Girl Scouts of San Jacinto Council leaders and girl members are available for interviews, guest commentaries, and questions regarding Earth Day on Saturday, April 22, 2023, and throughout April, which is Earth Month. In fact, many Girl Scouts from around the Greater Houston Area are taking action to protect our planet through their Gold Award projects. Many of these projects aim to address pressing issues such as climate change, pollution, and conservation.

Houston Area Girl Scouts have taken innovative approaches to create sustainable solutions that positively impact their communities and the environment. From protecting migratory birds to planting trees and cleaning up local parks, these young environmentalists are making a meaningful impact in their communities. Celebrate Earth Day and learn more about these inspiring projects!

Gold Award Projects

Jane Reistle, recently completed her Gold Award project that addressed the disappearing prairies in Southeast Texas. She partnered with UH Clear Lake and the Native Plant Society to complete her preservation project.

Reistle worked with volunteers and retired engineers to design and build a greenhouse so that the Native Plant Society can propagate native plants to restore prairies faster and more efficiently. She then created educational models for summer campers and school field trips at UH Clear Lake. Visiting Dickinson 5th graders were the first to go through the lessons and start plants for the greenhouse.

“With climate change becoming a bigger issue every day, I wanted to do something. After realizing how important Texas prairies are to our climate, I knew I wanted to complete a project that would preserve them,” commented Reistle.

Reistle will spend a year in Germany as an ambassador for the USA with Rotary Youth Exchange before attending college to study civil engineering.

Adoriam DeWalt educated and involved people in the concerning decline of bird populations in the US by bringing the community together to make sustainable bird-friendly areas in neighborhoods, community buildings, and park reserves. Over time, birds of all kinds have lost their habitats. Through her Gold Award Project, DeWalt connected with non-profits like COOP, Glenn Miller Ag Camp, YMCA, and Houston Audubon to give presentations to educate young adults and hopefully spark their interest in this epidemic. She explained that Houston is the 2nd worst city in America for Migratory birds and three simple ways to address this in the backyard: create a birdhouse for shelter, provide food and water, and turn off lights that disrupt night migratory patterns.

Oksana Arevalo educated 800 people on the harmful effects of urbanization, pesticides, non-native plants and invasive species on the disappearing Texas prairies. She and forty volunteers restored a prairie at the Houston Arboretum and hosted many Saturday information sessions there and on Earth Day in the energy corridor. Her online outreach has the potential to reach 10,000 members of various groups.

Oksana says, “I have always liked being in nature and gardening. I am also interested in understanding our impact on the environment. During Covid, my family and I got really interested in Monarch butterflies and started to build our garden to support them. I saw the butterflies go from eggs to caterpillars and then finally to butterflies. I realized that I wanted a project that helped native insects and butterflies.” Her Instagram is @restoringtexasprairies.

Nitya Pakala created Youth Environmental Art Camp focused on teaching climate change and environmental science to elementary students. This camp introduced the students to the rapidly changing world and inspire them to be youth leaders and advocates. Pakala led 10 volunteers from local youth organizations including Girl Up Southeast Texas Coalition and the Houston Youth Climate Strike. They hosted a 4-week camp at the MECA Sunburst Summer program where 4th and 5th graders learned about the Earth, the environment and sustainability.

Pakala explained, “Youth Environmental Art Camp introduced topics that aren’t normally taught in the classroom, like environmental racism and how climate change impacts marginalized communities. We emphasized leadership and storytelling by incorporating games and discussions that allowed the students to grow their skills. We also intertwined art in our curriculum by creating clay structure environments, coral reefs, and more. Students wrote and illustrated empowering messages to encourage our local policy makers to support sustainable legislation.”

After graduating in 2023 from Dulles High School, Pakala plans to study science/data science and sociology/political science and take advantage of the power of technology to build a more sustainable and equitable future.

Madeline Vanlandingham worked with organizations to address air pollution and quality through a workshop with expert speakers. Vanlandingham led volunteers to plant trees near benches and play areas in the Willow Waterhole community area. She also worked Harris County pollution control, Air Alliance Houston, and the Houston Advanced Research Center to get an air monitor installed at the waterhole to inform the community real time about their air. Vanlandingham was motivated to take on this project by her own passion for reducing carbon footprints and teaching others about the importance of greener living.

“I am passionate about reducing my carbon footprint and making a positive impact on the environment, so the air monitoring and tree planting were topics that I was already interested in. In the future, I want to work to clean up the environment and lessen humankind's impact on the ecosystem, and the Gold Award will help me get internships and jobs that relate to my project.”

Vanlandingham is a 2021 graduate of Kinder HSPVA. She is currently studying chemical engineering at Rice University.

Girl Scouts of San Jacinto Council are taking a proactive approach to protecting the planet by making a difference in their community. They are addressing pressing issues such as climate change, pollution, and conservation in innovative ways, from creating sustainable solutions to educating communities. These young environmentalists serve as an inspiration and showcase the power of collective action towards a sustainable future.

We Are Girl Scouts 

Girl Scouts bring their dreams to life and work together to build a better world. Through programs from coast to coast, Girl Scouts of all backgrounds and abilities can be unapologetically themselves as they discover their strengths and rise to meet new challenges—whether they want to climb to the top of a tree or the top of their class, lace up their boots for a hike or advocate for climate justice, or make their first best friends. Backed by trusted adult volunteers, mentors, and millions of alums, Girl Scouts lead the way as they find their voices and make changes that affect the issues most important to them. To join us, volunteer, reconnect, or donate, visit girlscouts.org.