The Heritage Project is the Los Angeles Conservancy’s newest student program. This summer intensive may have only lasted three weeks, but its impact will last a lifetime for the program’s students.

Over three weeks and numerous field trips to historic places and workshops, students learned about those who discovered, embodied, and preserved California’s natural and cultural resources—gaining a deeper understanding of what heritage means and what it takes to protect it.

Students heard under-told stories from various communities and learned skills to research historic events and figures, including their personal history. They’ll walk away with a greater appreciation for local, historic, and natural spaces and why preserving them matters.

The Conservancy was thrilled to partner with organizations and community members across the county to introduce students to significant sites in Los Angeles, including (but not limited to):

• Griffith Park and The Autry Museum
• Tongva heritage sites
• Olvera Street, Chinatown, and LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes
• Museum of Latin American Art
• The L.A. River and Frogtown
• Will Rogers State Park
• The Ebell and the Wilfandel Club
• Historic Central Corridor and California African American Museum
• Catalina Island

The Heritage Project launched in 2023, and we hope to bring it back in 2024. The program is open to students in grades 9-12. To qualify, students must be registered or entering an accredited high school in L.A. County for the following fall. There is no participation cost, and students receive a $500.00 stipend for expenses.

If there’s a high schooler in your life that you think would be interested in participating, please help spread the word!