Reviewed by: Pat Byington
2 local environmental nonprofits team up after Birmingham-Southern College closure
Reading time: 3 minutes
Today, the Alabama Environmental Council (AEC)—Alabama’s oldest conservation nonprofit—announced that it would become the new fiscal sponsor of the Southern Environmental Center (SEC), an environmental education and conservation program formerly located at Birmingham-Southern College (BSC).
Read on to learn about this exciting partnership and what’s next for both organizations.
A new home for the Southern Environmental Center
Founded in the late 1980s as the “Birmingham Southern Conservancy,” the Southern Environmental Center (SEC) is an environmental education and conservation nonprofit dedicated to educating people of all ages how they can protect—and improve—the environment.
The SEC’s former home at Birmingham-Southern College was the largest educational facility of its kind in the state, with four unique campus facilities including a three-story Interactive Museum and the Hugh Kaul Ecoscape—a four-acre living lab featuring lush pollinator and sensory gardens that rely on natural irrigation.
In fact, the SEC’s EcoScape program has been nationally recognized as a model for urban revitalization; dozens of EcoScapes have been built around Birmingham, ranging from small one-acre gardens to a section of the 500+ acre Turkey Creek Nature Preserve.
After the closing of Birmingham-Southern College in May 2024, Roald Hazelhoff—director of the SEC—met with the AEC to discuss future plans for the center and its new environmental education program—the Birmingham Urban Watershed STEMM Initiative (BUWSI).
“I am extremely grateful to AEC for agreeing to house our centers’ community programs. While the closing of BSC represents an enormous loss to the community, this merger will allow our STEMM programs for Birmingham City Schools to move forward to continue, and in fact, expand.”
Roald Hazelhoff, Education Director and Program Manager, AEC
Fun fact: It only makes sense for the two organizations to team up, as the AEC helped start the SEC back in the late 1980s!
Exciting changes and new staff for the Alabama Environmental Council
The AEC has announced two exciting additions to its staff to continue the SEC’s mission.
- Roald Hazelhoff will be joining the AEC as Education Director and Program Manager. Roald brings over thirty years’ of experience as Executive Director of the SEC, where he built support and awareness to model green initiatives as a remarkable example of conservation and education.
- Sarah Randolph will be joining the AEC as Program Coordinator. Sarah has a diverse background in the nonprofit and private sectors, and will be focused on AEC’s existing initiatives as well as assisting Roald with educational programming from the SEC and BUWSI.
“I am beyond excited for this new partnership, programming, and (finally)—staff! I am confident this will provide sustainable growth for our organization, needed educational resources for our kids, while building more environmentally healthy and resilient communities in Alabama.”
Kate Cosnahan, President, AEC
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