The Key Biscayne Community Foundation is digging deep this month.

For this month’s Citizen Science Project Lunch & Learn, the Foundation is showcasing The National Geographic Society and The Nature Conservancy’s mission to “foster an education and leadership experience for young changemakers.”

The two organizations came together to create an externship program, a leadership and mentoring experience for young people ages 18-25 that includes virtual classes, mentorships, workshops and seed funding.

“Having a community like the one we developed through the externship is amazing, because it shows us that we can do this; we’re all in this together; it’s not just me. There’s a whole group behind me,” said Deborah Santos de Azevedo, a 2021 Extern and Marine Biologist and National Geographic Society Explorer.

Presenting the Lunch & Learn “TNC – Empowering the Next Generation: Inside the Externship Experience” is Michelle Wagner, Associate Director of Development at The Nature Conservancy (TNC), who will be joined by Sophie Dellinger, an externship participant.

The event is part of the KBCF’s Citizen Science Project, created to promote natural resource protection and education in collaboration with professional scientists. The KBCF does so by holding events like mangrove cleanups, The Key Challenge, beach cleanups and monthly lectures like the one coming up this Thursday.

The event will be held at noon, on March 26, at the Key Biscayne Community Center’s Island Room. The Lunch & Learn is free for KBCC members and $10 for non-members.

RSVP is required to attend. Contact (305) 365-8900 or email rlohuis@keybiscayne.fl.gov for more information.

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To learn more about The Citizen Project, click here.