Competition General Info

The NC Envirothon is an annual competition for high school and middle school students. The program consists of one-day area competitions held in March or early April and a two-day state competition held in late April or early May. The number of teams participating at area competitions is unlimited. The top seven (7) scoring teams in each area, plus the top scoring FFA team, compete at the state competition to determine who will represent NC at the National Conservation Foundation (NCF) Envirothon, a 5-day competition held in July or August. The NCF Envirothon hosts teams from participating states and Canadian provinces who have won their state or provincial event. Teams at the NCF Envirothon compete for recognition and scholarships by demonstrating their knowledge of environmental science and natural resource management.


Station Training and Testing

At the NC Envirothon, teams are evaluated on their performance at each of the following training/testing stations: Soils/Land Use, Aquatic Ecology, Forestry, Wildlife and Current Environmental Issues. The resource materials for each testing station are developed by resource professionals with expertise in forestry, wildlife, soils, water and current environmental issues. Each team is subject to a 25 minute written test overseen by cooperating agencies and/or independent environmental professional at each station.

Oral Presentations (High School teams only)

Being able to orally communicate natural resource material is crucial in addressing environmental problems/issues, particularly in situations where collaborative efforts are required to develop practical solutions and effect change. The NC Envirothon strives to challenge and promote the development of oral communication skills in each student participant, which is why the oral presentation is included at the state competition. Teams will receive and have 65 minutes to prepare their solution to the problem on Day One (1) of the NC Envirothon competition. Oral presentations are conducted in front of a panel of 5 judges. Each team has 10 minutes to deliver their presentation to the panel of judges followed by a three-minute question and answer period. Each team receives a score that represents the average of the judge's scores and is based on the overall quality of their presentation, their preparation and presentation of a plan, and their application of relevant data to the resource issue/problem. All team members must participate equally in the presentation.

For complete information on the Oral Presentation Component of the NC Envirothon competition click here.

One of the best ways to prepare for a competition is to increase your understanding of the judging criteria. The score sheet used at the NC Envirothon is used to evaluate each team's performance in the Oral Presentation and can be used as a guide in preparing teams for the oral presentation at the state competition.

Helpful Tips for Teams and Guests

    • Food : Only 1 meal will be provided to teams during the competition. After testing is complete on Day 2 (Saturday) there will be a pizza lunch (veggie pizza will be available). If anyone has special dietary restrictions and cannot eat pizza, please plan to bring your own food.

    • Water : Everyone is asked to PLEASE bring their own water bottle to use throughout the event. Water coolers will be set up to refill your bottles. A limited number of water bottle will be available for sale if you forget your bottle.

    • Seating : No seating will be provided. Please be sure to bring your own chairs. Students are encouraged to bring a bag chair (camp chair) to carry with them from station to station.

    • Weather : This will be an outdoor event, Rain or Shine. All activities will be outdoors both days. Please be sure to dress appropriately for the weather each day. In the event of sever weather, please refer to our Hazardous Weather Plan

Site Map

Download a site map of the event