NSHSS for Good Earth Sustainability
Claes Nobel: "Celebrate Earth Day every day."
Claes Nobel, of the Nobel Prize family and Co-founder of NSHSS, was a passionate advocate for environmental causes. In fact, his favorite greeting was “Good Earth to you!" He encouraged all of us to treat every day as if it were Earth Day by taking action and doing our part to preserve, protect, and tend to this wonderful planet we call home. Watch the video for Mr. Nobel's special message.
Supporting your passion for climate action and sustainability
We've gathered an array of opportunities and resources designed to support the creation of a better Earth.
Elevate your passion for climate action and environmental stewardship with the following scholarships:
- NSHSS Foundation Earth Day Awards: check out scholarship winners who are creating sustainable initiatives in their communities.
We also have a number of other scholarships that may apply to your passions.
NSHSS hosted a virtual panel with three NSHSS scholarship winners that was moderated by Captain Planet! Each student panelist shared their creative solutions to the environmental issues in their communities and the globe!
Earth Day Is Every Day Virtual Panel
NSHSS also hosted a virtual screening of the documentary film “I Am Greta” followed by an intergenerational conversation between climate activists, scholars, and educators. Click the link to read about the panelists and view the event recording!
MIN-HUA TSOU: Captain Planet Earth Day Award Recipient
- Min-Hua was determined to find an environmentally viable alternative to conventional treatments that can remove heavy metals and toxic organic compounds from wastewater while utilizing its nutrients for the production of valuable biofuels. After countless hours of trials and experiments, Min-Hua found out that mass microalgae culture in wastewater offers an alternative tertiary biotreatment along with the production of potentially valuable biofuels. She spent days after school synthesizing and testing different nanoparticle solutions in the laboratory to engineer a system that placed spheroidal silver nanoparticles around microalgal culture flasks to increase the the formation of photopigments in algal cells using the backscattering in the spectral regions favorable for microalgal growth. Through countless hours of trying and retrying, Min-Hua faced multiple errors and challenges, inconsistent results, experimental errors but eventually her system offered a sustainable way to clean wastewater while producing useful biofuels- a step towards a cleaner and healthier Earth.
Ethan Wilk: NSHSS Foundation Earth Day Scholarship Recipient
- Ethan Wilk is a Junior from BASIS Scottsdale in Scottsdale, Arizona. Since middle school, Ethan has had a fascination for both environmental sustainability and advanced technology. In high school, having volunteered for local organizations around his community for years, he realized a unique technological application that could solve a plethora of problems for the community: the fusion between blockchain and marine sustainability research. Inspired to get to work, Ethan contacted professors at universities around his state and engineered a fingertip-sized computer chip that could accurately and efficiently relay vital information about the fish in his lakes from miles away. With these chips, Ethan registered the 501(c)(3) organization The Xenia Project , which has garnered over 500 volunteers from his community to help him conduct his work, 37 of which have come from his own high school. Ethan has also partnered his nonprofit with the World Wildlife Fund, hoping to expand to the international hub of biodiversity: Australia.
Vennela Gosukonda: NSHSS Foundation Earth Day Recipient
- Vennela Gosukonda studies Business Administration with a concentration in finance. While pursuing her education, Vennela wants to be an active part of the student body on campus, raising awareness about climate change and educating those around her about how even the smallest lifestyle changes can have great impact on our natural world.
Learn more about our outstanding scholarship winners and their efforts to preserve our beautiful planet by clicking here.
Shawna Rogers, NSHSS lifetime member since 2010
- "I saw the plastics problem up-close-and-personal every day working retail, and I felt called to make a career change that aligned with my love and respect for our planet. In February 2018, I landed at the CCOF Foundation, a 501c(3) nonprofit that supports organic farmers and students across the United States. Every day, my team and I fundraise and plan events to raise awareness about the pivotal role agriculture plays in climate change, pollution, and human health. Organic farmers (and biodynamic, regenerative organic farmers) face monumental challenges in getting consumers to understand their methodologies."
NSHSS Partner Outward Bound Costa Rica, has a number of environmentally-focused blogs to check out!
