KAEE 50th Annual Conference

Over five months, FCPS students and community partners rolled up their sleeves and asked the hard questions, gathered real data, and let equity guide their conclusions.  Working within the Trust for Public Land's Community Schoolyard framework — which transforms asphalt-heavy schoolyards into vibrant, green community spaces — students and partners examined the full landscape of FCPS schools through a multi-criteria lens: Where are health and economic disparities most acute? Where is the urban tree canopy thinnest? Where do residents lack safe, walkable access to green space? Which neighborhoods bear the greatest burden of environmental pollution?  Where could a community schoolyard do the most good?The result was a student-driven Community Schoolyard Feasibility Study that was both rigorous and deeply human. Through Narrative 4's Story Exchange workshop, students, teachers, and community partners engaged in a structured yet intimate practice: listening to one another's stories, then retelling them in the first person. The outcome is not mere sympathy but genuine perspective-shifting — a proven catalyst for empathy, trust, and collective action.This session will walk participants through the full arc: how the partnership was structured, how the feasibility criteria were developed and applied, what the Story Exchange workshop looked like in practice, and what the students found.  Participants will leave with practical tools, a replicable framework and a vivid example of what becomes possible when students are trusted as researchers, advocates and changemakers.  

Have you ever needed a specific type of map but can't find one that fits your needs? Dive into an introductory session on the wonders of digital mapping and how you can create your very own maps for all of your needs. Digital mapping can provide a wonderful resource for a multitude of needs, not just navigation. In this session, you will learn basic map terminology to get started, what types of data we can display, and follow along as we create a map as a class. Primary software used for this session will be QGIS (free) and ArcGIS Online (paid). Feel free to bring your own device if you would like to follow along. You do NOT need any prior experience to join this session!

Does the idea of running a community event feel overwhelming? Or are you just looking for ways to make planning easier? Join this session to get tips and tricks on how to plan and manage community events in a way that won’t make you pull your hair out!

Looking back isn’t always clean. It’s layered, imperfect, and often full of lessons we didn’t realize we were learning at the time.


After nine years of building and sustaining the Environmental Education Leadership Corps AmeriCorps program, we’ve gathered insights that go far beyond our specific work- lessons that apply to any program, partnership, or initiative trying to make a lasting impact.


This story-driven session invites participants to learn from our evolution as an inter-organizational program: What worked, what didn’t, and what we’d do differently if we were starting today.


Together, we’ll explore:
- Why slow, intentional growth can be a program’s greatest strength,
- How to stay realistically optimistic in the face of challenges,
- What it means to find and sustain joy in impact-driven work,
- How to think about long-term member impact beyond service terms,
- And what it really takes to build something that lasts.


This session isn’t just about reflection- it’s about equipping attendees with practical insights they can apply immediately.


Participants will leave with a clearer understanding of how to:

1. Avoid common early-stage pitfalls
2. Build programs with longevity in mind
3. Center people, not just outputs, in their design
4. Carry lessons forward to strengthen future impact

For almost 20 years, the City of Frankfort Parks and Recreation Department has brought the community together for Reforest Frankfort, an annual event that allows participants to contribute to Frankfort’s tree canopy and experience hands-on environmental education. The success of this program stems from the department’s collaboration with community and government agencies to provide the community with local, relevant, and impactful environment engagement. Hear from Frankfort officials about how to implement a successful community-based environmental education program in the form of a community event. Participants will be given a guide for creating their own program in their community.

Options for how to do our work are nearly unlimited. Resources to do it aren’t. This presentation focuses on ways LFUCG’s Public Information and Engagement Section has engaged non-staff folks to further the reach of our efforts. By thoughtfully investing time and resources in small groups of allies, the Education and Community Teams have achieved long-lasting benefits that outweigh the direct costs.  Danny Woolums will discuss ways the Education Team empowers teachers to create and lead lessons on their own, primarily through the Teachers’ Environmental Academy but also through modeling lessons and classroom kits. Alana Insko-Kelley will share how the Community Environmental Academy has evolved to deeply engage interested residents in local government through outreach, advocacy and service. 

Learn how the Bluegrass Greensource team designed engaging energy education programs for audiences from preschool through adulthood while fostering meaningful partnerships with community leaders and local officials.
This session highlights four components of community energy education: introducing energy concepts to preschool teachers, students, and families; expanding elementary student understanding of energy sources and energy types; reducing barriers to energy efficiency for low-income and underserved communities with energy efficiency workshops; and collaborating with community leaders, organizations, and agencies through the Central Kentucky Energy Forums program.