Soil and Water Education
The Guilford Soil and Water Conservation District provides educational and outreach programs to K-12 students and the Guilford County community. These programs include environment-based presentations, educational newsletters, brochures, activities, and games. Available resources come from the environmental educational curriculum of programs such as Project WET, Project Learning Tree (PLT), Project WILD. All programs utilize STEM and inquiry-based methods and are correlated to NC core standards where applicable.
The environmental education topics offered include soil and water conservation, agriculture, recycling, soil, water, air, composting, point and non-point pollution, and environmental stewardship.
All programs are provided free of charge. Please contact Megan Gentry for more information at 336-641-2251 or mgentry@guilfordcountync.gov.
Programs
Guilford SWCD offers a unique, interactive learning tool called the Enviroscape which helps people of all ages make a visual connection between land use and water quality. The Enviroscape is a 3-D hands-on model that shows both point and nonpoint sources of water pollution and the function of watersheds. The Enviroscape makes complex issues visually clear and aids students in their understanding of the costs of compounding pollution within their own neighborhoods.
Envirothon is the largest high school environmental science contest in North America. Participation takes place at three levels: area, state, and national. Competitions offer students the opportunity to earn thousands of dollars in scholarships.
Five (5)-member teams work together to compete at middle (5th-8th) and high (9th-12th) school levels. These teams train in the areas of soils, aquatics, wildlife, forestry and current environmental issues. Qualifying teams at area levels participate are sponsored by Guilford County to compete in the state level competition. The winning high school team represents the state at the North American (NCF)-Envirothon each summer.
Visit NC Envirothon to access study materials, and to get information on registration and volunteering for the NC Envirothon competition.
- 2027 Area 3 - Tuesday, March 9, 2027, at Alamance Community College
- 2027 NC State Envirothon - April 23-24, 2027, at Cedarock Park
Visit NCF-Envirothon or contact Megan Gentry to learn more.
Conservation Field Days are a great opportunity for students to learn more about conservation in the real-world. If you would like to learn more about scheduling one, contact Megan Gentry at 336-641-2251 or mgentry@guilfordcountync.gov .
Guilford Soil & Water Conservation District helps facilitate multiple events for students throughout the year:
- Soil & Water Conservation Contests: Students can enter either the essay, speech, slideshow, or poster contest depending on what grade level they are in. Students who win on the county level will advance to the State competition. The 2026-27 theme for the contests is “Soil & Water…Yours for Life.”
- Resource Conservation Workshop: Guilford Soil & Water Conservation District sponsors two rising 10th to 12th graders to attend the Resource Conservation Workshop over the summer at NC State. Students participate in a weeklong intensive study and hands-on workshop, learning about natural resources and how they are managed.
- Guilford Creek Week: Students of all ages can participate in Creek Week.
- Green Girls: Middle School girls who are interested in the environment can attend this weeklong event over the summer.
If you are interested in learning more about any of these events, please contact Megan Gentry at 336-641-2251 or mgentry@guilfordcountync.gov.
