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Texas Conservation Corps Battles Poison Ivy at Lake Brownwood

Article appears on Texas Conservation Corps’ Blog. Published July 29, 2014.

Lake Brownwood State Park is a place where visitors can rent cabins or pitch a tent for a night and enjoy swimming, boating, hiking, and much more. Red Crew spent 11 days there for a fuel reduction project in late April. Basically, this meant we used chainsaws, loppers, and brushcutters to cut away the woody understory approximately 30 feet around 18 of the cabins they have available. After cutting away the plants and pulling down green briar from the trees, we made sure to spray it all with herbicide so the plants wouldn’t grow back and the cabins would be protected from potential wildfires. These cabins were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps, so we want to make sure they stay protected!

While staying at Lake Brownwood, Red Crew had full access to the group rec hall, where we were able to cook all our meals and bond over many board games every night. Tensions were running high as we all competed to be the last man standing in Werewolf or Zombies. If you haven’t heard of either of these games, I highly recommend you try it out soon! But beware, you will probably be betrayed by your friends as they kill your character. Good thing it’s just a game, right?

The crew didn’t leave this project without a few real battle scars, though. We encountered a villain we know all too well, and sometimes, no matter what you do, you can’t win. This evil green plant sneaks up on you and causes you pain and endless itching…and in some cases a trip to Urgent Care. That’s right, folks, poison ivy. This enemy of ours won many battles during the 11 days of this project, however; we came out victorious and eventually the itching went away.

All in all, between the board games, the amazing food, swimming in the lake, and completing all the work we were able to complete, this project was one we won’t forget.

Down The Path of Conservation: Western Colorado Conservation Corpsmember Returns as Crew Leader

Article, written by Crew Leader Chi Yun (Jenny) Takaki, appears in WCCC thePULSE Blog. Published June 24, 2014.

In the spring of 2011, I became employed with the Western Colorado Conservation Corps. Beginning as a crew member, I was introduced to many new places, concepts, skills and individuals and I couldn’t be more excited for a new adventure.

There was so much training and experiences that I was privileged to have CPR/First Aid training, Crew Leader for Trail Construction and Maintenance training and certification through the ISO of VOC, Wildland Firefighting training and certificates (S-130, S-190), a Recreational Technician Internship with the Grand Junction BLM office and eventually was specially picked by the BLM as a crew leader for a project maintaining the trails of the Tabeguache Trail, Lunch Loop system; not to forget all the education awards I was able to save through Americorps.

A vast amount of opportunities opened up and I was overwhelmed with doors to open. So at the end of the fall of that year I decided to go traveling and take me skills with me. I was inspired by the beauty of Western Colorado to see more of the country since I pretty much grew up in Grand Junction, CO.

My destination was the Northwest coast. I set my sights on a cute little WWOOFing farm off the coast of Oregon in a rural town. Since the farm was only 4 miles from the ocean, we had such a lovely journey filled with a diversity of land formations and climates as we drove down the loneliest highway. I was able to use my trade skills I learned through the WCCC at the farm like fuels mitigation and thinning of the forest and taking care of the garden. I also picked up a few more skills since I’ve never herded animals or picked wild fruit before. I met so many wonderfully kind people and made good friendships along the way.

After another brief trip to Colorado for my mom’s graduation and back to Oregon I decided to find a new destination, and through mutual friends I found a place in the Redwoods of Northern California to help with winter prep, limb removal, trail building and gardening/weeding. Eventually I felt home sick and returned to Colorado once again, completed a Yoga Teacher training and enjoyed the trails of the ever so beautiful Western Colorado.

Glad to be home, I felt like I had made many fun and daring choices after my time spent at the WCCC. Being part of such a conscience community focused on striving to help the environment and individual growth I gained so much inspiration to pursue natural synchronicity on my own. But once I felt like I lost my direction and somehow managed to end up at a thrift store, the concept of recycling was the only thing conservative that I was involved with. I was ready for another change and realized that I would have never progressed as far as I did if it wasn’t for the Western Colorado Conservation Corps.

