The Stone Soup Leadership Institute

What The Stone Soup Leadership Institute does

The Stone Soup Leadership Institute is a 501c3 educational nonprofit founded in 1997 on Martha's Vineyard by Marianne Larned and headquartered in Salem, Massachusetts. The organization develops and distributes climate education and sustainable workforce development resources to educators, students, workforce programs, and government agencies across at least 38 countries. Its core offerings include the Stone Soup Climate Education Curriculum (100 lesson plans derived from 100 youth stories published in 'Stone Soup for a Sustainable World'), the Sustainable Career Pathways Platform, Teacher Training modules, annual Green Job Shadow Day events, Sustainability Summits, and regional Youth Leadership Initiatives (MVYLI, SHYLI, VYLI, VGYLI). The platform is standards-aligned (NGSS, UN Sustainable Development Goals), available in English and Spanish, and accessed through a free self-serve online portal, a YouTube education channel, and direct partnerships with universities, state departments of education, and national nonprofits such as YMCA of the USA.

The Institute's business model is non-commercial: curriculum, lesson plans, videos, and teacher training materials are provided free to educators worldwide, and revenue is sourced from donations, grants, and sponsorships (e.g., Hawaii DBEDT explicitly funded the Sustainable Hawaii Toolkit). Distribution relies on a hybrid mix of self-serve digital channels, university and state partnerships, workforce development organizations (PowerCorpsBOS, Bristol Community College), and recurring community events such as the annual Sustainability Summits and the newly launched Cronkite Awards for Climate Education and Blue Economy Generation initiatives. The organization is founder-led, with a small named operational team (Founding Director, Education Outreach Manager, STEM Teacher Trainer) and a Board & International Advisory Council governing its programs.

The technology layer is content-centric rather than AI-driven: an online platform hosting digital and printable curriculum, a video library on YouTube, an Innovate! Portal aggregating lesson plans and stories, and a Sustainable Career Pathways job exploration portal (sustainwdn.com). The Institute has positioned itself for international policy relevance through participation at COP28 in Dubai, partnerships with national climate leaders, and recognition including the GuideStar Platinum Seal of Transparency and a Guinness World Record for the World's Largest Book Signing.

Name

The Stone Soup Leadership Institute

Legal name

The Stone Soup Leadership Institute

Website

https://stonesoupleadership.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Stone Soup Leadership Institute is a 501c3 nonprofit that develops and freely distributes climate education curricula, sustainable career pathways, and teacher training to educators, students, and workforce programs across 38+ countries, funded by grants and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Climate Education Services

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (61143), Educational Support Services (611710), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Executive Leadership & C-Suite Development (EDABAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Student Government & Leadership Programs (EDALAHAA), Leadership, Debate & Model UN Camps (EDAMALAK)

Keywords

• Climate education curriculum
• Youth leadership programs
• Sustainable career pathways
• Professional development training
• Nonprofit educational services

Headquarters

HQ city

Salem

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Non-profit/Fundraising: The Stone Soup Leadership Institute operates as a 501c3 educational non-profit organization. Revenue appears to come primarily from donations, grants, and sponsorships rather than product sales. Resources are provided free to educators.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Stone Soup Leadership Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1997 that develops and distributes free climate education curriculum and sustainable career-pathway resources for educators and youth worldwide. The Institute also delivers teacher training, youth leadership initiatives, and sustainability events to inspire young people and educators to become leaders in building sustainable communities.

Product overview

The Stone Soup Leadership Institute operates as a unified educational platform centered on climate education and sustainable workforce development. The core offerings include the Stone Soup Climate Education Curriculum (featuring 100 lesson plans based on the book 'Stone Soup for a Sustainable World') and the companion book 'Stone Soup for the World' focused on diversity and SEL. These are supported by the Sustainable Career Pathways Platform, Teacher Training Program, and annual Green Job Shadow Day workshops. Regional Youth Leadership Initiatives (MVYLI, SHYLI, VYLI, VGYLI) and the Cronkite Awards for Climate Education extend the reach globally. The Institute was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Salem, MA.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Climate Education Curriculum

