First Impressions Toastmasters - Hamilton’s Post

This summer, I studied with Wild Rockies Field Institute on the Conservation Across Boundaries Course. We spent 42 days in the field, backpacking and kayaking while learning about community-based conservation, traditional indigenous knowledge, and other topics. This was such an incredible opportunity to get out of the classroom and into the field. I loved experiencing the topics we were reading about and discussing right after class. Here is the article I wrote for the WRFI blog: https://shorturl.at/LpbZ5

Bull's Run Nature Sanctuary & Arboretum is seeking Board Members! Bull’s Run Nature Sanctuary and Arboretum is a 501-C3 located in Middletown, Ohio. Our mission is dedicated to preserving the natural area of Bull’s Run, and striving to develop the park as an environmental facility and educational resource for people of all ages. We are a primarily volunteer based organization with 1 part-time Naturalist. Our Board of Directors is also volunteer based. We are currently seeking to expand our Board of Directors with members at large and a Treasurer. HISTORY Bull’s Run Nature Sanctuary and Arboretum is located in the headwaters of Bull’s Run Creek, the lower portion of which formed a southern border of early Middletown. The rolling terrain made the land difficult to cultivate, so farmers grazed bulls on the property in the 1800s. In 1924, the land was converted into a summer Fresh Air Camp which benefited city youth for almost 50 years. Now the site is owned by the City of Middletown and operated by a non-profit organization, Bull’s Run Arboretum, Incorporated, founded in December 1978. The trails were opened to the public in 1979. In 2006 the name of the park was changed to Bull’s Run Nature Sanctuary and Arboretum to better reflect our mission. MEMBERSHIP The membership of Bull’s Run Nature Sanctuary and Arboretum supports the park both financially through membership fees and donations and by volunteering at fundraisers, educational activities, and workdays. Without the support of our members, we could not achieve our mission! The general duties of the directors are: 1. Attend at least 10 of 12 monthly meetings per year. 2. Attend at least one event at Bull’s Run Arboretum during the year. We provide a minimum of 1 public program per month* 3. Actively participate in at least one fundraising project each year. 4. Offer suggestions on developing future programs and report feedback from past programs. 5. Participate in budget preparation. 6. Participate in voting at board meetings. Specific duties of Treasurer: 1. Oversee the accounts of the Corporation and be contact person for Protax Account Services 2. Submit a written report to the Board each month of all sums received and expected, and assets and obligations. 3. Review employee records and paystub generated by Protax Services 4. Oversee paying bills from bank account for BRNSA 5. Pick up the mail and communicates memberships and donations received to Board 5. Serve on Executive Committee So if you have a passion for the outdoors and your community, and are looking to give back through volunteering your time and knowledge, then we want YOU! Interested parties should contact Bull's Run Arboretum President Nancy Clark at brnsaa@gmail.com. Please share with others who may be interested! Learn more about Bull's Run at www.bullsrun.org

Do you know there is a difference between US national parks, national forests and designated wilderness area? Here’s an article that talks about the differences. These gems are the most valuable real estate of this country, so valuable they are priceless!

The Big Reveal! Hedges and trees, whether clipped or left loose to create more organic garden boundaries, offer fantastic habitats for birds. At this time of year it’s fascinating to see evidence of their activities over the course of the year. Not all my hedges and trees have revealed the secrets of their inner lives yet, some are evergreen and some are yet to lose their leaves, but the current tally for bird’s nests is hedges: 3, and as you might expect fences: 0. Fences are such sterile boundary treatments for the garden. If you have the choice, do opt for a more sustainable and sensitive approach to support visiting wildlife. What’s your nest count this year?