My first time there I grew as a confident individual, team player, environmental enthusiast, and curious creature ready to learn and grow more. Being surrounded by people I wouldn’t normally surround myself with was great for challenging my social skills and work compatibility/flexibility. With so many different kinds of projects in so many great places I was exposed to a better view of the world and how it naturally manages itself and what we can do to make a better impact. But most of all, working at the WCCC gave me faith that I was able to do anything if I put my mind to it. I always tending to be more introverted and apathetic, yet after working there I felt like I discovered a passion within me. The desire to always better myself, to never give up, and fight until the end. No great change can occur if people aren’t willing to sacrifice something to attain a great gain and I felt that the WCCC sacrificed a lot for me to grow and I am forever grateful to them for that.

That’s why this year, 2014 I decided to apply again as a crew leader to help find more personal guidance as I help others find a path that suits their needs. My crew leaders and office staff always saw the light in me even when I didn’t and it was what I needed to mature. I believe once you’ve experienced something its easier to help others find a similar experience. In my case, I hope to offer the youth and young adults of the future to pursue their dreams and find the natural bliss of their true nature. At the corps, I learned more of who I was, and who I am. And I’m happy to say, I’m still learning.

Montana Conservation Corps Spruces up Spruce Park Cabin

Article, written by Jalmer Johnson, appears on MCC KCrew Blog. Published July 14, 2014.

As this year marks the 50th anniversary of the passing of the Wilderness Act it seems appropriate to reflect not only upon what wilderness itself means, but also the actions we have taken to protect the wilderness over the past half century. Our crew recently spent several weeks at Spruce Park Cabin in the Great Bear Wilderness. The building is part of a network of cabins utilized by rangers as waypoints as they patrol the woods. All of these cabins are more than half a century in age, and many are currently being authorized as historic buildings.

Spruce Park cabin is among the newest of the cabins, however, due to erosion along the cliff side that overlooks the Middle Fork of the Flathead River, the cabin will soon collapse into the river. To save the cabin the Forest Service has begun a lengthy project to move the cabin several hundred feet away from the river, and our crew was lucky enough to assist in the preparations to move, and save the cabin later in the summer.

Due to the various restrictions that come with working in a Wilderness Area (mainly the ban on anything motorized, but also the remoteness) we became very aware of the difficulties, and, at the same time, the pleasures of working exclusively with tools powered by ourselves alone. We began by clearing the trail of fallen trees, using a crosscut saw in lieu of our chainsaws. Our work at the cabin itself saw us assisting with projects both with experts brought in by the Forest Service, and on our own that prepared the cabin for it’s big move later in the summer.

Accomplishing difficult tasks, such as cutting trees several feet thick or transporting thousand pound trees, with nothing but our hands was an empowering experience. An experience that constantly reminded me of Henry David Thoreau’s famous observation from Walden: “Our life is frittered away by detail… simplify, simplify.” This, in my opinion, is both the beauty, and the importance, of the wilderness today. Our work at the cabin allowed us to take time and admire the awesome power of the river below us, or to stop and observe the fragility of life at the finding of a dead bird.

Our work at the cabin also helped connect us with the past. We were reminded of the work the early rangers put in to create our wilderness infrastructure in National Forests, and National Parks. More than that we were keenly aware of the difficulties, and satisfaction felt by all who had worked with only their hands, bereft of the power provided by modern technology.

Such an intimate connection with the land around me, and the work in front of me, is what I will remember most about my time at Spruce Park Cabin, and is not an experience I will soon forget.

Corps Responding to Wildfires, Floods, and More

Article, written by CNCS Staff, appears on the National Service Tumblr. Published July 25, 2014.

Disaster Services Unit update

Washington Wildfires

69 AmeriCorps members and staff from Washington Conservation Corps have responded to destructive wildfires in Washington state, serving more than 6,800 hours so far. Disasters include the Mills Canyon Fire in Entiat, the Carlton Fire Complex in Winthrop, and the Chiwaukum Creek Fire in Leavenworth.

We’re collaborating with the Washington State Department of Natural Resources, the state agency tasked with wildfire response and management. AmeriCorps members are supporting firefighting camp operations including supply management, distribution of firefighting resources, inventory control, order processing, food distribution, and camp upkeep.

