Watersmith Guild’s Aqua Lab Adventures Receives Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence

We’re thrilled to announce that the Watersmith Guild has been honored with the 2025 Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence for our newest program, Aqua Lab Adventures! This recognition from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) celebrates outstanding environmental efforts across the Commonwealth.

Aqua Lab Adventures is a citizen science and outdoor adventure program that brings students from environmental justice communities into direct contact with the natural world. Designed to spark curiosity and build environmental leadership skills, the program combines classroom learning with hands-on experience in the field. Students investigate microplastic pollution in their local watersheds, using a specially designed, low-cost trawl to collect samples—while paddleboarding!

In 2024, Aqua Lab Adventures engaged 245 youth across Western Pennsylvania. These students have participated in microplastic surveys at seven different watershed sites, collecting valuable data that supports the ongoing monitoring of pollution in our waterways. For many of these students, this is their first opportunity to connect with the local environment in such a meaningful way. In 2025, the program has continued through partnership’s with 7th grade classrooms across Propel Braddock Hills and Propel East, as well as through First Waves programming across Western, Pennsylvania.

This award is a celebration of the collective impact we’ve made together—of the students who explored their watersheds, the schools that embraced hands-on learning, and the dedicated partners who made Aqua Lab Adventures possible.

We extend our deepest thanks to the Shapiro Administration and the DEP for this honor. The full list of recipients and more information about the award is available on the official DEP website.

Together, we’re shaping a future where environmental education is accessible, empowering, and transformative—especially for the youth who will become tomorrow’s conservation leaders.