"The Story of Stuff"

This video has been circulating around the internet for quite some time, but it is especially appropriate this month; Earth Month.  

Learn about where "stuff" comes from and where it goes after we throw it out... it's a lot more complicated than it seems.

Check it out!

Online EE Courses Available This Summer and Fall

Online Environmental Education Courses offered through the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point

Environmental Education and Training Partnership (EETAP) and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point offer four online courses for students and professionals in the field of environmental education.  

Registration deadline for Summer 2010 courses is  May 1st. For registration details, including tuition rates, visit: www.uwsp.edu/natres/eetap/index.aspx

Making EE Relevant for Culturally Diverse Audiences
This course is designed to provide participants with the basic knowledge and skills needed to make EE relevant to culturally diverse audiences. Through this course you will broaden your perspective of EE to encompass interests and issues of concern to culturally diverse audiences, assess barriers to participation among these audiences, and appraise the role and significance of building relationships and partnerships with members of an audience you intend to work with in the future. As part of this course you will adapt a component of your program to make it more relevant for a culturally diverse audience of your choice. 

Leadership Development in Natural Resources: Strategic Planning and Implementation
Learn how to develop successful strategic planning and implementation models, processes and techniques. Emphasis will be placed on managing the strategic planning process to build the capacity of organizations to provide effective environmental education programs. Course participants will also have an opportunity for individual consultation time with the course instructor to discuss specific issues/questions they might have regarding strategic planning. This new course has been designed for environmental educators, natural resource professionals and graduate students who are currently involved in a strategic planning process or may become involved in one in the future.

Fundamentals of Environmental Education
Gain a foundational knowledge of environmental education and learn how to incorporate quality EE into your instruction. Participants discuss the history and goals of EE, develop an understanding of the professional roles and instructional methods of environmental educators, and interact with other educators from across the country.

Applied Environmental Education Program Evaluation
Learn to evaluate environmental education and outreach programs by designing evaluation tools such as questionnaires, observation forms, and interview and focus group guides. This course was designed for environmental educators, natural resource professionals, and graduate students who can apply the tools they develop to a specific
education program or research study.

Certification
The Fundamentals of EE and the Applied EE Program Evaluation online courses have been designed to address the competencies for professional environmental educators identified by the North American Association for Environmental Education. To find out more information about how these courses can provide the professional development needed by those seeking certification, click here.

Course Structure 
All of EETAP's online courses are semi-synchronous. Semi-synchronous refers to the course structure, as each course is offered 100% online. Students start, end and progress through the course together.  However, there are no designated times that students must be logged into the course. There are specific deadlines on assignments within each section, but students are able to work on the assignments any time before the due dates.  

To register for summer 2010 courses please contact Jessica Tomaszewski: jtomasze@uwsp.edu or 715-346-3854.

National Wildlife Federation’s Be Out There™ movement

“Sixty minutes of daily unstructured free play 

is essential to children’s physical and mental health.”
~American Academy of Pediatrics, 2008

National Wildlife Federation’s Be Out There™ movement is connecting American families to the outdoors to raise happier, healthier children with a life-long love of nature.

National Wildlife Federation has just launched an ambitious campaign to get 100,000 pledges by year-end for our innovative Be Out There™ initiative. 

By taking the Be Out There Pledge, you’ll be joining the movement to ensure all American children reap the benefits of outdoor time – simply by promising to start with your own family.

Engaging in regular outdoor play helps your children by:

• Reducing stress and anxiety
• Improving health
• Increasing performance in school

When you take the Be Out There™ Pledge, you’ll get helpful tips and fun, interactive tools to help your family get the most education and enjoyment out of the great outdoors.

Celebrate Environmental Education Week April 11-17 2010

Environmental Education Week is April 11-17 this year, and there are lots of ways to celebrate!

Calculate your carbon footprint and then try to reduce your daily impact during EE week and beyond! There is also a carbon footprint calculator made just for youth!

Make a nature journal to record your observations about your surroundings.

Take photographs of your local environment and the plants and animals that live there.

If you are a teacher, integrate some environmental lessons into your classes. Create posters about the importance of taking care of our local environment, do a nature craft like leaf rubbings, or research local plants and animals. Photo: Maui teachers engaged in a hands-on EE lessonIf you are a parent, take your kids outside to explore! Observe your backyard or a nearby park, create an experiment, go on a nature scavenger hunt, or sit outside and read a book about nature. There are so many ways to learn about the environment!

Visit http://www.eeweek.org/ for more ideas and ways to connect with other people

What are YOU going to do to celebrate Environmental Education Week this year?

This Week in Nature - The 2nd Week in April - Alala

What's Happening in Hawaii

During the 2nd Week in April:

Chicks of 'alalā, the native crow, (Corvus hawaiiensis) would traditionally start hatching in the wild at this time. Unfortunately, there are no longer any 'alalā living in the wild.

