Courtesy Photo Children utilize lab equipment in an outdoor research project.

ALPENA — The Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative, a regional organization focused on place-based education in Michigan, is partnering with multiple foundations and organizations to launch the Michigan Children and Nature Coalition, an organization with the goal of supporting youth engagement with nature through state policy changes, community engagement, and more.

The Children and Nature Network, along with the Kresge Foundation, a private foundation investing in educational endeavors, are collaborating with the Stewardship Initiative to create the coalition with the hope of gathering more groups and leaders.

The Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative, according to an infographic provided by the group, assisted 29 schools across Northeast Michigan in 2023 to include environmental projects for students.

Projects included a rain garden Alcona High School students worked on at the Harrisville Harbor from 2022 to 2023 and a beach cleanup by Rogers City Elementary students.

Meag Schwartz, network coordinator with the Stewardship Initiative, said that the coalition is an opportunity for those groups to bring environmental education to children by creating change in the Michigan legislation.

“We’re trying to figure out what levers can we be pulling to make connections to nature for the youth,” Schwartz said. “Right now, we’re in the first phase of this coalition and we’re going with an open-hug approach, welcoming anyone who has the same goals of connecting kids with nature through education.”

Stakeholders that the coalition is looking for are groups and individuals who are community partners, part of school districts, city, county, and statewide governmental entities, and more.

Currently, the coalition does not have any specific policies it wants to tackle and is waiting to hear from more potential partners before focusing on anything.

Caleb Carlton, executive director of the Stewardship Initiative, said in a statement that the children in Michigan deserve support and equal pathways to engage and benefit from nature.

“The needs and opportunities related to connecting our youth to nature are diverse and varying across the state, and we recognize that successful strategies and solutions in one community or region may not be relevant or applicable elsewhere,” Carlton said. ” We also know that access to nature can be universally beneficial, for all ages, as a component of our communities and daily lives. Connecting to nature through learning, play, and many other forms of engagement can improve and sustain physical and mental well-being, increase connections to community, inspire and inform career pathways, and spark joy, curiosity, wonder, and a personally meaningful sense of place here in Michigan.”

The coalition set up a survey online with a link on the Stewardship Initiative’s Facebook page for anyone interested in contributing to the new group.

The Facebook post with the survey link also has a link to an online community group page for anyone to join.

For any questions, email coalition@greatlakesstewardship.org.

“We aim to work as a collective statewide force to elevate the importance of getting our children outside and discovering lifelong connections to nature, while also developing skills and knowledge that support stewardship of Michigan’s natural and community resources,” Carlton said in a statement. “The children of our state deserve well-supported, equitable, and relevant pathways to benefit from engaging with nature throughout childhood.”