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SEEDS Ecology and Education Centers
Since 1999, SEEDS has implemented local solutions to global challenges through K12 programming, workforce development training, habitat regeneration, food systems and food justice, all informed by a commitment to mitigating and adapting to climate change. Engaging across Michigan, SEEDS is based in Traverse City and directly serves over 800 youth and families each year, trains over 40 EcoCorps crew members annually, and has helped dozens of institutions prevent and sequester over ten thousand tons of carbon emissions.
More specifically, LEO funding will be used primarily to stabilize the SEEDS Workshop, which is located inside a historic structure that must be updated to meet current building code requirements. This renovation will not only preserve the building but will make it more accessible and useful to the community, opening a pathway to leverage matching funds for additional accessibility improvements. All facility improvements will utilize current best practices for energy efficiency, renewable technologies, nontoxic materials, and proper climate controls ensuring exceedingly high indoor air quality that is healthier for occupants (e.g. COVID prevention) and also contributes to high quality learning.
The funding provided through the MI Community Center Grant will allow SEEDS Ecology and Education Centers to make critical improvements to its EcoLearning Center at Historic Barns Park located in Traverse City, MI. More specifically, LEO funding will be used primarily to stabilize the SEEDS Workshop, which is located inside a historic structure that must be updated to meet current building code requirements. This renovation will not only preserve the building but will make it more accessible and useful to the community, opening a pathway to leverage matching funds for additional accessibility improvements. All facility improvements will utilize current best practices for energy efficiency, renewable technologies, nontoxic materials, and proper climate controls ensuring exceedingly high indoor air quality that is healthier for occupants (e.g. COVID prevention) and also contributes to high quality learning.
At Historic Barns Park (HBP) in Traverse City, SEEDS is a growing showcase of practical activities that inspire people of all ages to engage - in their own lives, homes, schools, workplaces, and communities. Strategies on display are focused on quality-of-life gains that accrue by investing in equity and investments in ecosystem services. Activities available to the public - including the over 8500 ALICE households that are located in the near-by neighborhoods - include formal workshops and programming, working landscapes, food access, informational exhibits, and other hands-on learning in settings that encourage curiosity. This public landscape also serves as the headquarters for its green collar exploration and workforce development program, the SEEDS EcoCorps.
As the homebase of SEEDS EcoCorps, all capital improvements will be supported and maintained by EcoCorps crews as part of annual workforce development and training programming. The renovation process itself will provide valuable job experiences to 40-60 individuals focused specifically on building trades and green construction technologies and best practices. With improvements to the SEEDS Workshop, this nonprofit will be able to expand its SEEDS workforce development program year-over-year, providing experiential training and credentialing opportunities and recruiting specifically from within at-risk and ALICE communities.