KAB provides resources and education to inspire individuals &
the Austin community toward greater environmental stewardship

Green Teens LBJ High School

LBJ High School (in partnership with Boys and Girls Club)
LBJ Green Teens define what it means to be an environmental club - gardening, picking up trash, marking storm drains, building bird feeders, making wilderness survival kits, learning about aquifers and so much more! The mighty force of 13 holds each other accountable and attends weekly rain or shine to tend school gardens, create centerpieces, and tackle big projects like relocating a vegetable garden bed and cleaning up the neighborhood. In the fall, after learning about the KAB Awards Luncheon, LBJ Green Teens began designing and building centerpieces made from reclaimed materials to have them ready in time.  They turned a noisy cafeteria into an art studio. In one of the most eye opening sessions so far, the LBJ Green Teens set out to clean the neighborhood. As they cleaned the streets they recruited friends and family members and were alarmed by the amount of trash they collected.
 
Much of the spring was spent gardening and focusing on an all new outdoor unit. Green Teen Traneccia helped LASA’s environmental club harvest their vegetable garden this spring. Traneccia reported back how excited she was to taste a carrot from the GROUND!  
 
       

 
Building Partnerships & Trust - Green Teens Team up with Urban Roots & LCRA
KAB is building partnerships to provide new opportunities for Green Teens. On Saturday, December 18th Green Teens joined forces with Urban Roots for a day of service. Youth from both programs completed landscape and garden projects to improve the McKinney Roughs Nature Park grounds. As a thank you for their service and a perk of the new partnership with LCRA, students re-visited the park in March to raft the Colorado River, rock climb, and participate in team building and adventure course activities where Urban Roots and Green Teens tirelessly cheered each other on.
 
           
 
Notes from the Field
Teens from LBJ and Travis geared up with helmets, head lamps, and knee pads to crawl through Whirlpool Cave. After touching 45,000 year old rock and exploring the flow of water teens headed to Eliza Springs to see the endangered Barton Springs Salamander.
 
     
Thank you Texas Cave Management Association, Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer Conservation District, and Watershed Protection for leading this fun and educational aquifer adventure!
 

2009-2010 Highlights

 

LBJ High School
Given the option of installing various types of gardens at the beginning of spring students at LBJ opted to build a square foot garden. Despite a few bumps in the road with the power drill and exploring the best weed barriers. The garden was a huge success!  Students grew and harvested peas, sage, rosemary, swiss chard, spinach, collards, lettuce, and parsley. With big harvests came activities on healthy eating and creative cooking with vegetables. Although they were skeptical at first, they enjoyed their veggies with scrambled eggs and salad.
In between weeding and harvesting, the students learned quite a bit about composting, herbs, and creating art with recycled material. By far LBJ participants favorite thing to do was to get off campus and go on fieldtrips. 
 
On Saturday, May 8th Green Teens from LBJ, Eastside, Kealing and Bedichek showcased their knowledge by leading activities at a community fair. Parents, youth, and neighbors gathered to learn something new and meet some brilliant young people!
 
 
 

LBJ Spring 2009 - participants stop to smell the roses on a fieldtrip to the Zilker Botanical Gardens.

Releasing ladybugs in the garden and tending the garden.