The Gulf South region faces a critical environmental challenge due to plastic pollution and localized litter accumulation, which contributes directly to the formation of the manmade Gulf Garbage Patch. To address this crisis, the two-year "Life of Litter" program, supported by a Gulf Research Program Place Based Learning grant, is building environmental stewardship capacity among teachers and students in the East Baton Rouge Parish (EBRP) school system. The initiative centers on using science and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to solve their local campus litter problems. Students use Esri ArcGIS applications, working in the ArcGIS Online platform, primarily Survey123 for data collection and StoryMaps for visualization, to conduct scientific investigations of litter on their own school grounds. These local studies are framed within the larger context of the Baton Rouge area and the Mississippi River watershed. By leveraging GIS to analyze, interpret and explain their data-driven findings to school campuses and district leaders, students are empowered to propose and implement evidence-based solutions, transitioning them from observers to active environmental problem-solvers and citizen scientists.