For the June installment of our monthly webinar series: Bringing New Ideas and Innovation to the Field of EE, we hosted a panel of experts on diversity and inclusion in environmental movements. Each panelist discussed his/her experiences in progressing diversity and equity in specific contexts as well as important next steps for continuing to grow as a diverse and inclusive field. Click here to learn more about the webinar series and upcoming speakers.

Considering a wide array of perspectives helps us be more effective and creates an environment that allows us to honor our diverse beliefs, attitudes, languages, interpersonal styles, and values. The more diverse we are, the stronger our movement will be. Whether you’re looking to build inclusivity, respect, and equity in your program, seeking to employ the talents of people with different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives to accomplish your goals, or simply want to recognize strides in creating a more culturally diverse field, this webinar will provide a framework for discussing unique opportunities to increase our cross-cultural understanding and exchanges. Darryl-Ramos Young will moderate the panel discussion, which will be include Audrey Peterman, Iantha Gantt-Wright, and Marcelo Bonta.

Click here to watch the recorded webinar.

Audrey Peterman is nationally recognized as a leader in the movement to make America’s national parks and public lands relevant to every demographic group in our population and to show them as the glue that holds our country together. She is the President of Earthwise Productions, Inc., which provides consulting and training services to public land managers, conservation organizations, and others seeking to gain market share in urban communities. She’s serving a fifth three-year term on the board of the National Parks Conservation Association and has won multiple national awards for her work. She writes prolifically about the public lands and environment for multiple audiences including two books, several Black-focused weekly newspapers and blogs for the Huffington Post. Since 1995 Mrs. Peterman and her husband Frank have been traveling the national parks, forests, wildlife refuges and open spaces and so are eminently familiar with the effects of our changing climate. Today Mrs. Peterman weaves the themes of relevance, inclusiveness, natural resource protection and climate resilience into spellbinding presentations that bring our current situation into sharp focus. Her work has been recognized with the 2013 Apex Distinguished Service Award from Black Meetings and Tourism magazine; an Orchid Award 2014 from the Miami Urban Environmental League; the Environmental Hero Award from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2000; the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Outstanding Citizen Conservationist Award from the National Parks Conservation Association, 1997; and the George Barley Leadership Award from the forty-member Everglades Coalition, 1999. With 175 units of the park system under her belt, Mrs. Peterman and her husband were named “Yosemite Ambassadors” in 2016, Mrs. Peterman and her husband were named “Yosemite Ambassadors” in 2016. Mrs. Peterman’s books include “Legacy on the Land: A Black Couple Discovers Our National Inheritance and Tells Why Every American Should Care,” and the travel guide, “Our True Nature: Finding a Zest for Life in the National Park System!” 

“Many want to save the planet, but few sit down to plan it.” Stefan Moss is an environmental scientist and educator with a passion for engaging businesses, schools and non-profit organizations in the faith community and encouraging them to become active participants in the environmental movement. He is the Founder and Principal of Solomon’s Minds, which specializes in environmental education curriculum development and sustainability consulting. He is a member of the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) and currently serves as Department Chair and Professor of Environmental Science at Lincoln College of Technology in Marietta, GA.

In partnership with Praise Academy, a K-12 SACS accredited school in the metro Atlanta area, Stefan received a grant from the Environmental Education Alliance of Georgia to develop a comprehensive outdoor learning program for the over 300 attending students. Along with his work in science and education, Stefan is a Dove Award winning singer/songwriter and composes nature-inspired music that includes themes related to the outdoors. He holds a Bachelors degree in Chemistry and Biology with a minor in Religious Studies from Lee University, and a Masters degree in Environmental Science from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Marcelo Bonta is a trailblazer on diversity, equity, and inclusion issues in the environmental movement. He currently works as the Philanthropy Northwest Momentum Fellow at Meyer Memorial Trust in Oregon.  He is implementing the Healthy Environment Program, which includes equity as its foundation.  Marcelo is also the founder of the Center for Diversity and the Environment (CDE) and the Environmental Professionals of Color. With CDE, Marcelo worked with over 350 diversity change agents through transformational leadership programs and over 60 organizations and foundations through high impact organizational change work. In 2008, he co-wrote with Charles Jordan a visionary article, entitled “Diversifying the American Environmental Movement.” His work has been featured in numerous publications, including The New York Times, High Country News, The Oregonian, Prism Magazine, Colors NW, The Oregonian, Sustainlane.com, Saving Land Magazine, Diverse: Issues in Higher Education Magazine, Sustainable Industries Magazine, and homes+gardens northwest magazine. Marcelo serves on the Green 2.0 Advisory Board, Diverse Environmental Leaders Speakers Bureau, Climate Access Advisory Council, and Columbia Land Trust Advisory Council. He is also a TogetherGreen Conservation Fellow.

Darryl Ramos-Young is the Education Coordinator for the West Basin Municipal Water District, a local government agency providing water to over one million people in the coastal Los Angeles area. He earned his BS degree in Environmental Education from Humboldt State University and has over 30 years of education program development and fundraising experience with local, state and national environmental education organizations. He helped establish the Hawaii Environmental Education Association, served as a steering committee member for the Golden State Environmental Education Consortium, is a board member of the California Environmental Education Foundation, and is one of the current Diversity and Inclusion eePRO moderators for the North American Association for Environmental Education. Darryl’s passion is strengthening the communication networks and available resources for urban EE organizations. His efforts have included expanding the community outreach for an environmental education grants program to diverse populations for Save-the-Redwoods League, building the first Los Angeles urban nature center for the National Audubon Society, and creating an environmental education job training program for urban young adults for the West Basin Municipal Water District.