RIVERS OF HOPE
Healing the world through the Power of Partnership
RIVER OF HOPE MISSION
The River of Hope Partnership is dedicated to restoring our country’s most threatened natural resources—our environment and our under-resourced young people. Since Earth Conservation Corps’ formation in 1989 as a White House initiative, we have grown from an inspired dream to a national service learning model. The idea was simple: empower teenagers to be part of the solution chance to transform their lives by reclaiming the Anacostia River and sharing the healing power of nature with their inspiring communities and the world. Our adaptive reclamation of abandoned riverfront buildings into community environmental centers is a template for youth engagement across the US.
We Inspired the Movement to Reclaim our Anacostia
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OUR HOPE
Our nation’s capital is experiencing exponential infrastructure growth; once life-threatening streets of Southeast D.C. are now bubbling with new apartments, cafes, and widespread amenities. Over the past 30 years, the River of Hope Partnership has maintained its position at the historic capitol pumphouse, and later down the street at the Matthew Henson Earth Conservation Center -- which are now in the backyards of two of D.C.’s largest stadiums -- the Washington Nationals and D.C. United.
As a new bridge runs across the Anacostia, connecting our communities by transport, the River of Hope Partnership seeks to address the still-lasting disparities across our river by bridging our communities. With a 10 year difference in life expectancy across the Anacostia River, and a 12.8% unemployment rate disparity between Ward 8 (16.8%) and Ward 2 (4.0%) as of February 2021 according to the Department of Employment Services (DOES); the River of Hope Partnership is working to close this disparity by creating STEAM pathways for under-resourced youth.