Green Ambassadors
Dream Green
Cathleen Stone Island Outward Bound’s Green Ambassador Program offers Boston high school students paid summer employment in the green job sector. Green Ambassadors is a three-year program combining paid employment and structured outdoor learning. Green Ambassadors work for six weeks on Cathleen Stone Island, performing much of the work needed to maintain and preserve the trails and ecosystems of Cathleen Stone Island and other Harbor Islands.
Green Ambassadors gain hands-on experience in natural resource management and environmental conservation, engage in carpentry and citizen science, learn about climate change and environmental justice, and explore career opportunities in the green jobs sector.
Responsibilities
Green Ambassadors are required to complete the following activities during their employment:
- Work outdoors in all weather conditions with six to nine other employees
- Practice trail maintenance, habitat preservation and invasive species removal
- Perform scientific monitoring and data collection
- Participate in at least one multi-night camping expedition in the Harbor Islands
- Interact with marine scientists, educators, National Park staff and other natural resource departments in the Boston Harbor
- Learn about urban agriculture
- Engage in community outreach projects
- Explore career opportunities within the Harbor Islands and green industries
Qualifications
Applicants must be residents of the City of Boston, be 15-18 years of age, possess an interest in working outdoors, developing leadership skills and learning about environmental stewardship. They must also demonstrate a strong work ethic and a commitment to complete the entire program. Preference is given to Boston Public School students.
Program Area
Cathleen Stone Island is one of the largest, most accessible, and ecologically diverse islands in the Boston Harbor Islands National and State Park. Across 204-acres of undeveloped property, the island is home to mature forests, meadows, freshwater and marine wetlands, salt marshes, and a variety of important geological features. Beyond the natural world and campsites, amenities include a formal school campus complete with dormitories, dining hall, classrooms, lab space, auditoriums, gymnasium, outdoor challenge courses, and climbing towers.
Green Ambassadors Application
Applications are now closed for the 2024 program. Please check back next spring to apply for 2025! New applications will be open to rising 10th & 11th grade Boston students/residents.
Green Ambassador Summer 2024 Logistics
Program Schedule
- The program will start on Tuesday, July 9th and end on Friday, August 16th
- The program runs 4 days a week: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday
- The morning ferry will leave from EDIC at 8:00AM. The afternoon boat will depart the island at 4:30PM and return to the mainland around 5:00PM.
- Green Ambassadors have an hour of break each day, 30 minutes for lunch and 30 minutes at time chosen by each group. Lunch and snacks will be provided daily
Program Compensation
2024 compensation rates are:
- $15.00/hour for Year 1
- $15.50/hour for Year 2
- $16.00/hour for Year 3
Program Model
The program has 4 main components:
- Worker development and job readiness – Green Ambassadors rise to workplace expectations in a supportive environment with individualized coaching
- Work site projects - Green Ambassadors work on hands-on projects that positively impact the environment while learning technical skills
- Outward Bound team-building and social emotional skills development – Green Ambassadors create a tight-knit community through team challenges, intentional reflection, climbing, and a camping trip
- Environmental Justice Curriculum work – Green Ambassadors learn about today’s pressing environmental justice challenges and develop understanding of their power to shape a more just future
Green Ambassador 2024 Expeditions
The Green Ambassadors program includes an Outward Bound camping expedition! Year 1 Green Ambassadors will have a 3-day expedition on Cathleen Stone Island, Year 2 Green Ambassadors will have a 4-day backpacking trip on a different Boston Harbor Island, and Year 3 Green Ambassadors will have a 4-day kayaking expedition and camp on other islands! The dates are:
- Year 1: Three days, two nights backpacking on Cathleen Stone Island, July 17th - 19th, 2024
- Year 2: Four days, three nights backpacking on a Boston Harbor Island, July 30th - August 2nd, 2024
- Year 3: Four days, three nights kayaking and camping throughout the Boston Harbor Islands, August 6th - 9th, 2024
Contact
Please email [email protected] or text (617) 531-7135 with any questions about the 2024 Green Ambassador Program.
Professional Development
Green Ambassadors focus on developing professional skills such as timeliness, workforce expectations and behaviors, goal-setting, decision-making, communication and leadership.
Technical Job Training
Green Ambassadors work on the Boston Harbor Islands, applying STEM and other skills through hands-on projects led by scientists and leading professionals in the community. The program increases their environmental consciousness with the aim of promoting entrance into environmental studies and the green career sector.
Natural Resource Management
Green Ambassadors learn first-hand about emerging environmental trends through direct partnerships with the Department of Conservation and Recreation and the National Park Service.
J'Saun Bastien
“I always tell people, I’m not good with names, but I remember everyone I met in Green Ambassadors because it was a family. It was just that special. Even when we didn’t agree, we could always find a way to work together. The program really helped me a lot in developing as a person and becoming who I am today.”
J’Saun was a GA from 2014-2016, after which he studied environmental science at Boston College. After graduating college in 2020 he came back to Cathleen Stone Island as a full-time Course Director, where he helped shape the experience of future Green Ambassadors. While J’Saun is no longer directly involved in the program, he encourages anyone considering the program to apply, because he believes that everyone can learn something from being a GA.
Our Partners
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Athletic Brewing Company
Bank of America Charitable Foundation
Blue Cross Blue Shield
Boston After School and Beyond (BASB)
Bradán Lane Foundation
EdVestors
Eversource Foundation
Fuller Foundation
Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR)
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE)
National Park Service
Thank You
All our programs are available because of our generous community of donors like you. Thank you for supporting the students at Thompson Island Outward Bound.