Also, Senior Corps RSVP volunteers from Chelan-Douglas Community Action Council and AmeriCorps VISTA members are assisting the Red Cross with shelter operations in Wenatchee, Chelan, and Brewster.

AmeriCorps St. Louis Responds to Clarksville Flooding

On July 2, a 14-member AmeriCorps St. Louis Emergency Response Team answered the call to help the area that sits about 75 miles north of its home base, performing flood protection work in and around Clarksville’s historic district, businesses, and homes. This marked the third time the Emergency Response Team has provided services to the town in 15 months. The latest reports from earlier this week found that AmeriCorps St. Louis members had served more than 1,072 hours, registered 268 volunteers, leveraged another 2,143 volunteers, and supervised 382 volunteers.

Floods in the north: A community comes together

AmeriCorps members with Conservation Corps Minnesota and Iowa are responding to flooding in Minnesota:

“We are the community. We serve the people who need help the most, wherever it may be. We do what needs to be done and we don’t stop working until it is done.”

Read more at the Conservation Corps website.

Greening Youth Foundation’s Urban Conservation Training Institute Hopes To Be A Game Changer for Atlanta’s Youth

Article, written by Nick Chiles, appears in the Atlantic Blackstar. Published July 25, 2014.

ATLANTA — As soon as Dominique Robinson set foot in the garden earlier this week with the rest of her training crew, vivid childhood memories came rushing back to her from the hot summers she spent toiling away on her grandmother’s farm and garden in North Carolina.

Robinson wasn’t even aware of it at the time, but those long-ago summers may have been prepping her for an environmental career.

Now Robinson, 28, is part of the first class of the Greening Youth Foundation’s Urban Conservation Training Institute. The creation of the institute may be a game-changer for youth in neighborhoods like Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward and the West Side, introducing them to new careers and changing the way they look at the world.

Sitting in a classroom in the historic West End for the next six weeks, Robinson will be absorbing reams of information on key concepts such as conservation, maintenance, urban farming, construction—even how to extinguish forest fires.

After the 14 young people in the first class finish the training in early September, the class will be divided according to their home communities. The Old Fourth Ward crew will experience the thrill of restoring buildings at a key American landmark—the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Site in Atlanta.

Working with the National Trust for Historic Preservation on a project funded by the National Park Service, the group will painstakingly restore the “shotgun homes” directly across the street from King’s birth home under the guidance of a historic preservation expert, returning them to the exact state they were in when King was alive.

The West Side crew, composed of recruits from the English Avenue and Vine City communities, will simultaneously work on two park projects. The first project entails the design and construction of the Lindsay Street Park, which will be built at the only site in Atlanta where a tributary of Proctor Creek briefly emerges from underground before returning to the Chattahoochee River. The second project will be the expansion of the Vine City Park to accommodate more residents and increase available amenities.

If all goes according to plan, Robinson could soon find herself enjoying the kind of environmental career she never envisioned on grandma’s farm.

“I didn’t know anything about careers in the environment,” said Robinson, who will be a crew leader on the King Center restoration project. “But on the first day of the class, as soon as the teacher started telling us about it, I knew I would love it.”

Opening the eyes of young people like Robinson has long been one of the primary goals of the Greening Youth Foundation, ever since founder and CEO Angelou Ezeilo created an environmental education curriculum that was taught in Georgia schools. But as the organization has grown, GYF has forged key partnerships with companies and government agencies such as the National Park Service, USDA Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the EPA that actually have paying jobs to offer after the young people go through GYF training.

Since its founding almost a decade ago, the nonprofit has trained and sent hundreds of minority youth across the United States to manage and preserve public lands and encourage environmental activism. The Grand Canyon and the Everglades National Historic Park are among the iconic federal sites where GYF crews have worked.

GYF created the training institute to prepare the young people who are part of the Atlanta Youth Corps, which GYF formed earlier this year in partnership with Atlanta City Councilman Kwanza Hall. The Atlanta Youth Corps is the city’s answer to the challenge issued in February by U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, who stood before Washington, D.C.’s Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial and announced the formation of a new Civilian Conservation Corps to lure thousands of young people across the country into conservation work.

