Ecology Project International Announces Three Awards in Mexico and US to Fund Conservation Educatio

Dec. 1, 2010 - PRLog -- BAJA CALIFORNIA SUR, MEXICO and CANYON, TEXAS – Three former participants of non-profit conservation education organization, Ecology Project International (EPI), were each granted cash prizes for proposals to inspire local conservation and sustainability. This is the first time projects in Mexico have been included.

“EPI is thrilled to be able to offer this award, to keep our inspired participants involved in conservation and show how youth really can make a difference in the world,” says Julie Osborn, EPI’s Advancement Director and Co-Founder.

Through EPI’s Alumni Awards program, youth who have participated in EPI’s experiential education courses in Costa Rica, the Galapagos Islands, Mexico, and Montana are eligible to apply for cash prizes to launch a conservation project in their communities.

Winner of the $500 Conservation Leader prize, Allysa Veigel, will be launching a vlog and website dedicated to informing other youth about on-the-ground marine biology work and how to pursue it as a career. Working alongside a professional marine biologist at an aquarium, Allysa will document the daily work involved, as well as using her website (www.thesaltytruth.com) as a public forum to discuss careers and contemporary conservation issues.

Alyssa was a participant in EPI’s 2010 Whale Ecology Program in Baja California Sur, Mexico. In EPI’s program, Alyssa collected whale sampling data alongside professional researchers in the Sea of Cortez, to monitor the diverse whale species and document biodiversity in region.

Speaking of her experience in the Whale Ecology Program, Allysa says, “I was an actual scientist working alongside the other marine biologists living my passion of marine biology. Every day was a one “once-in-a-lifetime” experience after the next.”

Allysa’s idea for this project stemmed from her own challenges of trying to learn about the realities of a career in marine biology. A resident of Texas, Allysa has few opportunities experience actual marine biology work or how best to prepare for a marine biology career.

EPI’s field office in Mexico also distributed awards this round; one to a high school student and one to a local teacher, both of whom participated in EPI’s programs in Mexico.

High school student, Paola Vallarino, received the “Youth Leadership Conservation Award” to put on a workshop for local teachers on how to incorporate environmental education and conservation into elementary classrooms. Paola will also put on a workshop for high school and college students on how to use green technologies in their daily lives, followed by a round-table discussion to raise awareness about human impacts on the environment, both locally and internationally. Paola was granted $580 for this project.

The winner of the “Teaching Award in Conservation” went to Guadalupe Flores, who participated in developing "Northern Route," an educational trip for young people in areas of high biodiversity in Baja California Sur, to inform them about sustainable development in this region. Guadalupe was awarded $1,700 to complete this project.

This is the second round of EPI’s Alumni Awards, the first of which were granted in February, 2010. The first awards went to Alexis Jackson and Elise Zarri, both California residents, to fund research on fisheries in the Gulf of California and a public education campaign at the Oakland Zoo about effects of palm oil and sustainable sources.

EPI will launch a third round of Alumni Awards in 2011, which will be announced through their website and social media pages. EPI plans to spread this program to their additional field sites in Costa Rica and the Galapagos Islands. Only people who have participated in one of EPI’s field courses will be eligible to apply.

To date, more than 7,300 people have participated in EPI’s programs. EPI’s unique approach to environmental education enhances conservation through the creation of a scientifically literate public with direct experience in nature, and a populace that is better equipped to make informed decisions about natural resources important to their community’s economic and environmental health.

For more information about EPI, visit http://www.ecologyproject.org or email info@ecologyproject.org.