Resources
Exhibitor Application
Summit Agenda
Education Program
Leadership Awards
Exhibitor/Sponsor Profiles
Exhibitor/Sponsor Options
Summit Floorplan
Advisory Board
Registration Details
Media Kit
Parking, Directions & Hotels
Seeds to Solutions: Growing Environmental Literacy through Climate Change and Environmental Justice Curriculum
Room: 207
Time: 1:30pm – 2:30pm
Learn how Seeds to Solutions™, a groundbreaking California-based climate change and environmental justice program, provides educators with high-quality resources to integrate sustainability and environmental literacy into their classrooms. Developed with $6 million in funding from the CA Department of Education, Seeds to Solutions empowers students to be environmentally literate, engaged community members prepared to act for the well-being of their family, broader community, and environment. Developed in response to teacher and community demand, Seeds to Solutions is a set of free, solutions-oriented, instructional resources on California environmental issues for grades K–12.
In this session, participants will dive into Seeds to Solutions, exploring grade level band topics, unit questions, and instructional practices. They will reflect on how the units are examples of place-based learning resources that use real-life case studies, data, examples of community projects, and interviews with experts and community members, and apply what they learn to their own context.
Learning Objectives:
By the end of this session, attendees will be able to:
- Identify and describe the key components of the Seeds to Solutions curriculum, including unit topics, instructional models, and lesson types.
- Explain how the storyline model supports student inquiry, critical thinking, and engagement with climate change and environmental justice topics.
- Able to brainstorm ways to adapt curriculum units to their local context using place-based learning principles.
- Able to evaluate how culminating engagement lessons empower students to take informed action on climate justice issues and reflect on their own learning.
Speaker:
Julie Hilborn, Director of Environmental Literacy and Sustainability, San Mateo County Office of Education
Andra Yeghoian, Chief Innovation Officer, Ten Strands
Julie Hilborn is the Director of Environmental Literacy and Sustainability at the San Mateo County Office of Education. She joined SMCOE in September of 2022 after a multi-faceted career in the formal and informal science and environmental education sectors across K-12 and university levels. Julie directs the Environmental Literacy and Sustainability program at SMCOE, which provides support to San Mateo County schools in prioritizing environmental literacy and integrating environmental sustainability and climate-ready practices across school campuses, curriculum, community, and culture. In 2025 she led SMCOE to become the first county office of education to receive Green Achiever recognition through the California Green Ribbon Schools program. She also worked internationally as an Instructor for Outward Bound Zimbabwe, and in the private sector as an environmental consultant on large-scale construction projects. Julie holds a BA from Stanford, an MA from San Jose State, an administrative credential from SMCOE and a teaching credential from San Francisco State.
Andra Yeghoian is the Chief Innovation Officer for Ten Strands, a San Francisco-based nonprofit dedicated to advancing environmental and climate literacy and action for all of California’s TK-12 schools. With over 20 years in education across public and private schools, both nationally and internationally, she has held roles such as County Environmental Literacy and Sustainability Coordinator, Director of Sustainability, Humanities Teacher, and Professional Development Facilitator. She holds a B.A. in International Relations and a Teaching Credential from UC Davis, an MBA in Sustainable Systems from Presidio Graduate School, and an Administrative Services Credential. She currently provides visionary leadership for a California-wide whole systems approach to integrating environmental and climate action into the campus, curriculum, community and culture of TK-12 schools. Under her leadership, schools and districts have earned prestigious honors, including U.S. Department of Education and California Green Ribbon Awards, Bay Area Green Business Certification, and LEED Platinum Certification.
