EarthDNA Ambassadors Summer Program
A climate leadership program led by the EarthDNA & Bluedot Institute Exclusively for Selected High School Students
❙ From Friday, July 12, to Tuesday, July 16, 2024
❙ At the MIT Media Lab, Cambridge, MA
EarthDNA Ambassadors Summer Program
A climate leadership program led by the EarthDNA & Bluedot Institute Exclusively for Selected High School Students
❙ From Friday, July 12, to Tuesday, July 16, 2024
❙ At the MIT Media Lab, Cambridge, MA
EarthDNA Ambassadors Summer Program
A climate leadership program led by the EarthDNA & Bluedot Institute Exclusively for Selected High School Students
❙ From Friday, July 12, to Tuesday, July 16, 2024
❙ At the MIT Media Lab, Cambridge, MA
Top Reasons to Join Our Summer Program
- Advocacy
Become a more effective advocate for global sustainability.
- Leadership
This is an excellent opportunity for high school students to sharpen their leadership and communications skills in a week of intensive training at the MIT Media Lab.
- Collaboration
EarthDNA will co-sponsor and facilitate in collaboration with Bluedot Institute, as well as provide scholarship funds for students to join the program.
Overview
This 5-day, intensive program is designed to train a select group of high school students in vital skills needed for effective leadership in the climate movement. Young people will inherit a world filled with distraction, disinformation, and inertia around difficult environmental issues facing our planet. The program aims to provide tools for the next generation as they navigate the future for themselves, and work to bring along others with them.
In addition to workshops, games, improvisations, and exercises held within the MIT Media Lab, the program recognizes the role of Boston and Cambridge as ideal classrooms at our disposal. Together with astronauts and experts from MIT and Harvard, students explore the natural environment of the area. They learn about space and the night sky at a local observatory; explore the effect of climate change on the seas through a whale watching trip to a national marine sanctuary; go birdwatching on Plum Island and study wildlife at a local Audubon nature and wildlife sanctuary. Evenings and weekends provide ample time for exploration.
Overview
This 5-day, intensive program is designed to train a select group of high school students in vital skills needed for effective leadership in the climate movement. Young people will inherit a world filled with distraction, disinformation, and inertia around difficult environmental issues facing our planet. The program aims to provide tools for the next generation as they navigate the future for themselves, and work to bring along others with them.
In addition to workshops, games, improvisations, and exercises held within the MIT Media Lab, the program recognizes the role of Boston and Cambridge as ideal classrooms at our disposal. Together with astronauts and experts from MIT and Harvard, students explore the natural environment of the area. They learn about space and the night sky at a local observatory; explore the effect of climate change on the seas through a whale watching trip to a national marine sanctuary; go birdwatching on Plum Island and study wildlife at a local Audubon nature and wildlife sanctuary. Evenings and weekends provide ample time for exploration.
Program Details
❙ Who can apply?
Any high school student ages 16-19
❙ Where will I stay?
Room and board is provided. Students will stay in MIT’s residential dorms.
❙ What is the cost of the program?
US$3,500. This will cover the cost of housing, food, and transit for events, Incidentals and travel are not covered. A deposit is due upon acceptance.
❙ What if I can’t afford the cost of the program?
Still apply! We are committed to making the program affordable for everyone. Scholarships will be determined by demonstrated need.
In addition to workshops, games, improvisations, and exercises held within the MIT Media Lab, the program recognizes the role of Boston and Cambridge as ideal classrooms at our disposal. Together with astronauts and experts from MIT and Harvard, students explore the natural environment of the area. They learn about space and the night sky at a local observatory; explore the effect of climate change on the seas through a whale watching trip to a national marine sanctuary; go birdwatching on Plum Island and study wildlife at a local Audubon nature and wildlife sanctuary. Evenings and weekends provide ample time for exploration.
How to Apply
All students who are interested in attending the EarthDNA Ambassador Program will be considered, regardless of finances. Click the link below to fill out the application form. You will be asked to sign into or create a Google Account.
Program Agenda
July 11 and 17 are considered travel days for participants to arrive and depart. Workshops will be held daily July 12-16.
DAY 1 (07/12)
LEADERSHIP
Workshops throughout the day allow students to discover the connection between self-awareness and effective leadership.
Games and exercises provide opportunities for introspection, radical listening, and empathy; participants work with the idea that one cannot feel empathy for others without access to one’s own inner emotional life. As Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence, puts it, “Leadership is not domination, but the art of persuading people to work toward a common goal.”
