The Envirothon is an annual, environmentally-themed, academic competition for high school aged students. The competition covers five core subjects- aquatic ecology, forestry, soils and land use, wildlife, and a fifth annually-changing subtopic which focuses on relevant environmental issues. The program is competitive but learning is the bottom line!
Participating teams are made up of 5 students from the same school or sponsoring organization, who work together to take written tests and to develop and present a problem solving oral presentation. The competition is open to public, private and home-schooled students.
The contest starts at the local level (Coles County is in Illinois Land Use Council 7). The overall winning team(s) from this event will be eligible to compete at the Illinois Envirothon competition that is scheduled to be held April 29-30, at the 4H Memorial Camp in Monticello, Illinois. The winning team from the state level competition will advance to compete in the National Competition, to be held July 19-25 at Mississippi State University.
The 2026 Land Use Council 7 Envirothon Competition is being held at Lake Land College in Mattoon, Illinois on Wednesday, March 11, 2026. High school teams from Champaign, Clark, Coles, Douglas, Edgar, and Vermilion counties are invited to participate in this annual event. In the past several years, over 200 students have participated in this awesome learning experience!
For more information please follow the links below, contact your local SWCD, or email info@colescountyswcd.org.
2026 Invitation to Schools in Coles County
2026 Team Registration Form For Coles County Schools
Rules and Regulations for LUC7 Competition (Updated Feb. 2020)
We recommend that teams begin studying early!
Study Guides and Resource Materials For LOCAL/LUC7 Competition