CBO will sponsor a panel discussion at the 2015 Ecological Society of America annual meeting. The panel will explore the obstacles underserved youth face in pursuing ecological education at the college level as well as environmental careers. The panel will also explore existing programs designed to address these challenges.

A diverse panel of professionals and academics will engage leaders from a range of youth engagement programs to discuss challenges and opportunities of developing innovative educational programs that provide youth from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds with basic literacy in ecological sustainability.

Key discussion themes include:

• How too connect with environmental issues that matter most to underserved youth
• How to engage with a diversity of underserved youth
• How to improve youth engagement in ecology so that it flows from early education to higher education into the job market.