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How To Be An Environmental Steward Volunteer, and get educated by Caroline Brown
If you'd like to spend this fall learning about the relationship between land and water in conservation, then get involved with the Rhode Island Watershed Stewardship Program, a partnership of the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council, the Smithfield Land Trust, the Smithfield Conservation Commission, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
The program, a four-week series of eight classes, begins on September 19 and focuses on the Woonasquatucket River and its watershed. Topics covered include watershed assessment in an urban environment and land protection and stewardship. Volunteering for projects with local land trusts and watershed councils is encouraged.
The program cost of $45 includes information on land and water restoration, a water-quality testing kit, field identification guides, and lunch for Saturday field trips. Classes are held at DEM offices and Donigian Park in Providence and at the Smithfield Conservation Center in Smithfield.
Information on the class can be found at the Rhode Island Rivers Council web site or by calling (401) 714-2313.
RI Tree Council Tree StewardsIf you love trees, become a Tree Steward. Twice each year the Rhode Island Tree Council assembles a group of arboriculture experts to teach introductory classes in tree biology, identification, planting and pruning, health, urban forestry and soils. Hands-on experience is offered in such areas as planting and pruning. Classroom training includes six evening and two Saturday outdoor workshops. After the it is completed, graduates are asked to spend 30 volunteer hours doing tree-related public service in their community or for the RI Tree Council.
Volunteer activities are numerous and participants are allowed a great deal of flexibility to meet their own interests and geographic requirements. Examples include coordinating or assisting with Arbor Day plantings, assisting the Tree Council with its annual conference, working with others to prune trees along Blackstone Boulevard, or assisting in the city of Providence's ongoing effort to inventory its street trees.
Participation in the program costs $55 and includes an extensive study manual. For more information on the Tree Stewards Program, visit the RI Tree Council's website or call (401) 861-1995.
Roger Williams Park Zoo DocentsRoger Williams Park Zoo gives zoo lovers the opportunity to be docents. Zoo docents are volunteer educators who are committed to teaching adults and children about wildlife and helping them appreciate nature. Docents participate in a variety of activities at Roger Williams Park Zoo, such as interpreting zoo exhibits for visitors, leading group tours, presenting classroom programs, and assisting at special events. Zoo docent training is very thorough. After a personal interview and background check, a thirteen week training class is required. The class is offered every January. Successful graduates of the class must then complete 72 hours of volunteer training hours in the next six months. After successful completion of this six month volunteer period, the Zoo asks that you annually complete 72 volunteer hours. Prospective docents must be at least 18. For more information, including an application form, visit the Park Web site. URI Master Gardeners
Based at University of Rhode Island's (URI) Cooperative Extension Education Center in Kingston, the URI Master Gardeners program currently trains more than 130 volunteers each year. Volunteers receive a rigorous 16-week classroom course in horticulture, with an emphasis is on educating the public about sustainable landscaping and environmental protection in the home landscape. Two-and-a-half hour classes meet one evening per week beginning in January; several Saturday sessions provide hands-on instruction. Graduates of the program's classroom portion must complete at least 50 volunteer hours to become a full-fledged Master Gardener. Then they must annually volunteer at least 20 hours. Master Gardener volunteer opportunities focus both on public education and service. Many types of volunteer opportunities are available, including one-time opportunities, special events, and ongoing community service projects. Examples include the Master Gardener hotline, the East Farm Spring Open House, a public outreach and garden restoration project at Smith's Castle in Wickford, and a weekly horticultural therapy program for seniors at the Hattie Ide Chafee Home in East Providence. The program's $250 fee includes a training manual that was recently customized for the state of Rhode Island. More information about the URI Master Gardeners Program is online. Here you'll also find an online application for the 2007 program. URI Master Composter/Recycler
Modeled after the successful URI Master Gardeners program, the URI Master Composter/Recycler program aims to help local residents become experts and composting and recycling. Sponsored by URI and the Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation (RIRRC), the six-week Master Composter/Recycler program was launched in 2005. The program consists of six evening classroom sessions and two hands-on Saturday meetings. Topics discussed include the economic benefits of composting and recycling, how to compost correctly, and the science of composting. A course fee of $50 covers classroom materials. The Master Composter/Recycler program includes a volunteer commitment of 30 hours spent educating the public about composting and recycling practices. Program organizers provide a variety of volunteer opportunities and are very flexible in helping participants develop their own opportunities and programs. For more information about URI Master Composters/Recyclers program, email Tara Germond at the URI Cooperative Extension Center. URI Water Quality Monitors
Do you have a beloved fishing hole or favorite swimming spot? If you're concerned about its water quality, the University of Rhode Island's (URI) Watershed Watch program could use your help in water quality monitoring.
Watershed Watch is based on the tenet that the water quality of a body of water reflects the health of its watershed and the activities in its upstream waters and surrounding lands. The program fosters cooperation between local communities, watershed groups, and residents to manage and improve the water quality within a watershed.
Watershed Watch trains volunteers to become "citizen scientists" who measure water quality on a long-term basis. Each spring, volunteers are given an evening of classroom learning and an afternoon of hands-on training. They receive a water quality monitoring kit and must collect and test samples from their chosen body of water every two weeks from May through October.
There is no cost to volunteer participants. However, sponsoring organizations such as lake or watershed associations that want a site to be monitored pay between $300 and $600 for each site to cover the cost of testing materials.
A long list of Rhode Island lakes, rivers, streams and ponds that need volunteers is available. To become involved in next years's program or to learn more about URI Watershed Watch, visit their Web site or email Linda Green.
Let us hear from you!
Do you know of other volunteer programs that we missed? Want to comment on this story? Send us an email.