Nearly three decades ago, it was rare for an organization to center its mission on improving both the built and natural environments in urban communities. However, in 1997, JASTECH Development Services, Inc. (JASTECH) was founded to do just that. As a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit, JASTECH was established to promote climate and environmental education while fostering community development in urban areas.
In 2002, JASTECH created the Overbrook Environmental Education Center (OEEC)—a neighborhood-based environmental hub dedicated to improving public health, promoting personal enrichment, and preserving urban green spaces.
By 2006, OEEC took a major step forward by purchasing and transforming a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-designated brownfield on the 6100 block of Lancaster Avenue. What was once an abandoned auto storage facility, supermarket, and retail property was reimagined into an urban green oasis along the historic Lincoln Highway (U.S. Route 30), one of Philadelphia’s key commercial corridors.
Today, OEEC is home to one of the city’s first commercially installed passive stormwater collection systems, featuring rain gardens, a green roof, bioretention basins, flow-through planters, pervious asphalt, and swales. These systems collectively manage the first 1 to 1.5 inches of rainfall, with a total storage capacity of up to 30,000 gallons per rain event. The center also boasts indoor and outdoor classrooms, an orchard, high-tunnel greenhouses, and an urban forest, creating a dynamic space for learning and engagement.
Now a nationally recognized institution, the Overbrook Environmental Education Center stands at the forefront of climate and environmental justice, workforce development, and community resilience. As Philadelphia’s only ultra-urban environmental center, OEEC remains deeply rooted in its mission—providing accessible green infrastructure, improving climate literacy, reducing pollution, and empowering communities to build a more sustainable future where they live, work, and play.
