Evan Barnard

High School Graduation Year: 2016
Year First Awarded the Carson Scholarship, School: 2014, Johns Creek High School
Sponsored by: Costco Wholesale Corporation

For eight years, Evan has worked with the visually impaired community advocating for the blind and others with disabilities to experience the outdoors through braille trails and sensory gardens. Through applying for and being awarded grants, Evan designed and created a braille trail in his community. He regularly holds nature walks for visually impaired adults and children, and has created an international database of braille trails and sensory gardens. Evan has received a number of distinguished awards including the Prudential Spirit of Community Award, the National Arbor Day Foundation Education Innovation Award, and the President’s Volunteer Service Gold Award. He has worked with legislators to support programs that provide better outdoor access to those with disabilities and gave a TEDx talk as part of TEDx Global Youth Day, which resulted in him being selected as an Action for Nature International Eco-Hero. Evan attends the University of Georgia where he is a student in the Odum School of Ecology.

Like a phoenix, Evan regenerates himself from the ashes of his “predecessors” or what he has already learned and created to continue to expand and enhance his advocacy and work in the community.