UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State's School of Forest Resources and the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry are teaming up to offer a new free program to teach youth about forests and the concept of forest stewardship.

According to Sanford Smith, Penn State Cooperative Extension natural resources and youth-education specialist, and the creator of the Junior Forest Steward Program, Pennsylvania youth often know very little about the forests and natural areas that cover the state. "We believe this new educational initiative will get kids excited about, and interested in, Penn's Woods," he says. "We're targeting youths 8 to 12 years old."

The curriculum is designed for implementation by teachers, youth-group leaders, and other adults working with youth, and organizers are seeking cooperating adults to help facilitate the program. "The adults we need do not have to be naturalists or forestry experts to carry out the Junior Forest Steward Program," Smith explains. "An interest and willingness to learn right along with youth is the only thing we require. The program works in both formal and nonformal educational settings."

The program format is flexible, Smith points out. Young participants read an interactive Junior Forest Steward publication (individually or as a group), discuss the questions, and then participate in a forest- stewardship activity led by the adult educator or helper. A guide for adults accompanies the publication and provides ideas for activities that youth can undertake.

"After participants complete the three steps, they receive an embroidered Junior Forest Steward patch as an award and reminder of what they learned," Smith says. "The program raises awareness of forest stewardship and the importance of being a steward of the natural world.

"After all, today's youth will be responsible for the forests that give Pennsylvania its very name, and they will pass them on to future generations."

To request copies of the Junior Forest Steward publication, contact Penn State's Forest Resources Extension Office at 814-863-0401 or toll-free at 800-235-9473. For more information about the program, contact Sanford Smith at 814-865-4261 or sss5@psu.edu.

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Editor: Jeff Mulhollem 814-863-2719 jjm29@psu.edu