'Alalā are endemic to the island of Hawaii, where they were once numerous and widespread. The last remaining wild birds in recent history were found only in the Kona Forest Unit of Hakalau National Wildlife Refuge. Check out this video to see what kind of work is being done to restore habitat for native species at Hakalau:





The Hawaiian Crow has been legally protected by the state of Hawaii since 1931 and was listed as an Endangered Species in 1967. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service prepared a Recovery Plan for the species in 1989, but to date, efforts to increase the wild population through the release of captive-reared birds have been unsuccessful.  A Revised Recovery Plan was released in 2009.


The small wild population decreased dramatically, declining from 11 or 12 birds in 1992 to just two individuals as of April 2002. In 2005, the Keauhou and Maui Bird Conservation Centers housed the world’s entire ‘alalā population: 55 individuals. Currently the 'Alala population stands at 67 individuals. 52 are at the Kilauea Bird Conservation Center on Hawai'i, 14 at the Maui Bird Conservation Center, and one at the San Diego Wild Animal Park.


Visit the San Diego Zoo blog to read the story " 'Alala Takes Extraordinary Flight" about a Hawaiian Crow named Kinohi and his recent "flight" across the Pacific.

Check out this video for more about the Keauhou Bird Conservation Center and to see some adorable baby Puaiohi birds being hand-fed. Alala makes a debut in the video at about minute 2:55.





Like other crows, ‘alalā are raucous, gregarious and vocal; young, captive-raised birds often engage in tug-of-war with sticks. Like many corvids, ‘alalā are long-lived and have a life span of 20 or more years. The species’ diet primarily consists of native and introduced fruits, invertebrates, and eggs and nestlings of other forest birds, as well as nectar, flowers and carrion.
 
A Hawaiian proverb identifies the 'alalā as "a loud-voiced bird," and its name imitates its call. Used as a verb, "'alalā" means to bawl, cry, caw, or scream. All this implies no lack of respect, however. 'Alalā served as 'aumākua of many families on the island of Hawaii.

Click here to hear the call of the 'alala.


To learn more about 'Alalā, visit the Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy 'Alalā fact sheet here. Also, see the US Fish and Wildlife Service's webpage about the Hawaiian Crow here.

*The above information was gathered from: the Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy, the Audubon Watchlist and "Hawaii: A Calendar of Natural Events," published by Bishop Museum and Kamehameha Schools in 1989. The above image is also from "Hawaii: A Calendar of Natural Events." 

The videos in the post were found on YouTube. The second video was posted as part of the Huaka'i Aina Hooilina series posted by Kamehameha Schools. 

Attention Full-time Teachers- Travel to the Galapagos Islands with the Toyota International Teacher Program!

Toyota International Teacher Program

The Toyota International Teacher Program, administered by the Institute of International Education, is offering U.S. secondary school educators a unique opportunity to travel to the Galapagos Islands from November 20 through December 4, 2010.

The program aims to advance environmental stewardship and global connectedness in U.S. schools and communities through creative, interdisciplinary, and solution-based teaching methods.

Full-time grade 6-12 teachers and teacher librarians in the U.S. who have at least three years of teaching experience are encouraged to apply. While in the country, participants will meet with biologists and conservationists, explore the natural wonders of the Galapagos Islands, and work on interdisciplinary lesson plans together with educators from the Galapagos Islands.

The application deadline is May 26, 2010. Visit the program’s website to learn more about this opportunity and submit an online application. There are quite a few steps involved in the application process, so if you are interested, check out the website as soon as possible!

Visit www.toyota4education.com for more details.

This Week in Nature - The 1st Week in April - Welo/Pueo

What's Happening in Hawaii

During the 1st Week in April:

Welo ka huelo ku.

The standing tails sway.

Welo means "moving with the wind" and is also a Hawaiian name for April. This month's breezes shake the new shoots put forth by vines, making them look so lively that the Hawaiian short-eared owl, pueo, (Asio flammeus sandwichensis) is said to sometimes attack in the mistaken belief that they are the huelo (tails) of rats. Besides recording a biological phenomenon, this proverb involves a play on words between "welo" and "huelo." 

Pueo; Hawaiian Short-eared owl

Photo: C. Tucker

While rats came to Hawaii with the first settlers, pueo are true natives and are revered by some families as 'aumākua, or guardian ancestors. Perhaps because they soar high in the sky yet nest on the ground, pueo are particularly associated with a Hawaiian saying that describes 'aumākua as 'ano lani, 'ano honua - of the heavens and of the earth.

Pueo in flight

Photo(and top photo): Forest and Kim Starr

Pueo figure prominently in Hawaiian myths, including one from Maui in which the owl god Pueo-nui-akea carries wandering souls back to life.

To learn more about the Pueo, visit the Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy webpage and the Pueo fact sheet by clicking here.

Text from "Hawaii: A Calendar of Natural Events"

published by Bishop Museum and Kamehameha Schools in 1989.