Toni Anderson

Toni Anderson is a southside Chicago native dedicated to healing and bringing equity to the spaces that support and threaten climate and culture. Ms. Anderson is an urban ecologist and spiritualist, using the rich dynamics of natural and social environments as a vehicle for providing youth with the tools they need to be agents of mindful social change and proactive, imaginal self and community engagement. She has written and implemented place-based education and youth development curricula rooted
in her camping and outdoor experiences as a child and parent who understands the roles that self-awareness and nature play in a child’s development. In 2008, after a life-changing illness, Toni left the public relations corporate world and embarked on a journey of self-discovery and self-liberation, successfully launching several urban environmental awareness programs for youths of color with a goal of establishing relevant links between urban youth development, ecology, service, and conscious consumption.