ASHLEY — The Eastern Pennsylvania Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation (EPCAMR) has selected longtime Luzerne County resident Mark Jones to serve as a Stewards Energy Communities AmeriCorps Volunteer In Service To America (VISTA).
Serving for a full year, each participant’s role is to advance locally-designed economic development, workforce readiness, and environmental remediation plans in one of nine federally-designated communities across the United States.
The Energy Community AmeriCorps Program is an AmeriCorps VISTA program aimed at alleviating poverty and building local capacity for communities experiencing job loss and economic dislocation.
This program is expected to engage with a total of 150 AmeriCorps VISTA members over the next three years.
Jones is one of 17 VISTAs deployed across the country as part of the inaugural class.
EPCAMR is the first organization in eastern Pennsylvania’s northern Appalachian anthracite coalfields — and currently one of only two nonprofits in the Keystone State — to host a service member as part of the innovative Energy Communities initiative. Other service members will be based at nonprofits in communities from West Virginia to Wyoming.
The project will be led by Conservation Legacy, a longstanding AmeriCorps partner with extensive experience working in coal communities. Over the past 22 years, Conservation Legacy has engaged more than 1,200 AmeriCorps members in supporting economic development and environmental revitalization in coal communities in Appalachia and the Intermountain West.
These members have secured $41 million in grants and in-kind resources, recruited 100,000 volunteers, trained 16,000 community members in water quality monitoring, and improved 3.2 million acres of land.
These members serve with the commitment to support coal communities. This innovative public-private partnership will invest nearly $8 million from federal agencies and philanthropic sources to help ensure a more just and prosperous future for the men and women who fueled our nation’s growth.
Stewards is a program of Conservation Legacy, a national organization dedicated to supporting locally based conservation service programs. As a program of Conservation Legacy, Stewards Individual Placements provides individuals with service and career opportunities to strengthen communities and preserve our natural resources. Participants work with federal agencies, tribal governments, and nonprofits building institutional capacity, developing community relationships and supporting ecosystem health.
AmeriCorps VISTA places individuals with nonprofit organizations, public agencies, and tribal governments to expand reach and deepen impact in making a sustainable change that alleviates the impact of poverty. Through fundraising, volunteer recruitment, program development, and more, AmeriCorps members gain experience and leadership skills that put them on track for a life of service in the public, private, or nonprofit sector.
AmeriCorps, the federal agency for national service and volunteerism, provides opportunities for Americans to serve their country domestically, address the nation’s most pressing challenges, improve lives and communities, and strengthen civic engagement.
Each year, the agency places more than 200,000 AmeriCorps members and AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers in intensive service roles; and empowers millions more to serve as long-term, short-term, or one-time volunteers.