Green Crew puts Eden Prairie teens in national spotlight

Minnesota teen environmentalists have been making national news lately for their involvement in Green Crew.

Among them are several Eden Prairie youth. Akshata Guruprasad, a graduating senior; Janika Kannappaganesh, a rising junior; and Shikrishnan Narayanan, also a rising junior, are three Eden Prairie High School (EPHS) students on Green Crew’s youth leadership team.

Green Crew is an environmental leadership and conservation service program. The group was recently featured in The New York Times as part of the “50 States, 50 Fixes” series on local solutions to environmental problems. The article, titled “Minnesota Teens Are Fighting Climate Anxiety With Shovels,” highlights the teens’ active efforts to make a positive difference in their current and future world.

Minnesota Public Radio’s “Minnesota Now” devoted a portion of its recent program to a Green Club interview.

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Green Crew has been in existence for three years and has about 50 student members. They enlist their friends and fellow youth as volunteers. More than 2,000 people are expected to participate in this year’s projects. Green Crew is an initiative of the Minnesota Valley Chapter of Izaak Walton League of America and meets at its chapter house on Auto Club Road in southwest Bloomington, overlooking the Minnesota River.  

The Green Crew model is designed to be replicated. New chapters are being organized in Mankato, Bemidji and the east metro. The group has also received about two dozen inquiries from people across the country.

Prospective projects are proposed by youth members and vetted, organized, and implemented entirely by youth.

Akshata said that all projects, so far, have been outside of Eden Prairie. Part of this is because there are so many voices from other communities, and that “Eden Prairie’s government has made good strides in preserving our city’s natural environment.”

She added that many projects, no matter how well organized, have unanticipated problems, and that the kids learn to work through the issues without panic and with calm problem-solving thought.

Akshata Guruprasad

Akshata, who graduated last week from EPHS, plans to attend the University of Delaware to double major in chemistry and art conservation. She hopes to eventually tie her education to her passion for protecting the environment.

Akshata was introduced to the Green Crew by a friend and has since risen to the leadership team. She is critical to the Green Crew’s website marketing efforts. She also participates in Science Olympiad at EPHS.

Janika Kannappaganesh

Janika came to Green Crew through her involvement with the Kouba Gallery, which features art with naturalist themes and is also hosted at the Izaak Walton League house. She discovered Kouba Gallery through VolunteerMatch, drawn by her combined interest in art and nature. Getting involved with Green Crew was a natural next step.

At EPHS, Janika is active in speech and DECA. She has a strong interest in digital art and enjoys exploring Adobe and Autodesk programs. After graduation, she hopes to pursue a career in architecture, where those skills will come in handy.

Shikrishnan ‘Krish’ Narayanan

Krish, who just finished his sophomore year at EPHS, discovered Green Crew after extensive searching for organizations involved in water ecology. He has been instrumental in Green Crew’s zebra mussel surveys in the area lakes and rivers.  

Krish designed, built, deployed, and monitored zebra mussel traps in the area’s lakes and streams.  

Green Crew opportunities

The Green Crew offers multiple internship opportunities. They are offered over the course of a semester during the school year and also during the summer.  The internship opportunities range from marketing to research to engineering. 

Also this summer, Green Crew is hosting “Drop-in Fridays” from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m. for kids ages 12 to 18. Activities include environmental leadership and conservation service projects.

For more information on “Drop in Fridays” or other activities to get involved with, visit Green Crew – Get Involved.

Editor’s note: This story is the eighth in an ongoing series called “Sustainability in Action.” The series spotlights sustainability efforts in Eden Prairie at various levels, from local government and businesses to community groups and residents. It includes a page dedicated to local, state, and national sustainability resources. This series has received support from a grant from the Eden Prairie Community Foundation.

If you have an idea for this series, contact the editors.