Projects Funded
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Independence through Aquaponics
Katherine at Princeton High School, Princeton, NJ / $1650 in March 2022
Our very first grantee set a high bar with this ambitious project to spread awareness of environmental and social justice issues related to inaccessibility of fresh food in urban areas – and the enormous potential of cityscapes to absorb carbon, grow food, and combat climate change.
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Beehive for Princeton High School
Catalina at PHS / $750 in January 2023 (and $500 in October 2022 for a related research project)
Catalina is the president of Princeton High School's Bee Club and a certified beekeeper with the South Jersey Beekeeper Association. She learned that in New Jersey, specifically, many hives have been lost due to Varroa mites.
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Pollinator Garden
Maggie, Gold Award Candidate, Allendale Girl Scouts / $1490 in August 2023
This application stood out because Maggie collaborated closely with her town to make the project possible and – importantly – to maintain it once completed.
Organizations/Events Sponsored
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Hopewell Valley Regional High School
$2200 / April 16, 2023
Guided by their teacher and champion of environmental causes, Carolyn McGrath, students from Hopewell Valley Regional HS (Hopewell, NJ) took what they were studying about the environmental and human costs of Fast Fashion and brought it to a wider audience with help from Green Matters. We arranged for the rental of a local venue to screen the film The True Cost. Afterwards an expert in sustainability from NYC, Michelle Blair Gabriel, was on stage with the students to participate in a panel discussion of issues the film raised. Time for questions from the audience was included, all of which resulted in increased awareness of this damaging and long-term trend.
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Ripple Center’s Environmental Day for its 2022-23 Fellows
$3500 / August 10, 2023
The Ripple Center’s mission is “To empower young people to succeed as social entrepreneurs and conscientious organizational leaders.” In other words, give them tools and resources, as well as model for them how to achieve the triple bottom line: Run a successful venture (Profit) while having ethical employment practices (People) and using natural resources responsibly (Planet).
Green Matters made it possible for their cohort of Fellows to take an Eco-Cruise with the Hackensack Riverkeeper, get a tour of The Willow School in Peapack-Gladstone, and enjoy a panel discussion and dinner at Sustainable Haus Mercantile in Summit – all while learning from each other and veteran eco-entrepreneurs who are blazing a trail for others to follow
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ANJEE Fall Conference's Climate Change & Plastic Impacts Track
at Duke Farms, Hillsborough, NJ / $5000 / Sept. 29, 2023
The Alliance for New Jersey Environmental Education (ANJEE) was established in 1985 to provide a networking forum for New Jersey's environmental educators. It is an organization of dedicated individuals who devote time, energy, and resources to facilitate the advancement of environmental education in their local, state, and global communities.
Green Matters is proud to sponsor the Climate Change track at their Fall Conference, which will have the most sessions (other tracks are Health & the Outdoors sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Field Explorations):
Climate Change & Health: Models & Mitigations
Sources and Health Effects of Plastic and Practical Solutions
Explore the Environmental Education Trailer at Duke Farms
Using Technology in the Outdoor Classroom for K-5 Students
Navigating Microfiber Pollution and Solutions
Topo Trouble: DIY Flood Scenario Models
Gamifying Complex Climate Change Topics for Kids