FOSTERING A GREEN HEART
Supporting young people as they innovate and develop place-based solutions to the biggest challenges posed by climate change and environmental injustice.
The 2024 Green Heart STEM Challenge has CLOSED!
The Green Heart STEM Challenge for Environmental Justice challenges young people to explore and identify environmental justice issues in their communities and to design feasible solutions to address these problems. Student teams work through a human-centered design process to develop equitable and feasible solutions to the problems they have identified. Challenge submissions are delivered with a 90 second pitch video and written proposal.
The Challenge extends over the months of January – April, and is open to teams of 3-5 students, 18 years and younger, anywhere in the world. GREEN HEART STEM CHALLENGE 2024 is focused on WATER and kicked off on January 16, 2024 with a special geographic focus on metro-Atlanta and metro-Houston.
Finalist Teams compete in a formal “Pitch” (think Shark Tank) to a judging panel of experts. Winning Teams (Elementary, Middle, and High) receive small implementation grants to put their ideas into ACTION. They are also invited to attend a summer intensive called the Green Heart Idea Incubator to work with mentors on implementing their solutions.
Sign-Up for Updates for the 2025 Green Heart STEM Challenge
Register for Houston In-Person Training on Nov 16
Captain Planet Foundation will be hosting an in-person training for the 2025 Green Heart STEM Challenge on Saturday, November 16th at the HDCE Adult Learning Center. Register today!
Virtual Information Sessions for Houston
Want to learn more about the Green Heart STEM Challenge? Register to join a 1-hour online information session.
Two sessions are currently scheduled for:
Tuesday, October 22nd, 2024 at 6pm EST / 5pm CST
Tuesday, October 29th, 2024 at 6pm EST / 5pm CST
The Green Heart STEM Challenge for Environmental Justice was inspired by the book “Living with a Green Heart” by Gay Browne; and was piloted in 2022 in Clayton County Public Schools in Georgia with funding from Accenture and private philanthropist, Susan Klein.