Volunteer with ESC To Make a Difference in Your Community Environment
Join in a community dedicated to providing safe and inclusive spaces for all to engage in nature education. By volunteering with ESC, you have the power to spark change and inspire stewardship in others. Explore our opportunities to see how your efforts can make a lasting impact on our community and the planet. Fill out an application and register for a Volunteer Orientation today!
Inspire Stewardship
Help preserve and restore local ecosystems by funding educational initiatives that encourage responsible environmental stewardship.
Promote Equity
Your volunteer work can help break down barriers to outdoor education for underserved groups, promoting equity and inclusion.
Sustain Programs
Support the development and continuation of innovative, science-based educational programs for all ages.
Becoming an ESC Volunteer
In order to become an ESC volunteer, you will need to fill out our volunteer application above. We currently onboard volunteers once a year in February and March. All interested and prospective volunteers must attend a New Volunteer Orientation to learn more about our organization, the volunteer requirements and expectations. After attending the training, you will be asked to fill out volunteer paperwork including a background check and provide proof of Covid-19 vaccination. You will also meet with volunteer staff to learn more about your goals for this volunteer position to ensure this is a good fit.
All new volunteers start out as a Seahurst Beach Naturalist and as you gain experience interpreting on the beach, you can be trained to help with other ESC programs such as outreach events, hands-on science times, and school field trips. Our beach naturalist program runs April-August 2026 with a mix of weekends and week days based on tides. For this program we ask:
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All volunteers must be at least 16 years old to volunteer solo, ages 13-15 with an adult.
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We require a minimum of 2 volunteer shifts during the 2026 beach season.
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There is no knowledge or experience required as we offer virtual and in-person training options, as well as shadowing shifts. (Our in-person training will be on March 22, 2026)
Although we would love to invite every interested person to volunteer, we are a small organization with limited capacity to care for volunteers. We invite all to apply to our volunteer team, especially those who reside within our program service area of south King County.
Seahurst Beach Naturalists
Assist with our Meet us on the Beach program at Seahurst Park. Volunteers help foster connections between our community and the watershed we all call home. By engaging beach-goers, volunteers answer participant questions, help folks explore at low tide, and teach community members about stewardship actions so they can take strides to protect our local environments.
Public Programs
Assist with our public programs including hands-on science activities, toddler programming, clean up events, bird walks, family water quality field trips, festivals, and more! Volunteers help foster connections between our community and the watershed we all call home. By engaging beach-goers, leading hands-on activities, and teaching community members about stewardship actions, ESC volunteers take strides to protect our local environments.
School Programs
Assist with our Salmon Heroes field trip (Sept-Dec), Beach Heroes field trip (March-June), and other out-of-school lessons. Salmon Hero volunteers raise awareness of salmon and what we can do to protect through a series of field trips for local 4th-8th graders. Beach Heroes volunteers showcase the intertidal biodiversity and stewardship actions for K-3rd graders. Out-of-school volunteers assist with outdoor, environmental education lessons for elementary and middle school after school clubs, recreational clubs, and local summer camps.
Become a Board Member
Take a leadership role in helping to determine our path as an organization by joining our Board of Directors. Board members serve on different committees to shape our operational plan and grow support for ESC. Volunteering at public events and representing ESC at community programs are ways that our board members contribute beyond their normal duties. Board members are asked to commit to two evening meetings a month.
Upcoming Volunteer Orientations
For 2026! ESC currently onboards volunteers 1 time a yea for our Seahurst Beach Naturalist Program. Sign up to learn more about our volunteer opportunities, requirements, and all things Environmental Science Center at our one of our upcoming online orientations!
REQUIRED FOR ALL NEW AND PROSPECTIVE ESC VOLUNTEERS.
