California Environmental Literacy Initiative (CAELI)
A collective action network seeking to ensure access to high-quality environment-based learning for all California’s TK–12 students.
We believe in the power of systems change as a lever to ensure that all students have access to high-quality environment-based learning. This year — with a membership made up of educators, governmental and non-governmental agencies, scientists, sustainability professionals, and individuals with expertise on the environment and systems change — CAELI completed its first full season under the leadership of Andra Yeghoian as project director and the new Theory of Action. Andra replaced Ten Strands’ CEO, Karen Cowe, who was in this role for the first eight years of the initiative. Learn more about how the hubs promote student learning in our monthly newsletters.
Joining Juanita Chan-Roden, we also welcomed CAELI’s newest co-chair, executive director of the Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education Estrella Risinger, and said goodbye to departing co-chair Craig Strang, since the launch of CAELI. We thank Karen and Craig for their service. Read more about the leadership transition that took place in June 2023 here.
CAELI
We have new and exciting opportunities for individuals and organizations to be a part of the movement! This year we published new content to provide ways to Get Involved, and to offer access to the many Resources created by CAELI.
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Data Initiative for Environmental and Climate Action in California’s TK–12 Schools
A partnership with UndauntedK12 to provide interactive data sets that can be used to catalyze change for environmental and climate literacy and action efforts in California TK–12 schools.
This Data Initiative responds to the need for an equity-informed, data-driven approach that prioritizes underserved communities and addresses environmental injustices. This year, the Data Initiative (currently in beta) has made significant progress in advancing a statewide analysis of:
- school districts in counties taking the most and least amount of environmental and climate action;
- the California Green Ribbon program since 2014; and
- the extent to which the twenty-five largest school districts in California have invested in environmental and climate action.
ADVOCACY
The Data Initiative identifies key demographic indicators related to need, as well as tracks readiness and progress on high impact leverage points for change such as school board policies, bond measures, and investments in environmental and climate initiatives and staff to lead these initiatives.
BUILDING CAPACITY
The Data Initiative launched a website that includes the start of the interactive data sets that can support scaling implementation of environmental and climate action in California’s schools by using an equity-informed and data-driven approach.
Looking Ahead
California Youth Climate Policy (CYCP) Leadership Program
In May, we launched a new statewide youth program designed to empower high school students to enact real change in their school or district. Facilitated in partnership between Ten Strands, the Sierra Club, and UndauntedK12, we are supporting forty-five tenth-through-twelfth-grade students to take climate action into their own hands. Throughout the program, students focus on foundational knowledge and skill-building activities related to environmental and climate action. Students will then apply their knowledge and skills on leading an advocacy campaign that passes climate policies (or builds on existing policies) in their school or district.
Technical Assistance
Ten Strands has been supporting local education agencies (LEAs—county offices of education and school districts), schools, organizations, and individuals with direct services on environmental and climate literacy and action. In the coming year, we look forward to expanding our capacity to support schools in integrating environmental and climate literacy as well as action on sustainable and climate-resilient schools into TK–12 education across the whole system.
Stories of Impact
Featured in our bi-monthly newsletters, this year we’ve helped uplift twenty-four stories about environmental and climate literacy efforts in California.
- We believe that young people have valuable perspectives and a critical role in shaping our society and our world. Our Youth Voices series is a platform for young people to drive dialogue and create positive change.
- Read our most viewed stories this year:
Rishi Gurjar
From Climate Worrier to Climate Warrior: A Journey through Gardening and Climate Advocacy
EcoGovLab Writing Team
Teaching with Storylines that Call Students In
Featured in our bi-monthly newsletters, this year we’ve helped uplift twenty-four stories about environmental and climate literacy efforts in California.
- We believe that young people have valuable perspectives and a critical role in shaping our society and our world. Our Youth Voices series is a platform for young people to drive dialogue and create positive change.
