EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — Saturday morning, student leaders from the El Paso Youth Environmental Ambassadors (EPYEA) Summer Leadership Program hosted a community-wide cleanup and environmental education fair at the Playa Lateral Canal adjacent to Capistrano Park.
Over the past eight weeks, organizers with Reconnecting with the Disconnected say that participants completed an intensive leadership academy, learning project management, public speaking, environmental stewardship, teamwork, civic engagement, and community partnership development.
Instead of ending the program with a final exam, students were challenged to apply those lessons by designing and leading a real community project that would create a lasting impact. The students created this community clean up in response to the challenge.
Student Leadership Instructor Melody Dominguez said the experience has changed her perspective on leadership. “We’ve learned that leadership isn’t a title—it’s action. This event has taught us how to build partnerships, communicate with professionals, solve problems, and bring people together to make our community better. We hope this inspires other young people to realize they can make a difference too.”…