Captain Planet Foundation (captainplanetfoundation.org) celebrates 30 years of empowering the next generation of change-makers by looking back on the milestones that set them up for successful impact.

Turner and Pyle; photo by Donna Permell

1991

Captain Planet Foundation is born at Turner Broadcasting System when executive producer Barbara Pyle negotiates a percentage of the show’s merchandising revenue to engage and empower young people around the world to be problem-solvers for the planet.

Photo courtesy of Captain Planet Foundation

2001

Laura Turner Seydel, the daughter of Ted Turner, and her husband, Rutherford, are so impressed by the grassroots outcomes and mission of the foundation that they orchestrate the transition of the corporate foundation into a 501(c)(3) public charity. Laura takes on the role of chairperson of the board of directors.

Photo courtesy of Captain Planet Foundation

2011

After 10 years, 2,000-plus grants funded and over 1 million kids impacted, the Captain Planet Foundation Gala launches and the board of directors develops a new strategic vision for the foundation. This includes adding “best practice” scalable operating programs based on a 20-year review of grant-funded projects.

Photo courtesy of Captain Planet Foundation

2012

Leesa Carter-Jones joins as foundation president and the team launches its first operating program, Project Learning Garden, across the metro Atlanta region. Th e holistic program provides participating schools with five major elements to support their garden-based learning curriculum. PLG is now operating in 600+ schools around the country, impacting 400,000+ students each year.

Photo courtesy of Captain Planet Foundation

2014

Captain Planet Foundation and Turner Endangered Species Fund convene conservation leaders in Bozeman, Mont. to discuss a collaborative project to catalyze the natural empathy that K-12 students have for endangered animals and the growing extinction crisis. Project Hero is developed to provide a solution-driven web platform that guides kids on “Quests” to save locally threatened and endangered species. To date, over 20,000 users have been on the platform.

Photo courtesy of Captain Planet Foundation

2018

Captain Planet Foundation partners with Lonely Whale to design and deliver the first Ocean Heroes Bootcamp in New Orleans to train young people (ages 10 to 22) on how to create successful campaigns that reverse the plastic pollution crisis and restore the health of the oceans. Th e program is like rocket fuel and trains more than 2,500 youth activists from 90-plus countries within three years—with Heroes changing single-use policies across local businesses, school districts, states and countries. In 2021, the program delivers programs across Africa and India in partnership with UNEP’s Tide Turners program.

Photo courtesy of Captain Planet Foundation

2020-2021

In the face of the emerging COVID-19 pandemic, Captain Planet Foundation quickly responds by building Project Giving Gardens in May 2020 to leverage over 100 Atlanta-area school gardens, left untended during closures, to grow fresh produce for food-insecure kids and families across metro Atlanta. A second summer launches in March 2021 and expands to the San Francisco Bay Area and Oakland Public Schools—adding nearly 80 locations in that market. Over the two summers, more than 120,000 pounds of organically managed produce is harvested and distributed, providing roughly 500,000 servings.

2022

CPF launches the Planeteer Alliance—a global network and training program for young environmental activists eager to build a community and campaigns that collectively drive large-scale change for the planet.

Photo courtesy of Captain Planet Foundation

30 Years!

Captain Planet Foundation reaches a major milestone: 30 years of engaging and empowering young people to be problem-solvers for the planet. Captain Planet Foundation is celebrating its 30th year with a bang on March 19, 2022. For more details and ticket information, please visit captainplanetfoundation.org.