About The GREEN Program

We’re on a mission to educate and empower future sustainability leaders through experiential education, responsible travel, and adventure.

The GREEN Program (TGP) is an award-winning, experiential education program focused on our world’s most pressing issues in sustainable development.

 Our innovative model for experiential education is driven by a desire to provide purposeful, real-world experience through impactful education, responsible travel, and adventure. We envision a sustainable future driven by global citizens who catalyze change and propel communities and organizations towards progressive sustainability goals and climate resilience.

Since 2009, we have traveled with more than 4,000 interdisciplinary student leaders and professionals from 470+ universities and 70 countries around the world. Our programs provide hands-on, global experiences at the fraction of the time and cost of traditional study abroad models.

At The GREEN Program, we believe in using business as a force for good, and to help create a sustainable future for our community and planet. We’re proud to be a triple-bottom line, woman and minority-owned, public benefit corporation.

about us group image 3

Where you’ve seen our work

A new model of education for a new generation. Building the future sustainability leaders that our world needs.

By using the world as our classroom, and aligning with the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), our program model expertly balances sustainability-focused course work, exclusive industry exposure, and bucket-list adventures in just 10 days.

We specialize in providing exclusive access to leading industry facilities, and learning opportunities with local sustainability experts. We challenge our cohorts to solve real-world sustainability challenges in the form of innovative business solutions.

Beyond our program experience, we are one of the first program providers to offer leadership development and resume-boosting opportunities after students return home. In fact, 95% of TGP alumni stay engaged in sustainability efforts and have gone on to work for forward-thinking companies such as NASA, Tesla, National Geographic, United Nations, the Environmental Defense Fund, NREL, and more.

Programs designed with learning outcomes for the 21st century workforce:

Nearly 91% of employers prefer that their candidates have experience, and 65% prefer relevant experience.  Our programs are designed for participants to gain new knowledge, skills, and competencies to prepare them for an impactful career – for themselves and our planet. 

plus green

Short-term, intensive, experience-based curriculum

plus green

Learn through a human-centric approach

plus green

Collaborate with diverse, interdisciplinary, and intercultural networks

plus green

Analyze technical, social, cultural, economic, and political systems

plus green

Foster systems-thinking approaches for real-world problems

plus green

Gain professional practice, demonstrating leadership and decision making

plus green

Build key competencies and character qualities required in the 21st century workforce

about us group image octave 2

Who's hiring TGP alumni

Awards & Recognition

"#1 Study Abroad Provider for Safety" - Go Overseas Community Choice Awards

Finalist "Global Rural Tourism Competition" - U.N. World Tourism Organization

Forbes 30Under30 - Education

"Sustainability International Impact Award" - PIEoneer Awards

"Education Hero of the Year - COVID-19 Response" - The Stevie Awards Women in Business"

"Company of the Year" - The Stevie Awards Women in Business

"Expander of Frontiers" - Best of Philly®, Philadelphia Magazine

"Innovation in Sustainability Award" - GoAbroad Awards

"Best Education Abroad Provider" - Global Youth Travel Awards

"#1 Summer Study Abroad Program" - StudyAbroad101

"Green Innovator of the Year" - Clean Air Council, GreenFest Philly

Top 10 Young Company Driving Social Change - United Nations Social Innovation Summit

Top 3 Student-Founded Companies in the World - New York Stock Exchange

How it All Started

Melissa Lee (she/her) discovered her love for the environment at a young age, and was travelling before she could walk. No matter where she was, she always found a sense of comfort with nature and discovering new cultures outside of her own.

At the age of 11, Melissa completed her first open-water dive off of a remote island in Malaysia, (where her family is from) which empowered her passion for our oceans and environment. She realized that if you can provide someone with the opportunity to connect with nature, you can unlock a passion within them for protecting it too.

Since then, she knew that she wanted to dedicate her future to help protect our environment and vulnerable communities who bear the brunt of climate change. Fast forward to 2009, The GREEN Program was created by a few Rutgers University students who had a knack for adventure, and a mission to empower the future generation of sustainability leaders around the world. Today, the TGP team continues to expand and share our knowledge, passion, and experience with nearly 4,000 students and professionals globally. We are advocates for climate justice and exploring the intersections of pressing challenges that both people and planet face today.

diving website melissa 2
logo icon

The GREEN Program Team

MelissaLee

Melissa Lee

Founder, CEO

PXL 20221226 122308506.PORTRAIT copy scaled e1695246752135

Sumie Song, Ph.D.

Director of Strategic Partnerships

Screen Shot 2023 08 23 at 1.23.54 PM

Andrea Smith

Partnership Success Manager, University Relations

Screenshot 2023 12 05 at 3.12.18 PM

Briar Bones

Community Engagement & Administrative Coordinator

ckdncdhmx01h3ppi53puqo7si download.53.0.177.177.full

Dr. Sagar Sharma

Professor, Kathmandu University

Briar Bones TGP

Matthew Villante

TGP Guide – Iceland

20210323 100658 scaled e1642639452421

Jillian Verbeurgt

TGP Guide – Iceland

75472743 10162611258940296 1888795886566244352 n

Eyrún Gyda Gunnlaugsdottir

TGP Guide – Iceland

cisc2votx001mq6gzvb3s8z80 bjorghaus 1.0.0.190.190.full

Björg Árnadóttir

Iceland Operations

cisc2z5pn002aq6gzgcf5udw1 siggihaus.0.0.190.190.full

Sigurður Bjarni Sveinsson

TGP Expeditions

cisc31pos0038q6gzowjszy3m addihaus.0.0.190.190.full

Arnar Gauti Markússon

Iceland Operations

cisc3n83d005wq6gz6bg8ywa7 12186688 10153608822090170 6936317003600852227 o.0.0.1276.1276.full

Bjarni Guðmundsson

TGP Guide – Iceland

Jacob Kaminski 1 1 scaled e1642639269989

Jacob Kaminski

Iceland School of Energy Project Manager

cisc3av610045q6gz6gbjdi6d 13908999 1322864951059397 476890008838627465 o.346.0.1356.1356.full

Helga Lucie Andrée Káradóttir

Iceland Guide

cjlci559z002rh4i5kblid2yz screen shot 2018 08 27 at 12 31 59 pm.0.30.441.441.full

Fernando Chara

TGP Guide – Peru

cisc5m6fu0037pwgz2wxxicd1 maria.0.39.166.166.full

María Sigríður Guðjónsdóttir

Iceland Professor

cit3jx3ge000u7ci5iahw32l1 1a712e8.168.35.145.145.full

Einar Jón Ásbjörnsson

Iceland Professor & Education Lead

cisc5d2e3001opwgzacu3oqj8 august.0.25.201.201.full

Ágúst Valfells

Department Head, School Of Science & Engineering, Reykjavik University

cit3jo3pt000i7ii5d82chbmv 14324140 10154599171639575 1579973859892310083 o.429.166.662.662.full

Oscar R. Ortega

Peru Professor & Education Lead

cisc40lp8009qq6gzpvgn2stg 1622258 10204669899887206 1615465698046410189 n.0.0.320.320.full

Magaly Porroa

Peru Guide

quote marks green

95% of TGP students experience a sustainability-related shift with an increase in awareness and consciousness of personal impacts, personal exchange, and expertise in sustainability issues.

A research study conducted by Uppsala University

The GREEN Program Blog

Loading...
Skip to content