Boston, Massachusetts, Sept. 25, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Rumphius Foundation, a non-profit organization held at a national public charity dedicated to strengthening community, promoting education and protecting the environment, is proud to announce that it has awarded grants to Solar Youth and The Charles River Conservancy.
The Rumphius Foundation grant given to Solar Youth, a community organization in New Haven, Connecticut, will support their Fall 2017 Citycology Program. The long-term goals of Citycology are for children to begin developing the skills needed to contribute positively to their community, create healthy relationships, maintain physical and mental health and develop economic self-sufficiency. Working in three of New Haven’s hardest-hit neighborhoods, the program hires and trains teenagers who teach introductory concepts of ecology to children ages 4 to 8. The children take part in outdoor adventures to investigate the local ecology of their community, identify environmental issues that affect the health of people and the natural environment, seek solutions through a process of problem-solving and youth led action, then teach what they have learned and accomplished to others through public education projects.
“We were all very impressed and touched by the work that Solar Youth does in the New Haven area,” said Rumphius Foundation Director Candace Schuller. “Their programs fit directly within our mission to enrich groups and organizations and simultaneously educate young people about sustainability and healthy living. We know Mike would have been personally touched and inspired by their unique curriculums, as it combines his passions and does so in a community he once called home.”
“It is rare to find a funder like the Rumphius Foundation that understands the value of small steps that lead to huge impact,” said Solar Youth Founder and Executive Director Joanne Sciulli. “Citycology is often the first opportunity little ones have to practice stewardship, but it’s just the beginning of what becomes a lifelong path of being a steward.”
The second 2017 Rumphius Foundation grant will fund the Charles River Conservancy’s Daffodil Beautification Project. The Charles River Conservancy is dedicated to the stewardship, renewal and enhancement of the urban parklands along the Charles River. Each year, approximately 2,000 volunteers work with the Conservancy to renew and maintain the Charles River parklands. The grant will provide daffodil bulbs that will be planted this October leaving the riverbank more beautiful for all to enjoy come spring.
“I immediately connected with The Rumphius Foundation as the book Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney has brought joy and happiness into my life personally,” said Charles River Conservancy President & Founder Renata von Tscharner. “The idea that we choose our own path to make the world more beautiful in some small way is an idea that we hold dear at the Charles River Conservancy. We are thrilled that The Rumphius Foundation is making our daffodil beautification project possible this year.”
The Rumphius Foundation makes grants annually and is currently seeking grant proposals for 2018. Grants are made for activities that conform to the mission of the foundation. Proposals for 2018 must be received by March 1, 2018. To submit grant proposals, and make donations please visit www.rumphiusfoundation.org.
About The Rumphius Foundation
Established in 2013 by the late Michael C. Schuller, The Rumphius Foundation is a non-profit organization held at a national public charity designed to help communities and educators strengthen the future of our young and the environment. Named after the children’s book Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney, in which the central character seeks to make the world a little more beautiful, the foundation makes grants to nonprofit projects that promote community, education and sustainability. Through these projects, the foundation strives to remind the next generation to leave the world more beautiful than they found it. For more information on The Rumphius Foundation, please visit www.rumphiusfoundation.org.
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