Eya Environmental Youth Alliance Society

EYA supports equity-denied youth to become environmental stewards. We provide free land-based education and paid employment training in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside engaging youth to develop skills and confidence in environmental stewardship through hands-on projects like growing native plants restoring wildlife habitat and creating Indigenous foodscapes. EYA programs weave together Western science with Indigenous cultural knowledge through visits from Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Keepers. EYA reaches 600 youth annually through a series of programs that create a ladder of opportunities for youth who identify as Indigenous Black People of Colour racialized new immigrants in foster care 2SLGBTQIA+ living with a disability or receiving income assistance.: • Wild Mind - school program introducing elementary students to urban ecology • Nature Stewards - free educational programs engaging youth to lead urban environmental stewardship projects • Roots & Shoots - paid land-based employment training programs and environmental work placements • Peer Mentors - older youth help lead Nature Stewards programs to gain leadership experience • Youth Advisory Council - 10 youth alumni provide input and help design EYA programs Cultivate - free drop-in land-based employment training workshop series