“The Urban Conservation Training Institute is the perfect venue to train our Atlanta Youth Corps members in 21st century skills,” said GYF Founder and CEO Ezeilo. “As the Old Fourth Ward and West Side crews started their six-week training program this week, I had to fight back tears as I sat and watched each member go around the room and share their career goals, which were all attainable with a little guidance. It is public-private partnerships that make this vision a reality.”

In addition to the National Park Service and Councilman Hall, GYF’s partners include The Conservation Fund, Park Pride, West Atlanta Watershed Alliance, The UPS Foundation, Operation P.E.A.C.E, and Wingate Companies.

“I can’t wait to tell my grandmother about this program,” Robinson said. “I know she’ll be excited for me.”

[Video] Video Montage of Kupu Team “Oahu D” Working at Luluku

Meet New York Restoration Project’s Volunteer Coordinator Danica Doroski

Article, written by Sadia Choudhury, appears on the New York Restoration Project Blog. Published July 14, 2014.

In between the arduous work of removing invasive vines from choking tall trees in Highbridge Park and planting seeds with local elementary school students at the Riley Levin Children’s Garden, Danica Doroski took a quick breather. Sitting in her favorite spot in Sherman Creek Park, a stone bench bordering an open expanse of foliage overlooking the park and city buildings, Danica described the view as a perfect illustration of her work: caring for beautiful, vital green space in the midst of a bustling, concrete city.

As NYRP’s Volunteer Coordinator, Danica’s volunteer groups include New Yorkers from all over the city, ranging from young elementary school children to retirees—including locals who remember the Park as an illegal dumping ground two decades ago, before NYRP’s intervention. With several volunteer seasons under her belt, she explained “It’s been so amazing to watch people from different backgrounds, with different experiences interact not only with nature, but each other. We’re really building a network of diverse New Yorkers who have a common interest in caring for green space.”

With a background in ecology, Danica explained, “I love being able to share the science of what we’re doing here and help others become better stewards of green space.” At the helm of growing NYRP’s volunteer program in Northern Manhattan, Danica describes the commitment of volunteers as “…a vital resource to NYRP—they help us fulfill our goals to keep the parks vibrant and healthy. We couldn’t do all of this work without them.

Youth Power with Rocky Mountain Youth Corps (Taos)

Article, written by Kevin Holsapple, appears on the blog Prime Passages. Published July 17, 2014.

Young people can be pretty inspiring and energizing to be around when they are heading in the right direction and are gaining momentum. Organizations and programs that enable and empower young people are a really valuable thing and Rocky Mountain Youth Corps is one of those. I first encountered RMYC when my oldest son was hired for a position there a few years ago working on a forest crew in the Carson National Forest. His interest in college had stalled and he was searching for something to give him traction in the move from dependence to independence as a young adult. He came away from the experience with improved skills for navigating the world of work and increased confidence that he was up to the task of doing valuable work and making a positive difference. In his case, RMYC made a difference that I think will last a lifetime.

Recently I was on a hike with Dale Coker, Trails Supervisor at Bandelier National Monument and he told me that he is now several years into a beneficial relationship with RMYC to staff and manage what he calls the Bandelier Conservation Corps, or BCC for short. The BCC is a crew staffed by young people from throughout the region who work on important trails and back country maintenance tasks. Bandelier contracts with RMYC for the crew’s services and they provide Dale with a valuable resource in his work. Their presence reminded me of my son’s positive experience, so I asked Dale if I could visit with them as a way of reacquainting myself with the works of RMYC.

Dale introduced me to the BCC crew leader, Justin Cook. Justin proved to be a sharp young man with a degree in Southwest Studies and experience with implementing community development projects in Santa Fe prior to signing on to a supervisory position with RMYC. In turn, Justin introduced me to the seven members of his crew. Six are juniors and seniors in area high schools and one is a college student at New Mexico State University. The college student takes a peer leadership role within the group to assist Justin. In general, young people between the ages of 16 and 25 can apply for crew member positions.

