The presentation describes the inherent complexity of contemporary environmental education (EE) programs, especially those with multiple audiences, often with seemingly divergent approaches to the work. We emphasize four key aspects of environmental educators’ experience that we have found critical to the long-term success of EE efforts. Evaluation data from four national-level EE initiatives is presented to discuss i) educators’ emotional experiences, ii) the competing perspectives they hold about EE, iii) the role of a community of practice to foster collaborations, and iv) the need for a culturally responsive evaluation. We highlight the value of explicitly surfacing these aspects in environmental program evaluations for an authentic understanding of EE programs’ outcomes.#2014Conference #2014 Conference #MultiethnicIssuesinEvaluation #EnvironmentalProgramEvaluation #DiversityandInclusion