The North American Envirothon is a hands on natural resource competition for high school age students throughout the United States and Canada. Participating teams all over North America complete training and testing in five categories: soils and land use, aquatic ecology, forestry, wildlife, and a current environmental issue. Each state holds their own competition and sends their winning team to compete with the over 50 teams from around North America every year. In 2008, the New Mexico Envirothon was proud to send their first team ever to compete in the North American Envirothon held in Arizona!

For the New Mexico Envirothon, teams of 5 students each must prepare for a two day indoor/outdoor state competition held every April. Teams work together to answer questions at 6 field stations and develop solutions to environmental problems presented to them by people working in agencies and organizations involved in natural resource management. There are awards for each area of study.

The team that wins firstplace overall will represent New Mexico at the National Envirothon Competition hosted at a different state or Canadian location each year. The goal of the New Mexico Envirothon is to develop knowledgeable, skilled and dedicated citizens who are willing to work toward achieving and maintaining a balance between the quality of life and the quality of the environment.

Competitions at the state level are sponsored by your local Soil & Water Conservation Districts. If you would like more information about New Mexico’s Envirothon, please go to the NM Envirothon website or contact your local Soil & Water Conservation District.