DAY 2 (07/13)
NARRATIVE
Workshops today build on self-awareness tools. As students focus on the art and craft of storytelling, they work to create a story of “self”, a story of “us”, and a story of “now”.
Each perspective combines to build a cohesive story around a chosen climate issue: Why does it matter to me and to us? Why must we address it now? Each student identifies a particular climate issue or topic of personal importance to explore in the days ahead. Opportunities for sharing and self-reflection conclude the day’s activity.
DAY 3 (07/14)
CONVERSATION
Day three invites students to lean into difficult and inevitable conversations about climate issues in our world today.
Bringing the work of day two into the classroom, we focus on how one listens with an open heart and mind to the ideas of others, how one reflects those ideas back to the speaker, and how one moves through conflict with finesse, rather than aggression to move the conversation forward. Students role-play conversations challenging their proposals and reflect together on the experience.
DAY 4 (07/15)
NEGOTIATION
Today’s work drills down in depth on the previous day’s conversations, cracking open the elements of conflict to create space for negotiation and recognition of common ground.
We look at specific tools to help bolster each student’s chosen cause, recognizing that sometimes the best tool is listening carefully to the opposition. Students learn about value creation, value claiming, building power, overcoming barriers, and the seven elements of negotiation.
DAY 5 (07/16)
COMMUNICATION
On the final day, students explore the planning, design, and delivery of their specific climate issues.
They try out tools of effective public speaking, addressing common fears and foibles that can limit the effectiveness of one’s delivery. Each student delivers a speech on their topic to persuade us all as to its urgency in the world today. Peers will practice offering effective feedback to each other. An opportunity for personal and group reflection marks the culmination of the week.
Program Leadership
Guillermo Trotti
Co-Founder, EarthDNA
FAQ
FAQ
The EarthDNA Ambassadors Summer Program is a unique climate leadership training program designed to cultivate a new generation of leaders who are passionate about creating positive environmental change. The program aims to empower a diverse group of extraordinary young leaders from around the world.
If you are between 16 and 19 years of age, take part in our 2024 EarthDNA Earth Ambassadors Summer Program July 12-16. This week-long intensive program provides vital leadership skills for your role as a climate ambassador.
The program takes place at the MIT Media Lab, Cambridge, MA, with housing at the nearby Baker House MIT dormitory. Participants from outside the Boston area arrive on July 11 and depart on the morning of July 17.
Candidates receive training in climate literacy, elements of leadership, and community organizing. Exercises and workshops cover negotiation to storytelling aimed at empowering students to make a difference within their own communities when addressing climate change.
- Leadership training based upon immersive workshops and training sessions led by experts in environmental science, technology, and leadership development.
- Exploring innovative ways to address climate change, emphasizing practical applications for positive impact in local communities.
- Bringing together young minds from diverse backgrounds, the program fosters a global perspective and encourages collaboration on a worldwide scale.
- Hosted at the prestigious MIT, Media Lab, participants will have access to cutting-edge resources and guidance from leading experts in various fields.
Review the Program Agenda here (our agenda and application link are hosted by our co-sponsor, Bluedot Institute)
The program, including room and board, is covered by a fee of $3,500. We are committed to inclusivity, striving to bring together participants from all walks of life. Scholarships are available. All climate change enthusiasts between 16 and 19 years old are encouraged to apply, regardless of your ability to pay.
Please visit the Bluedot Institute site to apply. Bluedot Institute is hosting the application form for EarthDNA Ambassadors Summer Program on behalf of EarthDNA and as a co-sponsor of the Summer Academy.
- Exploring innovative ways to harness technology in addressing climate change, emphasizing practical applications for positive impact in local communities.
- Bringing together young minds from diverse backgrounds, the program fosters a global perspective and encourages collaboration on a worldwide scale.
- Hosted at the prestigious MIT, participants will have access to cutting-edge resources and guidance from leading experts in various fields.
- The Summer 2024 program will take place July 12-16, 2024.
- Review the Program Agenda here (our agenda and application link are hosted by our co-sponsor, Bluedot Institute)
Sponsorship levels starting at $5,000 are an investment in the future. Please revisit this site in March 2024 when we will update the site with additional sponsorship information and process details.
All participants in the summer program are welcome to become members of the Bluedot Institute year around student forums, join monthly meetings, become climate reporters for our national platform, work with professional editors and publish work on Student Voices.