Today, only 6% of children play outside on their own. Those who do enjoy less than eight minutes a day in unrestricted outdoor activities. Yet the average teenager spends 10 hours a day staring at an electronic screen.

In urban areas, the disconnect between youth and nature is even more acute. But here in Houston, SCA—which launched the American youth conservation movement nearly 60 years ago—is spearheading a new drive to engage young people in hands-on service in the very neighborhoods they call home.

With an active focus on under-served populations, we provide students from all backgrounds with empowering opportunities to preserve city parks, explore the local ecology, and discover their own potential. Independent studies confirm that SCA members gain greater self-esteem and direction, enhanced critical-thinking and focus, and improved fitness and stamina.

Additionally, as students advance along a continuum of conservation experiences, they build the skills and insights necessary to lead effectively, practice lifelong stewardship and succeed in their careers.

Following their initial service, some SCA members return to lead the programs on which they once volunteered; others progress to become interns at the Houston Arboretum, Atwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge, or distant locations like Yellowstone and Acadia. And with seven in 10 SCA alumni employed or studying in the conservation field, their influence will reach across local governments, businesses and communities for many years to come.

Houston Special Initiatives:

ConSERVE Houston

In collaboration with Houston Parks and Recreation and others in the community, SCA conducts service projects throughout the city to strengthen the Houston environment and sow the seeds of civic engagement in a new generation of student leaders. Activities include park clean-ups, invasive species removal and trail construction/rehabilitation.

Community Conservation Crews

Under-served city teens enjoy what is often their first real exposure to the outdoors in this summer education/employment initiative. Members improve local parks and neighborhoods throughout the Houston area while gaining work skills and experience in what the US Conference of Mayors calls “one of America’s top green jobs programs for youth.”

Urban Wildlife Refuge Program

In partnership with the US Fish and Wildlife Service, SCA is nurturing a new conservation constituency by engaging youth from under-represented communities in meaningful, collaborative ways that build sustainable, broad-based support for wildlife conservation in and around Houston.

“I want to help preserve our natural world for future generations to enjoy, and SCA can provide an excellent entry to forestry and wildlife or conservation.”

– Anthony Sanchez, SCA alumnus, Houston, TX

LOCAL PARTNERs

• Buffalo Bayou Partnership
• Houston Parks and Recreation Department
• Memorial Park
• Mercer Arboretum and Botanic Gardens
• San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy
• Texas Coastal Ecological Services, US Fish andWildlife Service
• Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
• US Fish and Wildlife Service Urban Refuge Initiative

COMMUNITY SUPPORTERS

• The Brown Foundation
• Motiva
• Marathon Oil
• The Robert and Janice McNair Foundation
• Phillip66
• Shell
• Wortham Foundation