Ní neart go cur le chéile - there’s no strength without unity. Míle buíochas to Josephine ODriscoll, Don Colbert and the Fáilte Ireland Wild Atlantic Way team for organising the networking event yesterday The Maritime Hotel, and for inviting Manchan Magan along to share his experience with us. Such a well-run event, meeting with businesses from Kinsale to Kenmare, and everywhere in between. We are all passionate about what we do and where we live, and love to share this part of the Wild Atlantic Way with visitors, be they from Ireland or overseas. By finding out what other businesses in the area offer, we can promote each other too. We’re not competitors, we’re collaborators. We all call this area our home, we’re trying to make a living here, and trying to keep our communities vibrant, full of interesting places to go and things to do, people to meet and food to eat/drink. The Wild Atlantic Way Regional Tourism Development Five Year Strategy talks about “ensuring that ‘wildness’ remains at the core of the Wild Atlantic Way across all brand activity.” How wild is wild though? There is very little real wildness in Ireland anymore. Wildlife numbers have dropped dramatically, lots of land has been cleared to make way for monoculture pastures, wetlands have been drained and the hillsides are burnt off, overgrazed, or planted with monoculture conifers. Shifting baseline syndrome means that people think that what they see today is normal, but we’ve lost so much in the last fifty years or so, that it’s far from the rich, diverse Ireland of the 1960s. When did you last hear Corncrake, Curlew or Lapwing calling from their breeding grounds? Or see a Hedgehog? Where’s your nearest natural wild meadow? So, let’s all work together to make Ireland wilder, more biodiverse and a really awe-inspiring place to be for visitors and locals alike. Nature is Home after all. 💚 (Photo from Fáilte Ireland) #KeepDiscovering #WildAtlanticWay #WildAtlanticWayCork #Networking #Bantry #FáilteIreland #DiscoverIreland #CommunityFirst #IrishArtist #IrishCommunity #SmallIrishBusinesses #WildIreland #PureCork #IrishExperience #GreenSketching #GreenSketchingIreland

Reporting this article allowed me to combine two of my passions: fish and history. It's not every day you come across a story that involves the namesake of Sleeping Bear Dunes' exquisitely popular tourist road, a pre-consolidation state fish hatchery and a years-long effort to help nature reclaim a heavily altered piece of the Manistee River:

How to get your Christmas tree from Manistee National Forest

Edmonton's Official Bird I was pleasantly surprised recently, to see that the City of Edmonton is surveying for an official bird, after Calgary adopted the Black-capped chickadee two years ago, following an exhaustive online questionnaire. Canada has many national and official symbols, as does every province and territory, and if we can have an official horse species (The Cheval Canadien), birds only make sense when used on official arms and stationary. Any move to recognize Canada's ecological resources as symbols, can only help keep peoples' minds focused on the environment, overall. Another exhaustive survey hosted by the Canadian Geographic Society resulted in a national bird being chosen back in 2017, the Grey jay (also known as a Whiskey-jack or Canada jay). Over 50,000 of us participated in the two year-long project. The Grey jay is found in every province and territory, is a highly intelligent corvid, and features prominently in indigenous and pioneer folklore. When I took survival training in school, we were taught how to construct Whiskey-jack snares, as an emergency food source. Although many people refer to it as our national bird, to my knowledge it has yet to be officially accepted and entrenched into our plethora of symbols, even though put forward by the society seven years ago.  It begs the question, "why not"?  Of all the programs and views that have been, and are being forced upon the country, this is one item that is not controversial, nor expensive to implement. Why can't our sitting federal government move forward on this democratically determined symbol? We could all use a little good news, especially on a positive note.

The Complete Guide to Coronado National Forest https://lnkd.in/gYVJjuRK

Theme inspiration: Nature edition 🌳 For our second inspiration post, we're looking at how you could celebrate this year's theme of Routes - Networks - Connections while exploring nature! 🦔 Explore the countryside and natural landscapes - think about how these places have changed or the wildlife and plants that share our places with us 🐇 Think about animals routes & paths through the countryside, what signs are left behind? Local wildlife groups could organise sessions or walks. 🗺️ Create a guided tour of a park or nature reserve near you, and share your knowledge of the history, flora and fauna. 🌳 Celebrate old trees in your area as natural and cultural monuments - think about all the significant events the tree has been around for - how many monarchs, Olympics etc. You could also run tree age & identification sessions. 🦢 Plan wildlife-watching day and identify the animals, birds and plants you see from urban spaces to forests, ponds, lakes - see what you can find! 🐦Organise birdwatching sessions 🚶♀️ Organise a hiking group - connect with nature and the people around you 🌍 Explore the importance of conservation in your local area 🔍 Research local sites and buildings to find references to animals - real or mythical, and think about why this animal was chosen and how people discovered new species in the past 🌻 Think about the symbolism/meanings associated with different flowers, trees, animals - where do these ideas come from? Got a great idea? Share below in the comments! Or visit our website to find out more about our theme https://lnkd.in/eykyYc-P 📸 Arnhel De Serra