Today’s youth are growing up indoors, online, and under pressure - disconnected from themselves, each other, and the natural world. As ecological literacy declines, kids are less equipped to navigate the complex world they’re inheriting, and more vulnerable to the political forces dividing it. Meanwhile, federal support for environmental education is plummeting, just when it’s needed most.

There is another path. Across the country, educators and community leaders are using nature to reconnect children with the world around them - and with each other.

We created In Our Nature to show how nature - and those who teach with it - are helping communities heal and guiding a generation towards belonging, resilience, and hope.

Your Contribution Is 100% Tax-Deductible  

All donations to In Our Nature are tax-deductible through our fiscal sponsor, the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE), a registered 501(c)(3) organization. Every contribution directly supports outreach, impact, and educational access initiatives tied to the film.

In Our Nature is not a film about despair - it’s about possibility.

Told through the stories of three groundbreaking programs, In Our Nature is a new 60-minute documentary that follows community leaders and educators working in politically diverse, underserved, and deeply human places:

• A flower farm on the South Side of Chicago creates opportunity and beauty in a neighborhood marked by disinvestment.
• A forest school in rural Kentucky welcomes kids from across the political spectrum into the woods.
• And a nature-based healing program in San Antonio helps military families process grief and reconnect with the world around them.

These stories reveal what environmental education looks like when it’s rooted in place, community, and care. Hands-on. Healing. Human. And, above all, hopeful.

What can we learn from educators on the ground? How are they finding hope in the face of overwhelming odds? And what would it look like if every child in America had access to the powerful medicine of nature?

The film is done! And now we're seeking funding for our impact and distribution campaign for In Our Nature.

In July, we hosted two sold-out pre-release screenings in Chicago and Lexington, drawing over 500 attendees and generating major regional press coverage. The response made one thing clear: people are hungry for hopeful stories and real solutions.

Now, we’re building on that momentum to help normalize environmental education (EE) as essential - working toward a future where every child has access to the benefits of EE, no matter their background, geography, or political environment.

We have big plans.  We've begun to submit the movie to the film festival circuit, opening the door to broader recognition in the film and media spaces, but importantly, also give us a doorway into highly activated issue specific audiences. We are seeking additional impact funding to launch a national educator screening tour and micro-grant program to support innovation in EE, and host a premiere and fundraiser event in D.C. building off our proven blueprint in Chicago and Lexington. We also plan to prepare the film for digital distribution later in 2026 so that it is widely available for parents, educators, and communities.

When people see In Our Nature, they’re inspired. Already dozens of people have asked us what they can do to make sure more kids–all kids–have access to environmental education and opportunities to connect with nature. 

We produced the film in association with the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE), and we will work closely with their network of 20,000+ educators to protect and expand access to EE all across this country. We know our film can make a tremendous impact, but we need your help to achieve it.

With your help, we will:

Cover the costs of a national educator screening tour making the film available at no-cost to educators and non-profits.

• Each educator screening has around $50 of cost associated with it to deliver including platform fees and staff time coordinating screeners, logistics, materials, and post-followup. Funds raised will cover the costs of at least 150 fully supported educator screenings, reaching around 5000-10,000 live audience members. Additional funds raised will increase that number. We intend to offer the screening tour at no cost to educators through at least the end of January 2026.

Seed a micro-grant program to support innovative EE projects

• Initial funds to seed a micro-grant concept, supporting EE programs that are breaking new ground. $2000 will be earmarked for this effort, with $1500 dedicated as micro-grant funding, and $500 for marketing and publicity.
• The goal will be to seed a successful model through the In Our Nature platforms and then secure additional funding to expand the initiative.

Host a premiere event in Washington, D.C. in partnership with NAAEE and T.A.P.S. (with ticket sales benefitting both NAAEE and T.A.P.S.)

• Theater and reception venue costs
• Event production costs
• PR & publicity to support attendance and for local & national press hits elevating awareness around EE
• Travel for film team and film subjects

Seek digital distribution to reach as many audiences as possible.

• Funding will support packaging and preparing the film file and supporting materials to digital distributors.



The Impact (Why It Matters)

In a time of chaos and disruption, we see opportunity. Together, we can use In Our Nature to inspire change, expand access to environmental education, and empower the next generation of leaders. 

Join Us

In Our Nature is about building bridges, healing divides, and giving kids the tools to thrive. With your support, our film can reach the classrooms and communities that need it most. Please join us.

Thank you!

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This project is being fiscally sponsored by the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE), a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit. All donations made through this Seed&Spark campaign go directly to NAAEE, which will disburse funds to our team to support the project in accordance with its charitable purpose. All contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.