- Check out the Top 5 most read stories this year:
- My Journey as a Solutionary by Lela Ward
- From Climate Worrier to Climate Warrior: A Journey through Gardening and Climate Advocacy by Rishi Gurjar
- Climate Justice Curriculum by Youth, for Youth by Courtney Welsh
- Poetry and Science: Pathways to Presence by Emilie Lygren
- Teaching with Storylines that Call Students In by Kim Fortun, Prerna Srigyan, Nadine Tanio, and Margarate Tebbe
TEN STRANDS TEAM
Staff
Marwa Abdelghani
Communications Manager
Riki Bertoldi
Climate Corps Fellow
Will Booth
Climate Corps Fellow
Karen Cowe
Chief Executive Officer
Navreet Singh Dhaliwal
Philanthropic Engagement Manager
Jeffrey Dowling
Instructional Designer
Dr. Amy Frame
Director of Strategic Partnerships
Dr. Roni Jones
Director of Curriculum
Jilliann Rodriguez M'Barki
Chief Advancement Officer
Celeste Royer
Director of Equity and Inclusion
Andra Yeghoian
Chief Innovation Officer
Board of Directors
Dr. Tom Adams
Susanna Cooper
Candice Dickens-Russell
Rishi Gurjar
Dr. Adrian Hightower
Dr. Kelley Lê
Greg Moore, Board Advisor
James Mousalimas
Sheila Nahi
Will Parish, Board Chair
Glen Price
Robert Sheffield
Advisory Board
Bill Andrews
Jennifer Caldwell
Paul Chapman
Jayni Chase
Dr. Milton Chen
Jack Chin
Dr. Hardin Coleman
Diana Dehm
Randi Fisher
Mark Gold
A.J. Hudson
Cannon Michael
Suzanne Schutte
Leslie Mintz Tamminen
PARTNERS LIST
- Action Lab for Planetary Health at Stanford Medicine’s Center for Innovation in Global Health
- Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education
- BSCS Science Learning
- California Association of Science Educators
- California Department of Education
- California Environmental Literacy Initiative Leadership Council
- California Geographic Alliance
- California Global Education Project
- California History Social Science Project
- California Partnership for Math and Science Education
- California Regional Environmental Education Community Network
- California Science Project
- California State University System
- California Subject Matter Project
- CalRecycle
- Center for Ecoliteracy
- Children’s Environmental Literacy Foundation
- Climate Generation
- Climate Literacy Committee of the Sierra Club San Francisco Bay Chapter
- Climate Mental Health Network
- Community Resources for Science
- Concord Consortium
- Environmental Education Collaborative
- Environmental Volunteers
- GISetc
- Global Nomads Group
- Green Guardians
- Green Schoolyards America
- Lawrence Hall of Science
- Long Beach USD
- Marine Science Institute
- Monterey County Office of Education
- Mycelium Youth Network
- Oakland Teachers Advancing Climate Action
- Orange County Department of Education, Inside the Outdoors
- Project Look Sharp
- RTI International
- San Diego County Office of Education
- San Joaquin County Office of Education
- San Mateo County Office of Education
- Santa Clara County Office of Education
- Santa Clara USD
- Santa Cruz County Office of Education
- SEI
- Solano County Office of Education
- Stanford University’s Sean N. Parker Center for Allergy and Asthma Research
- The HEAL Project
- The Inverness Institute
- UC Berkeley Center for Cities and Schools
- UC Berkeley Data Discovery Program
- UCI EcoGovLab
- Undaunted K-12
- University of California System
FINANCIALS
Revenue and Expense
Ten Strands operates on a July 1 through June 30 fiscal year
2021-2022
Total Revenue and Support: $4,734,751
2022-2023
Total Revenue and Support: $4,475,137
Program Expenses
2021-2022
Total Program Expenses: $1,452,694
Support Expenses:
Salaries & Personnel Expenses: $381,391
Other General & Administrative: $46,574
Total Support Expenses: $427,965
2022-2023
Total Program Expenses: $3,633,920
Support Expenses:
Salaries & Personnel Expenses: $412,124
Other General & Administrative: $92,361
Total Support Expenses: $504,485
Change in Net Assets
DONOR ROLL
Thank you to our supporters
At every level, our accomplishments are all thanks to our supporters who enable us to provide environmental literacy learning experiences to California’s K—12 students.
