Stewardship Prepares for 2025 Educational Outreach

While I hesitate to say that there is ever a “slow “period for Avalonia stewardship, with the completion of the annual monitoring of our preserves and conservation easements, we have been able to catch our breath, although with the recent frigid weather this has been something of a cold inhale!  It has, however, allowed for a shift in focus toward another important element of our mission, communicating the value of [the] irreplaceable resources that we steward.

This emphasis on stewardship outreach and education happens to align nicely with the onset of the winter academic calendar.  For the third year running we are preparing to participate in Yale’s School of the Environment Strategies in Land Conservation course, with our portion focusing on The Perpetual Obligation: Fee Land and Conservation Easement Stewardship. Topics of discussion will include Baselines and Annual Monitoring, Easement v. Fee-Land Stewardship, Stewardship Endowments, Managing for Multiple Values, and Engaging Volunteers/Stewardship Staff.  In the past, this has been a wonderful experience, and students have proven to be thoughtful with insightful questions and helpful feedback. Expectations are high once again this year!

In the realm of student opportunity and career development is the announcement of our SNEC funded Land Stewardship Intern positions.  We are incredibly excited to be able to offer two internships this year, funded by the Southeastern New England Educational and Charitable Foundation (SNEC).  The hope is that much like last year, we can help the interns craft a formative educational experience and that Avalonia will see an increase in stewardship capacity.

For regional land conservation leaders, volunteers, staff and other practitioners, there are a number of annual conferences to choose from this coming spring.  The  Connecticut Land Conservation Council’s March 22 conference in Middletown being foremost among them. Together with other representatives from the Alliance for the Mystic River Watershed (AMRW), we will participate in a conference workshop (Partnering with Indigenous Communities to Care for Land and Water) to discuss different approaches to partnership-learning and stewardship.  Among the topics of discussion will likely be our Pike Marshall Forest Stewardship Plan partnership.

Of course, we remain active in the field and, because we anticipate a very full spring schedule, this is also the time to plan out these stewardship activities. Stay tuned and keep an eye on our calendar over the next several weeks!