Young Professionals of Color Mentorship Program

Now in its ninth year, the Young Professionals of Color (YPC) Mentorship Program enables Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities working in the environmental field to achieve their career and professional development goals, while closing the racial diversity gap that exists within the Chesapeake Bay restoration movement. With the understanding that BIPOC communities face inherently racist structural barriers to advance their careers, this program is designed to provide mentorship and professional development opportunities to increase retention among BIPOC colleagues in the region.

YPC provides mentorship and customized trainings to young professionals seeking to excel in their careers and also strengthens the leadership abilities of our mentors. Participating in this unique partnership fosters better relationships among clean water partners and helps build a pipeline of diverse leaders interested in advancing our watershed goals throughout the region.

Past trainings for YPC participants have included:

• Personal Sustainability and Community Care

• Courageous (Difficult) Conversations

• Overcoming Impostor Syndrome

• Combating Microaggressions

• Creating Equity in the Workplace

• Theories of Change to Advance Equity

• Advancing Equity, Influencing without Authority

The program is among very few spaces, let alone mentorship opportunities within the Chesapeake Bay partnership, that builds support for diverse leaders within the Bay community. An annual program, YPC typically hosts a class of 40-50 professionals and has provided mentorship and training to more than 200 individuals.

Choose Clean Water Coalition’s Young Professionals of Color Alumni Directory

Check out the profiles below featuring alumni of the Coalition’s Young Professionals of Color Program. Learn more about the YPC alumni and their reflections on their YPC experience.