About ECA
The Environmental Career Ambassador (ECA) Initiative was created by the Environmental Education Council of Ohio (EECO) and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency with the assistance of the Environmental Professionals Network (EPN), which is a program of Ohio State University's School of Environmental and Natural Resources (SENR).
EPN members can choose to serve as Environmental Career Ambassadors (ECAs) through their EPN Connect profiles. Members who opt into the ECA program are searchable in the EPN Connect Network Directory, making it easy to connect educators and career counselors with environmental experts. To find an ECA, sign into your EPN account, navigate to the Network Directory, and select the “Environmental Career Ambassador” filter. You can further refine your search by county, topic area, or other criteria to identify the most relevant ambassadors. Clicking on an ECA’s profile provides details about their projects, areas of expertise, location, and email address.
You can find ECAs who are:
1 Government employees
2 Non-profit organization representatives
3 Private company staff
Find an ECA
ECA Initiative History
The Environmental Career Ambassador (ECA) initiative is a long‑standing statewide program led by the Environmental Education Council of Ohio (EECO) in partnership with the Ohio EPA Office of Environmental Education. Launched in 2013 in collaboration with the EPN, the initiative was created to strengthen student awareness of environmental careers across Ohio and to connect classrooms with real‑world environmental professionals.
The ECA initiative focuses on preparing students (especially those in middle school, high school, and early college) for careers in environmental science, engineering, and other STEM‑related fields that support Ohio’s evolving workforce needs. Environmental Career Ambassadors are professionals from universities, government agencies, nonprofits, and private industry who volunteer their time to share career pathways, required skills, and training through classroom presentations, career fairs, mentoring, job shadowing, internships, and field experiences.
Over the years, the initiative has grown into a robust statewide network with more than 400 volunteer Environmental Career Ambassadors representing communities across Ohio. In response to educator needs and changing classroom settings (particularly during and after the COVID‑19 pandemic), the initiative expanded to include virtual engagement opportunities, including live video classroom visits and a growing library of recorded Career Chat videos. These resources allow students and educators to explore environmental STEM careers on demand and learn directly from professionals working across the state. Visit the EECO website to explore available videos and career connections.
If you would like more detailed information or answers to specific questions about the ECA initiative, please contact the EECO Executive Director at director@eeco-online.org.
- 475+ Environmental Career Ambassadors
- 84 Ohio Counties