Upper Shore Youth Environmental Action Summit
Our annual Upper Shore Youth Environmental Action Summit is a FREE conference-style event to empower youth environmental action through networking with peers & professionals.
During the Summit, high schools students in upper Eastern Shore counties participate in a school day field trip. Students have the opportunity to attend workshops led by environmental action experts, network with professionals in green career fields, and learn more about student environmental action from their peers.
“This was the best hands down, by far. I’m currently trying to figure out how to pick a career I would like and how to make all these decisions and trying to think about my future. Being able to hear from people with a ton of different experiences and different careers but all giving great advice. It was a relief just to listen to the journey and everything they had to say was great and I could’ve sat there for a much longer time gaining very useful information from very well spoken individuals.”
MEET THE 2025 SUMMIT STUDENT LEADERS
Click to learn more about these inspiring students!
2025 Summit Agenda
9:30–9:45am | Arrival and Registration
9:30–11am | Networking Brunch
11–11:20am | Event Welcome & Kickoff, Keynote Address
11:30am–12:10pm | Workshop Sessions
12:10–12:25pm | Snack Break
12:25–1:05pm | Workshop Sessions
1:10–1:30pm | Closing Celebration
2025 Keynote Speaker: James Ronaye
James Ronayne is a freshman at Cornell University, majoring in Environmental and Sustainability and minoring in Marine Science. He is an environmental photographer, conservationist, and storyteller. Ronayne’s photography is heavily influenced by the Chesapeake Bay and the watershed region. His photographs highlight the working men and women of the Bay and the environmental issues he champions. Ronayne is a regular columnist and staff photographer for Chesapeake Bay Magazine. He worked for the Coastal Conservation Association and has been a volunteer with Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s oyster gardening program since he was a young boy. He is actively involved in the Chesapeake Oyster Alliance and has testified before the Maryland Senate and Atlantic Fisheries Commission on environmental issues. He has prioritized bridging the gap between policy wonk and waterman with the common goal of maintaining a healthy Chesapeake Bay.
Special thanks go to OUR summit Sponsors
