Shelburne Farms Institute for Sustainable Schools

May 2026 | Programs, resources & stories for educators

PROGRAMS

Education for Sustainability Certificates

We're excited to offer three pathways for earning graduate credit as you take a series of EFS courses: the Micro Certificate or Certificate of Graduate Study in Education for Sustainability with the University of Vermont, and (new!) the Certificate in Education for Sustainability and Climate Action with Vermont State University Center for Schools.

Details and application

ACTIVITY

Make Your Own Potting Soil

Make potting soil for your school garden sprouts or your own backyard garden. Everyone can get their hands dirty, learn about the role of each component, and create an ideal foundation for growing seedlings.

Get your hands dirty

Detail in a colored pencil artwork depicting a line of trash going through planet earth

BLOG

Experience the Climate Creative Art Show

The Climate Creative program supports educators and their students in using art to teach and learn about climate change. If you couldn't join us in person for the exhibition, explore this digital gallery to see how art can be used to process learning and imagine possibilities.

See the gallery

Upcoming Events

Education for Sustainability Certificates, multi-year

Foundations in Education for Sustainability July 6–10

Project Seasons for Young Learners: Cultivating Joy and Wonder July 13–17

Immersion in Education for Sustainability July 21–23

Education for Sustainability Leadership Academy 2026–27, kickoff July 27–29

Farm to School Leadership Academy 2026–27, applications due June 8, kickoff September 2026

View our full calendar

What We're Following

Congratulations to the Vermont educators selected as 2026 Rowland Fellows including Institute for Sustainable Schools alumni Lindsey Glabach Royce, Kellie Hallock, and Mandy Walsh!

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An audio story by post-grad education fellow Cate MacDonald was recently recognized by NPR's College Podcast Challenge. Cate produced the story—an interview with farmer Bekah Gordon—last year while at the University of Vermont.

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"Generate! Solutions for Curriculum, Climate and Community" with Vermont and New Hampshire Energy Education Program's Summer Institute, happening in Holderness, NH June 22–26.

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The Vermont FEAST Youth Summit May 21 is a day of workshops designed by students, for students. Past workshop topics include microgreens, pollinators, arepa-making, micro-dairies, advocating in the state house, wild foraging, and more.

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May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and SubjectToClimate's Teaching About Mental Health and Climate Change guide has structured activities, discussion prompts, and lesson plans to address climate-related worries in age-appropriate, solution-focused ways.

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Shelburne Farms is an education nonprofit on a mission to inspire and cultivate learning for a sustainable future.

The Shelburne Farms Institute for Sustainable Schools offers professional learning programs and resources for PreK-12 educators. All of our offerings prepare educators to facilitate learning experiences for students using a lens of sustainability. We believe in the power and potential of students to address the world's most pressing issues. We see schooling as a pathway to create healthy and just communities, successful lives, and a more livable world for all. In partnership with students and communities, educators are changemakers.