California Environmental Literacy Initiative (CAELI) 2025–26 End of Season Reflection
Throughout the year, CAELI continued to grow as a statewide network, bringing together leaders across districts, County Offices of Education (COEs), community-based partners (CBPs), and state agencies to learn from one another, share resources, and advance environmental literacy in locally meaningful ways.
As CAELI closes the 2025–26 season, this year reflected a deepening of the network’s core strengths: connection, collaboration, shared learning, and collective action across California’s environmental literacy ecosystem.
Rather than launching entirely new structures, this season focused on strengthening and expanding the spaces that have proven most valuable in bringing together formal educators in the TK-12 system with nonformal (or informal) environmental education providers, state agency leaders, and other partners. ThroughoutAcross the year, CAELI intentionally leaned into relationship-building, peer learning, and practical collaboration — creating more opportunities for people across sectors and regions to learn from one another, share strategies, and strengthen their collective capacity for action.
As Andra Yeghoian, CAELI Project Director and Ten Strands Chief Innovation Officer, shared, “Over the past decade, California’s environmental literacy movement has grown from a shared vision into a strong statewide ecosystem of relationships, leadership, and action. CAELI has been absolutely critical to that growth. And what continues to inspire me most about CAELI is the willingness of people across sectors, regions, and roles to come together, learn from one another, and collectively work toward prioritizing and implementing high quality environmental education in California’s TK-12 sSchools.”
Growing Connection, Participation, and Shared Learning at CAELI Quarterly Meetings
A major accomplishmentmilestone this year was opening CAELI Quarterly gatherings to broader participation for the first time. This shift expanded access to statewide conversations and created new entry points for educators, partners, and leaders interested in bringing environmental and climate action further into California schools.
Increased participation and attendance at quarterly meetings and other CAELI gatherings — both virtual and in person — strengthened awareness of the broader environmental literacy movement and helped more people connect withinto California’s growing statewide ecosystem of environmental and climate action in education.
The quarterly gatherings also created opportunities to learn, reflect, and grow together through conversations exploring topics such as: analyzing the growth of the movement ten years after the Blueprint for Environmental Literacy (2015); engaging with statewide advocacy efforts related to California’s Portrait of a Learner (2026), the Seal of Climate Literacy, and the Campaign for Outdoor Learning; diving deeper into equity-related topics and challenges; and reflecting on the continued importance of events like Earth Day as environmental and climate action evolves in the 21st Century.
Together, these gatherings reinforced one of CAELI’s core strengths: creating spaces where people across roles, regions, and sectors can come together to build relationships, deepen shared understanding, and strengthen collective momentum for environmental literacy and climate-ready schools across California.
Communities of Practice as a Foundation for Change
A core driver of this work continues to be CAELI’s Communities of Practice, which provided consistent spaces for collaboration, problem-solving, and shared learning throughout the year.
District leaders engaged in conversations ranging from sustainability in nutrition services to leadership transitions and regenerative systems, and most recently, the role of living schoolyards in supporting authentic, hands-on learning. These sessions emphasized practical application, with tools, examples, and guest expertise supporting real-time implementation.
March 2026 District Environmental Leaders Community of Practice
Community-Based Partner (CBP) gatherings focused on strengthening partnerships with districts, improving evaluation practices, and advancing climate education. The sStrong level of registration and participation across these sessions highlighted a growing enthusiasdemand for connection and shared strategy among practitioners across both informal and formal education settingsspaces.
County Office of Education (COE) Communities of Practice centered on building and sustaining partnerships between districts and community-based organizations, sharing concrete tools such as the CAELI CBP Toolkit, and elevating examples of successful collaboration. These spaces also supported COEs in embracingreflecting on their role as connectors and capacity-builders across systems.
April 2026 County Office of Education Community of Practice
As Estrella Risinger, CAELI Co-Chair and Executive Director of the Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education (AEOE), shared, “CAELI has been instrumental in bringing colleagues together for shared learning, connection, and resource-sharing. In these spaces, we are reminded that we are not alone, and that there are leaders and champions throughout the state that share our vision for a more just and sustainable future.”
Advancing Tools, Resources, and Shared Learning
Throughout the 2025–26 season, CAELI continued expanding the tools, resources, and shared learning opportunities available to support environmental literacy implementation across California.
