students an opportunity to see their community, not as a lifeless space which holds buildings and people, but as a living, breathing area rich with natural wonders and caring, passionate people.

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