Bill would establish a grant program to fund youth biodiversity monitoring projects
PHOENIX – This week, Representative Yassamin Ansari (AZ-03), along with House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (CA-02) and Representative Doris Matsui (CA-07), introduced the Youth Outdoors Using Nature’s Genetics (YOUNG) Act to establish a grant program to fund youth biodiversity monitoring projects. The programs would enable kids across the country to participate in biodiversity conservation and learn about advanced technologies like advanced modeling, environmental DNA collection and analysis, and more.
“Young people are our future, and they deserve to inherit a livable and sustainable world,” said Representative Ansari. “As Donald Trump and Elon Musk unilaterally roll back climate protections, I’m proud to introduce the YOUNG Act to support biodiversity and conservation efforts that save our planet and provide opportunities to youth across the country. The YOUNG Act will be essential in helping educators and scientists prepare the next generation to build a cleaner, better world for all of us.”
“Good conservation depends on good data, and the YOUNG Act helps build both,” said House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman. “By investing in youth-led biodiversity monitoring, we’re strengthening the scientific foundation of our environmental policies while giving young people the opportunity to work with cutting-edge technologies. This is how we train the next generation of scientists, ecologists, and land stewards — and it couldn’t come at a more critical time.”
“The combined effects of climate change, habitat loss, and pollution are creating a global biodiversity crisis, which the Trump Administration is now exacerbating,” said Representative Matsui. “Biodiversity monitoring is essential to understand the extent of this crisis and how we should best allocate resources to address the crisis. At the same time, as President Trump continues to hollow out our federal workforce, it’s more important than ever to provide education opportunities and career pipelines to train the next generation of conservation scientists.”
Read the full text of the YOUNG Act HERE.
Follow @RepYassAnsari on all social media platforms and visit Ansari.House.gov to learn more.