check_small Donors with consecutive giving over the past three years
check_smallLoyal donors with five or more years of support
check_small Donors who have given annually since our founding in 2012
CORAL $250,000+
- Elizabeth R. and William J. Patterson Foundation check_smallcheck_small
HUMMINGBIRD $100,000–$249,999
- David and Lucille Packard Foundation
- Ellen Bronfman Hautpman
- First Republic Bank Foundation
- Jacques M. Littlefield Foundation
- Laural Foundation
- Suzanne U.D. Parish Foundation
- Pisces Foundation check_smallcheck_smallcheck_small
- Sand Hill Foundation check_smallcheck_small
SEA STAR $50,000–$99,999
- BelleJAR Foundation
- William K. Bowes, Jr. Foundation check_small
- Jennifer Caldwell and John H.N. Fisher check_smallcheck_small
- CISCO Foundation
- Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation check_smallcheck_small
- Lampert Byrd Foundation check_small
- National Geographic Society
- Diana Nelson and John Atwater check_smallcheck_small
- Julie and Will Parish check_smallcheck_smallcheck_small
SEA OTTER $25,000–$49,999
- Katie Albright and Jake Schatz check_smallcheck_small
- Anonymous
- Bob and Dana Emery check_smallcheck_small
- HalfMyDAF
- HRH Foundation check_smallcheck_small
- Silver Giving Foundation check_smallcheck_small
- Stuart Foundation
- Susan and David Tunnell check_smallcheck_small
CACTUS $10,000–$24,999
- Anonymous
- Rick and Tonya Antle
- Janice and Matthew Barger check_smallcheck_small
- The Kelly and Sam Bronfman Family Foundation check_smallcheck_small
- Eliza Brown check_smallcheck_smallcheck_small
- Nina Brown de Clercq check_smallcheck_small
- Owsley Brown III check_small
- Ruth Cox and Milton Chen check_small
- First Republic Bank check_small
- Katie Hall and Tom Knutsen check_smallcheck_small
- Betsy and Ed McDermott check_smallcheck_small
- Sheila and Paul Nahi check_smallcheck_small
- Kate Ridgway and Rick Holmstrom check_smallcheck_small
- Sherman Family Fund check_smallcheck_small
- Laura and Greg Spivy check_smallcheck_small
- Louise and Arthur Patterson check_small
- Maxwell Hanrahan Foundation
GREY WOLF $5,000–$9,999
- The Keith Campbell Foundation check_smallcheck_small
- David and Carla Crane Philanthropic Fund check_smallcheck_small
- Stephanie DiMarco and Jim Harleen check_smallcheck_small
- Clarke Herring
- John Lamm check_smallcheck_small
- Kristin Hull
- Susan and Bill Oberndorf check_smallcheck_small
- JaMel and Tom Perkins check_small
- Samantha Smith Productions
SUGAR MAPLE $1,000–$4,999
- Leslie Berriman and Nion McEvoy check_smallcheck_small
- Bob Brown and Su-Moon Paik
- John Buoymaster check_smallcheck_small
- Daniel Chandler
- Gail and Hardin Coleman check_smallcheck_small
- Karen Cowe check_smallcheck_small
- Paul Danielsen
- Barbara Deméré check_smallcheck_small
- Kate Ditzler and Stuart Gasner check_smallcheck_small
- Kate and Bill Duhamel check_smallcheck_small
- Kamal El-Wattar check_smallcheck_small
- Melinda Ellis Evers and Will Evers check_smallcheck_small
- Pam Polite Fisco and Dennis Fisco check_smallcheck_small
- Lisa and Douglas Goldman Fund check_smallcheck_small
- Shelly Guyer and Tom Huntington check_small
- Melissa and Shepard Harris check_small
- Sabrina and Mick Hellman check_smallcheck_small
- Adrian Hightower check_small
- Suds and Lori Jain
- Dagny Maidman and Molly Wood check_smallcheck_small
- Meridee Moore
- Emilie and Doug Ogden check_smallcheck_small
- Simone Otus Coxe and Tench Coxe
- Anne and Michael Parish check_small
- Mauree Jane and Mark W. Perry check_smallcheck_small
- Rina and Chris Chase
- Dr. Krista Ramonas and Gordon Rubenstein check_smallcheck_small
- Celeste and Jim Royer check_smallcheck_small
- Cesar Rueda
- Suzanne and Will Schutte check_small
- The Stellar Blue Fund check_smallcheck_small
- Susan Gilmore Stone and Prescott Stonecheck_small
- The Laney and Pasha Thornton Foundation check_smallcheck_small
- Mary and Jerome Vascellaro check_smallcheck_small
- Carl Vogt check_small
- Brooks Walker III Family Fund check_smallcheck_small
- Lynn and Peter Wendell check_small
BEAR $1–$999
- 350 Humboldt
- Anonymous
- Thomas Adams
- Bill Andrews check_small
- Tasha and Nathaniel Bergson-Michelson
- JoAnn and Jack Bertges check_smallcheck_small
- Eric Blasen check_smallcheck_small
- Philip E. Bowles
- Hedy Chang and Jack Chin check_smallcheck_small
- Helen and Paul Chapman check_smallcheck_small
- Jayni and Chevy Chase
- Diana Dehm
- Navreet Dhaliwal
- Candice Dickens-Russell check_smallcheck_small
- Thomas Van Dyck
- Sandra Emerson
- Amy Frame
- Angela Howe
- Carol Inkellis and Joel Gingold check_smallcheck_small
- Maya Gingold check_small
- Peter Hellwig
- Kim Kelly
- Kelley Le
- Jilliann and Simo M’Barki
- Tina Quinn
- Sarah Ranney
- Jennifer and Marty Rigby check_smallcheck_small
- Donald R. Share check_smallcheck_small
- Patti and Richard Shavelson
- Robert Sheffield check_smallcheck_small
- Kirk Anne Taylor and Nik Hallworth check_small
- Leslie and Terry Tamminen
- Michael and Shirley Traynor
- Lisa C. Van Dusen check_smallcheck_small
- Andra Yeghoian
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