New Leaders Initiative Programs

The New Leaders Initiative is a cutting edge approach to environmental youth leadership that provides a platform and forum for growing activism.

The pinnacle of our programming is the Brower Youth Awards for recognizing outstanding environmental youth leadership. Since 2000, the Brower Youth Awards has been a public recognition of outstanding and bold youth leaders who are making strides in the environmental movement. These winners demonstrate excellent leadership and commitment to the communities their work serves. The award and cash prize provide a platform to showcase and honor the accomplishments of young rising leaders. In addition to the award, there is a high energy week of mentoring, coaching, support, and leadership training in the San Francisco Bay Area. The award namesake is David Brower, whose environmental legacy is also celebrated at the ceremony. David Brower, founder of Earth Island Institute and former executive director of the Sierra Club, was instrumental in creating protected landscapes, working alongside government to create sacred spaces such as Point Reyes National Seashore.

New Leaders Initiative is home to public events and fellowship programs in the local Bay Area, and nationwide essay contests and micro-grants for small environmental projects. Please explore our website to see what opportunities are available to you! We also support our previous winners through coaching, training, visioning, and one-on-one goal setting to continue to leverage the platform of the Brower Youth Awards and leadership week.