Quantifiable outcome

• PowerCorpsBOS participants showed 300% increase in interest in pursuing higher education after curriculum exposure
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Blue Economy GenerationminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 December 2023Co-branded initiative showcasing blue economy case studies and promoting sustainable ocean-related careers.
• Bridgewater State University (SEAM)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2023Partnered with Student Education Association of Massachusetts (SEAM) at Bridgewater State University, the state's largest teacher training institution, to premiere teacher training module during MASS STEM Week.
• PowerCorpsBOScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGreen industry workforce development partnership where the Institute conducted teacher training with PowerCorpsBOS facilitators to use the Stone Soup Climate Education Curriculum's Sustainable Career Pathways to broaden members' awareness of green economy jobs.
• YMCA of the USAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe YMCA of the USA integrated the book and curriculum in eight communities to teach students values and character building lessons, develop critical thinking skills, and civic responsibility.
• Hawaii Department of EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCreated online portal 'Sustainable Hawaii Toolkit' with Hawaii DOE to provide free resources to teachers for educating students about green jobs.
• Bristol Community CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Bristol Community College to supplement CTE Environmental Sciences program in Fall River, reviving dual enrollment and helping students graduate with clean water management certificates.
• Design Thinking HawaiicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to develop curriculum and educational tools supporting Hawaii's 100% renewable energy goal by 2045.
• Ocean ConservancyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational Beach Clean-Up collaboration joining 5,583 locations around the world for annual Ocean Conservancy cleanup events.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Earth Guardians: Earth Guardians is a youth-led climate organization that trains young people in climate leadership, advocacy, and campaigns — directly comparable to Stone Soup's Youth Leadership Initiatives (MVYLI, SHYLI, VYLI, VGYLI) and sustainability summits.
• Climate Generation: Climate Generation builds climate literacy and community leadership through educator training, youth programs, and storytelling — a near-direct peer in combining teacher training, youth climate leadership, and curriculum alignment.
• Project WET Foundation: Project WET develops water-focused, K-12 curriculum and trains educators worldwide — a strong peer in the climate/environmental education curriculum and teacher training space, though narrower in theme than Stone Soup.
• Alliance for Climate Education (ACE): ACE is a nonprofit focused exclusively on climate education and youth leadership, providing climate-related curriculum and action programs to high school students — directly comparable to Stone Soup's climate education curriculum and youth summits.
• EarthEcho International: Founded by Philippe Cousteau Jr., EarthEcho International is a nonprofit that empowers youth to take action for the environment through education, leadership programs, and digital storytelling — closely mirroring Stone Soup's youth leadership and climate education mission.
• Captain Planet Foundation: Captain Planet Foundation funds and supports hands-on environmental education for K-12 youth, with a similar focus on climate education, teacher training, and project-based learning that overlaps with Stone Soup's curriculum and youth programs.

Broad incumbents

• EarthDay.org: EarthDay.org is a large, established environmental organization running global climate education campaigns and youth programs; it overlaps with Stone Soup's climate education and youth engagement but operates at a much larger scale and broader scope.
• National Wildlife Federation (NWF) Eco-Schools USA: NWF's Eco-Schools USA program offers K-12 sustainability curriculum and school-wide climate action pathways; it is a broader incumbent with overlapping climate education content and educator training offerings.

Emerging players

• SubjectToClimate: SubjectToClimate provides free, standards-aligned K-12 climate education lesson plans and online resources — an emerging digital-first peer that competes with Stone Soup's curriculum in the same teacher audience.
• Ten Strands: Ten Strands supports California school districts in adopting K-12 climate education and curriculum; it is a smaller, regional emerging player with overlapping goals around standards-aligned climate curriculum integration.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCN_K4oNSGLV-anu6oluZLnA
• Facebookfacebook.com/stonesoupleader
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stone-soup-leadership-institute-inc-
• Instagraminstagram.com/stonesoupleadership
• Xx.com/stonesoupleader

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Stone Soup Leadership Institute