Mission
Grind for the Green is committed to moving youth of color from the margins to the epicenter of the environmental movement.

We do this through:

• Utilizing hip-hop culture as a vehicle to attract and engage youth of color in the green movement.
• Creating green pathways to success, which include green careers, internships and educational opportunities.
• Connecting our local work to national and international campaigns for eco-equity.

Our aim is to serve as culturally-relevant entry point for youth of color to gain access to green economic resources and address environmental challenges.

Programs/Projects
Eco-Music Festival: The G4G Eco-Music festival takes place annually between June and September in San Francisco. The festival is the largest youth-led “green” event series in the nation. It is led by a paid staff of 7 youth Ambassadors trained in office skills, budgeting, marketing, promotions, event production and environmental justice. Each Ambassador assumes an important leadership position within the project and sits on one of the following committees: Logistics, Community Partnerships, Sponsorship, Publicity and Promotions, and Environmental Sustainability.

Hundreds of participants ages 14-24 have the opportunity to take part in these free events, which include a Conference, Beat Battle, Hip-Hop Competition, Green Career Fair and Solar Powered Concert. In addition to these free events, participants are introduced to the ethics of eco-responsibility through exposure to the logistics of the events themselves. For example, all event collateral is printed on recyclable materials, all food is organic and packaged in biodegradable foodware, all events include a green pavilion to educate participants about green practices, programs and careers, and our culminating event is San Francisco’s only solar powered hip-hop concert.

G4G Mobile: Launching in the Fall of 2010 Grind for the Green is developing the G4G Mobile in partnership with the San Francisco Department of the Enviornment. The G4G mobile (G4G) is a portable environmental education center housed in a bio-diesel solar powered bus. Based in Bayview Hunter’s Point, a predominantly low-income community of color, which has historically served as the dumping ground for San Francisco’s most toxic industries. The center will feature an eco-literacy learning lab, multimedia production studio and healthy snack kiosk. The center will create 7 Green Jobs for transitional youth of color (ages 18 to 24) trained to provide free zero-waste consultations to Bayview residents and businesses educating them on how to set-up, use and maintain zero waste systems. Local residents will also have the opportunity to measure their environmental footprint through an online platform that provides education on reduction methods and existing DOE programs. Utilizing a door to door block by block approach, the G4G-mobile aims to create, measure and track “zero waste zones” that will serve as neighborhood models of sustainability, meeting communities at their point of interest and offering them opportunities to see themselves as agents of positive change.