This particular crew has a ten week duration timed with summer vacation from school. The members applied, were interviewed, and selected by Justin. They work five weekdays while camping at Bandelier and then go home for weekends. Four of the weekdays they are hard at work on the trails projects assigned by Dale, and one day they usually have some kind of training or team enrichment activity. For example, they recently rafted the Taos Box as a group. Bandelier also participates in a crew exchange activity within the park system and this group will spend some of their time working at Grand Canyon National Park. Other training activities include leadership, communications, resume building, interviewing, and confidence-building.

Crew members are paid a stipend in return for their work and they also receive credit in an educational account from Americorps. My wife and I were able to share a meal with the group and we left impressed by how outgoing and interesting these young folks turned out to be. My experience has been that it often takes some coaxing to draw out a conversation with young people, but that was not the case with this bunch. They offered up a stream of observations about their experiences so far this summer and had alot of questions about who the heck were we and why were we interested in them. Justin told me that they are involved in a variety of interactions from training with Park staff to assisting Bandelier in their fundraising that supports the BCC program and that those activities give the individuals practice and confidence in their communications.

Ro cky Mountain Youth Corps is a non-profit based in Taos, NM. Their mission is to inspire young adults to make a difference in themselves and their communities and through training and team service, to be a stepping stone to new opportunities. They are an Americorps and a CorpsNetwork affiliate and they partner with a broad variety of other programs and organizations. In addition to providing crews throughout the year similar to the BCC in five communities in the region, RMYC operates a residential energy efficiency program and community volunteer projects in northeast NM. They employ a permanent staff of 20, have about 20-30 limited term staff in a typical year (e.g. crew leaders), and they generally employ 100-150 young people per year as crew members.

RMYC is continually recruiting for year-round positions. Summer positions are open to high schoolers in the 16-25 age range while fall/winter/spring positions are open to individuals who are out of school. Information and application instructions are on their website.

Discovering the Boulder-White Clouds

Discovering the Boulder-White Clouds: A film about exploring one of America’s most pristine landscapes and inspiring the next generation of conservation leaders.

In June 2014, The Corps Network took a group of eight Corpsmembers from Civic Works – a Service and Conservation Corps based in Baltimore, MD – for a camping trip in the Boulder-White Cloud Mountains of Central Idaho.

Discovering the Boulder-White Clouds follows the Corpsmembers as they explore an untouched wilderness unlike anything they’ve ever seen before. The film focuses on the parallels between the urban environment in Baltimore and the wilderness of a place like the Boulder-White Clouds, emphasizing the value of preserving the environmental health of both settings. By exploring the pristine public lands of Idaho, the Corpsmembers, who in Baltimore grow healthy food on an urban farm and retrofit low-income homes to improve energy efficiency, gain a new perspective on the importance of conservation.

About the Boulder-White Clouds

Photo by David Rochkind

The Boulder-White Cloud Mountains are currently under consideration to become a national monument. The proposed monument would cover over 570,000 acres of mountains, lakes, rivers forests and grassland. This area is one of the largest unprotected roadless landscapes in the lower 48 states.

About Civic Works
Civic Works has engaged Baltimore residents in community and environmental improvement projects for over 20 years. Through hosting community service projects and providing job training, Civic Works empowers people to be active participants in making their neighborhoods greener, healthier and economically stronger.

About the Corpsmembers
The eight Corpsmembers who travelled to the Boulder-White Clouds participate in a number of Civic Works programs: some of them grow healthy food on an urban farm; some retrofit low-income homes to make them energy efficient; some clean and landscape empty lots to create urban green spaces; some build homes; and some renovate homes for the elderly to remove potential tripping hazards. Through these projects, the Corpsmembers gain hands-on job skills and help make Baltimore a better place to live.

About the film
Discovering the Boulder-White Clouds was filmed and edited by David Rochkind.

Film Premiere Press Release
Click here to read.

Press & Related Materials

Spotlight On: Discovering the Boulder-White Clouds
The Pew Charitable Trusts

Urban Youths Experience the White Clouds
Idaho Mountain Express

Documentary Follows Urban Youth into Boulder-White Clouds Mountains
KMVT-TV/KSVT-TV – Idaho’s First News

Being Good Environmental Stewards, No Matter Where We Live
Huffington Post – by Davon Baynes (Civic Works)

Molding Conservation Leaders
Featured on: Corporation for National & Community Service Blog