February 2026 Community-Based Partner Community of Practice
Across Communities of Practice, quarterly gatherings, webinars, and statewide networks, participants engaged with practical resources designed to help move environmental and climate action from vision into implementation. These included tools for strengthening partnerships between districts and community-based partners (CBPs), models for integrating environmental literacy across campus, curriculum, community, and culture, and data and evaluation approaches that help schools and organizations better understand progress and impact.
A continued priority this year was ensuring that environmental literacy efforts are equitable, inclusive, and responsive to the diverse contexts and lived experiences of California school communities. Equity integration remained an ongoing area of reflection and learning throughout CAELI spaces, including conversations focused on climate impacts, resilience, inclusivity, environmental justice, and supporting school communities during challenging times.
This year also marked continued growth of the CAELI Partner Portal, which serves as a statewide resource hub designed to strengthen connection and visibility across California’s environmental literacy ecosystem. The portal now includes hundreds of community-based partner organizations and programs, County Office of Education microsites, stories from the field, events, and implementation resources that help educators and partners more easily connect, collaborate, and access support across the state.
Across all of these spaces, there was a clear emphasis on making learning actionable. Sessions consistently moved beyond inspiration toward concrete strategies, examples, peer learning, and opportunities for participants to apply ideas within their own schools, organizations, and communities.
Celebrating and Connecting Through Statewide Events
This year also included a number of other opportunities to gather, celebrate, and learn together both virtually and in person, strengthening relationships and shared learning across California’s environmental literacy ecosystem.
CAELI’s webinar series created opportunities for educators, partners, and leaders to explore emerging ideas, implementation strategies, and stories of change happening across the state. Topics ranged from climate resilience and outdoor learning to systems change, environmental justice, and innovative school and community partnerships. These webinars helped participants stay connected to broader statewide efforts while also elevating examples and lessons learned from local communities.
In-person gatherings also continued to play an important role in strengthening connection and collaboration across sectors. At the Green California Schools and Higher Education Summit (GCSHE), CAELI leaders and partners gathered to deepen relationships and explore opportunities for collective action around sustainability, climate readiness, and environmental literacy in schools – read more highlights from our December feature on this gathering.
The third annual Bay Area Climate Literacy Exchange brought together educators, agencies, nonprofits, universities, and youth-serving organizations for a day of interdisciplinary and intergenerational learning. Workshops and conversations highlighted innovative approaches to climate literacy, student engagement, and community-based learning, while also reinforcing the value of regional collaboration and partnership-building.
The California Green Ribbon Schools (CA-GRS) Award Ceremony and Symposium, hosted by the California Department of Education (CDE), brought together educators and leaders for a day of learning, networking, and recognition. The event built on the momentum and relationships fostered through the CAELI Green Ribbon Network — a quarterly virtual network coordinated through CAELI that supports schools and districts in sharing best practices, learning from one another, and advancing toward the highest levels of Green Ribbon recognition. The symposium featured a school tour, keynote speakers, and workshops that highlighted environmental literacy and sustainability in action, while also strengthening partnerships and momentum for future collaboration.
Andra’s keynote address at the CA-GRS 2025 Awards Ceremony
Across CAELI events and spaces, one thing was clear: there is both momentum and a growing appetite for deeper connection, coordination, and shared learning across the state.
Looking ahead to the 2026–27 CAELI Season
As CAELI looks toward the next season, the work ahead remains both urgent and hopeful. Across California, there is growing recognition that environmental literacy is not a separate initiative, but an essential part of preparing young people and communities for a rapidly changing world.
CAELI will continue strengthening the network, supporting leadership, and expanding opportunities for connection, collaboration, and shared learning. Priorities for the coming season include growing Communities of Practice, broadening representation across roles and systems, deepening partnerships across districts, County Offices of Education, and community-based organizations, and continuing to support practical implementation efforts across the state.
At its core, CAELI remains a people-powered network grounded in relationships, shared leadership, and collective commitment. As the movement continues to grow, CAELI will continue creating the spaces, partnerships, and infrastructure needed to help environmental literacy and climate-ready education thrive across California schools and communities.