- Brick by Brick: Helping the Environment at Home
- Five Environment Saving Tricks
- Celebrating Earth Day in Costa Rica
United Planet also has many blogs, resources, and opportunities for students wishing to make a positive environmental impact on the planet!
The Intern Group connects young, ambitious candidates to unique global internships designed to help them realize their potential prepare them for the professional world.
The Can You Hear Us? campaign was launched surrounding Hulu’s Original Documentary I Am Greta and focuses on local and community-led climate action efforts that are intersectional, intergenerational, and accessible. The campaign aims to inspire collaborative and intergenerational climate action, highlight the incredible individuals and organizations who are working to save the planet, and provide guidance and resources to encourage participation on a larger scale.
Check out the following resources from the CYHU campaign below:
- Their Take Action Guide, which was formulated to help educate and guide those interested in getting involved in the climate movement
- Their guide to having effective intergenerational conversations, which was created to help ignite effective dialogue among those with different generational, cultural, and educational backgrounds
- Explore this map of local organizations to find incredible climate groups who you can join and support in your communities
Dive into their Educators Toolkit, which was created to help introduce climate literacy in the classroom & provide direct actions for educators and students.
The climate crisis is the greatest challenge facing humanity, and young people all over the world have stepped up to demand action on climate for a better future. The Climate Museum’s mission is to inspire action on the climate crisis with programming across the arts and sciences that deepens understanding, builds connections, and advances just solutions. NSHSS recognizes how pivotal confronting the climate crisis is to world betterment, and has partnered with The Climate Museum to offer education and advocacy tools for students in this Climate Action Toolkit:
- Climate Art for Congress: Be a climate advocate! Make your voice heard and communicate with elected representatives on climate change through your art and letters.
- Climate Ambassador Card: 66% of Americans are worried but inactive about climate change. Experts agree that talking about climate issues is an important action toward a climate-safe future. This is a printable pocket-sized card to help you start climate conversations in your community.
These sustainability initiatives earned a $10,000 grant
Niveda Mahesh
Niveda Mahesh is a high school senior attending Woodbridge Senior High School in Woodbridge, VA. She is a three-sport varsity athlete in rowing, field hockey, and basketball. If not competing on the water, field, or court, she loves strength training at her local gym. She is a passionate leader in her school and community. She is currently the President of her school’s National Honor Society. As the Founder and President of her nonprofit organization – 4Girls 4Change (www.4G4C.org) since February 2021, she has helped raise over $18,000 to support several ongoing projects in her local community. Today, these projects support a wide range of beneficial community related activities, including – homeless shelter and support services, food donation drives, COVID-19 relief efforts, and clothing drives for Afghan refugees.
Niveda has also been an active Girl Scout since third grade. In August 2022, she won the most prestigious Gold Award for her “Reducing Food Wastage in Local Restaurants” project. She is a passionate environmentalist at heart and plans to major in college in environmental science, with a focus on policy, governance, and sustainability. Her long-term goal is to become the Chief Sustainability Officer of a socially responsible and earth-centric company.
Jiya Gupta
Jiya Gupta is a high school senior in California. As an aspiring tech entrepreneur, Jiya founded Farmoid, a non-profit dedicated to increasing yield and decreasing water wastage in small farms using a system of sensors and a mobile app. With seed funding from NSHSS, she can't wait to take her business to the next step and aid small farmers worldwide!
Chase Hartman
Chase Hartman, 17, co-founded a non-profit called Eco Brothers and an award-winning book distribution project called “read.repeat.” For the past seven years, he’s focused on improving literacy rates, promoting inclusion, and helping the environment. Chase has collected and distributed more than 210,000 books and impacted the lives of more than 55,000 students in Hillsborough County, Florida. Chase champions the need for more books-with-diversity and dual language books in local Title-1 schools and has worked to raise more than $115,000 to support this cause and various environmental projects.
Chase is an Eagle Scout and Student Body President at Sickles High School in Tampa. He’s honored to receive the Congressional Award’s Silver Medal, and the NSHSS Be More Award. He serves on the Points of Light Youth Council, promoting volunteerism to young people nationwide.