The Urban Sustainability Leadership Academy (USLA) is an after school program for high school students whose primary goal is to create life-long learners who have the character, knowledge, skills and desire to continually cultivate what is best within themselves, their communities and the world at large. USLA includes three interdependent components: 1) learning modules, 2) social entrepreneurial activities, and 3) internships. These components are structured around a central concept, urban sustainability with a focus on sustainable agriculture, horticulture and recycling. As such, all learning activities are taught in the context of running and building a youth-led urban agricultural business called Teens 4 Good, a social youth entrepreneurship program managed by the Federation. Teens 4 Good provides a unique opportunity for experiential and contextualized learning around horticultural science, urban agriculture, entrepreneurship, and work readiness soft and hard skills through running an urban farming business. 

Community Partners:
United Communities Southeast Philadelphia
North Light Community Center
Horace Furness High School
Roxborough High School
ARAMARK
Jeff Brown ShopRite Stores
Pennsylvania Horticultural Society
The Food Trust
Philadelphia Department of Parks and Recreation
Penn State University
Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences

Funding Source:
Philadelphia Youth Network