Project Overview
GrizzlyCorps is an AmeriCorps program designed by Project Climate at UC Berkeley’s Center for Law, Energy, and the Environment (CLEE) in partnership with CaliforniaVolunteers. The program sends recent college graduates into rural communities across California to promote regenerative agri-food systems and fire and forest resilience. They aim to expand capacity for organizations working on community resilience and climate action while bolstering the next generation of professionals at the forefront of climate change solutions.
Approach
LPC was chosen to design a quasi-experimental study comparing the capacity of organizations with an AmeriCorps Fellow with organizations who did not have a Fellow.
In addition, GrizzlyCorps staff were interested in measuring program alum’s career-related experiences to demonstrate workforce development outcomes. For this, LPC created, conducted, and analyzed a survey of Fellows who served between 2020 to 2025.
Methodology
After attending planning meetings with GrizzlyCorps staff, LPC drafted a comprehensive evaluation plan and timeline. We also reviewed and revised existing pre- and post-capacity survey tools in collaboration with our client.
To ensure full access for survey participants, we built web versions of the pre- and post-survey questionnaires, and provided technical assistance to GrizzlyCorps staff related to administering these instruments to the intervention and comparison groups
We analyzed the collected data to create a visual presentation of the findings, including a one-pageinfographic which GrizzlyCorps staff described as very impressive and useful for broader sharing of their program’s impact.We cleaned and analyzed the resulting data and created a full summary report, presenting the results.
I am aware that GrizzlyCorps mainly focuses on the environmental health portion, but it is eye-opening to see the relationship between disease and soil health, for example
– GrizzlyCorps Alumni Survey Respondent
Key Findings
The Alum Fellow survey told a positive story about the results gained by participation in the experience. Participants reported that GrizzlyCorps helped them further their goals “a great deal” in the following spheres:
- Professional goals – 96%
- Personal goals – 71%
- Educational goals – 62%
In addition, 83% of Alums are currently working or studying in the field, and 85% have worked and/or studied in their field since their Fellowship.
The comparison report yielded similarly positive findings. Partner organizations appeared better positioned to lead and sustain resilience initiatives within their communities, especially after hosting a GrizzlyCorps Fellow.
