November 1, 2019 | Our very own Brenna Kelly, Corps Director of Southeast Conservation Corps, is featured in the Get Out features of the Chattanooga Times Free Press.

Within the past three issues of Get Out, we have featured a different conservation group's newly hired executive director — and all have been women. That got us wondering, are women leading the local conservation scene? Based on our tally — yes.

October 30, 2019 | Fredonia, Ariz., — The Kaibab National Forest and a Hopi Ancestral Lands Crew, along with personnel from Grand Canyon Trust and the Springs Stewardship Institute are working to protect riparian habitat and natural waters on the North Kaibab Ranger District (NKRD) of the Kaibab National Forest.

October 16, 2019 | A local stream cleanup left Flagstaff looking a little cleaner. On Thursday, members of the community put on gloves and grabbed trash bags to collect trash littered along the banks of Sinclair Wash.

October 13, 2019 | The Russian olive – which can grow 35 feet tall – is native to East Asia and Russia and typically overtakes native species, including willows and cottonwoods. It has a vast underground root system, and its stumps can send out shoots if not treated with pesticide. The tree originally was introduced as early as the 1960s as an ornamental plant and also was used as a windbreak.

MSI has spearheaded Colorado-based efforts to eradicate the plant throughout the Animas River Valley since 2016, often partnering with the Southwest Conservation Corps. In 2017, MSI was awarded a grant from the Colorado Parks and Wildlife for a three-year removal project. The organization estimates it has cleared 290 acres of Russian olives in the Animas River watershed and removed about 4,000 stems.

October 9, 2019 | There are moments on Utah’s San Juan River when conversations fall silent, the wind calms, and the only sound you can hear is the drip of water off the oars. And in mellow stretches when even rowing is unnecessary, the rafts can be left to twirl beneath towering limestone walls. Time stretches out and seems to come unwound until the piercing call of a peregrine falcon breaks through the silence.

October 3, 2019 | CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Today Duke Energy announced $807,000 in grant funding from the Duke Energy Foundation to 22 organizations to strengthen the health of our environment and increase access to nature in North Carolina.

“North Carolina’s natural resources are a state treasure, and by collaborating with our trusted nonprofit partners we can accomplish more to protect and preserve species, habitats and water sources,” said Stephen De May, NC president, Duke Energy. “We’re working to ensure that future generations enjoy and benefit from all that North Carolina’s natural wonders have to offer.”

September 26, 2019 | National Public Lands Day is being recognized Saturday at Little Beaver State Park, with stewardship projects and a celebration of the Land and Water Conservation Fund. 

The event is being hosted by Stewards Individual Placement Program and West Virginia Rivers Coalition. 

"West Virginia’s outstanding public lands are vital to the state; providing green spaces and acting as important economic drivers," the release said. "West Virginia would not have these special places without the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which uses revenue generated from federal oil and gas leases to purchase and maintain public lands."

September 25, 2019 | Navy Veteran Tyler Welch used to patrol the streets of Iraq as a corpsman. Now, he’s fighting a new battle against fires.

Welch is part of the Veterans Fire Corps crewmember program, run through the Southeast Conservation Corps. SECC is an AmeriCorps-affiliated non profit that engages recent-era Veterans, partnering with the U.S. Forest Service Southeast Region. SECC started the Veterans Fire Corps program in 2018. The 10-month intensive training program engages recent-era military Veterans up to age 35 in fuels reduction, fuels management, and wildland firefighting.

September 25, 2019 | Hanging Rock State Park was brilliantly built in the 1930s by the original CCCs (Civilian Conservation Corps). The park was lucky enough to have the opportunity to house a new edition of the CCCs in this five-person CCNC crew with a crew leader this month. The crew set up their camping tents just yards away from the original CCC Camp 3422 and reported for duty. Their first assignment was to hike Ruben Mountain trail and de-berm, which is to remove the hump of soil that collects at the edge of the trail and prevents water from sheeting off properly.

September 25, 2019 | The construction of Baileys Trail will help with the ecotourism industry in Athens and Southeast Ohio.

Southeast Ohio hosts thousands of visitors each year all coming in for ecotourism, which is a form of tourism that recreates in and fosters healthy ecosystems, equitable community development and fair financial gains. Activities include hiking, mountain biking, kayaking and appreciating nature.