Americorps Voice Christine Smith and Maris Wilson
Spring 2019 Christine Smith
Education at Umpqua Watersheds is flourishing with new connections resulting in more programs and additional youth interactions! Maris and I enjoy working in the office together, collaborating on some projects and working individually on others. I’ve been continuing programs from previous years and expanding on them while finding ways to bring [...]
Fishing with Fremont
After learning rules, regulations, fish anatomy, fish identification, and knot tying with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Fremont Middle School students were ready to try their hand at fishing! We traveled to Cooper Creek where students worked together to practice baiting hooks and casting lines. We didn’t get any bites, but everyone had [...]
Biochar: An Ancient Solution to a Modern Global Crisis
Ken Carloni, Ph.D.
biochar /ˈbīōˌCHär/ noun: charcoal produced from plant matter and stored in the soil as a means of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. (Online Dictionary)
When the Portuguese first arrived in Amazonia, they discovered small islands of dark, highly productive soils associated with indigenous villages. Unlike other notoriously poor soils [...]
Food Webs and Tree Rings with Fullerton!
Fifth grade students at Fullerton Elementary have had the chance to do some hands on science in their classroom in addition to their Science Wednesday program.
At the beginning of November, students in Mrs. Cunningham’s and Mr. Lofton’s classes learned more about food webs. We talked about how everything in the environment is interconnected, including [...]
Science Wednesday with Fullerton Elementary
This marks week four of working with Fullerton 5th graders at Science Wednesday! Our group of 20 students have been getting hands on and learning about the environment. We have learned about the water cycle and water chemistry, discovered the difference between weather and climate, and discussed the importance of the carbon cycle. We only [...]
Getting Messy with the BGCUV Garden Club!
We have been partnering with the garden club at the Boys and Girls Club to teach lessons that connect the environment to their usual gardening activities. A few weeks ago, students learned about the different components of soil and got to see a soil layer profile. Then they used a mortar and pestle to grind [...]
…not everyone gets to PET A WHALE…
Ken Carloni, Ph.D.
Baja tour evaluation comment
As many of you know, I retired from full-time teaching at UCC in June. My plan was to continue to teach the field courses I’ve reported on in the pages of past 100 Valleys newsletters as a part-time instructor. Unfortunately, that plan has been dashed.
For a variety [...]
Twin Lakes Youth Wilderness Campout
July 27 – July 29, 2018
A summer weekend filled with fun, educational activities in the outdoors. Space is limited!
FIRE IS NOT THE ENEMY PART II:
Ken Carloni, PhD.
The 2013 Douglas Complex Fires Revisited
New science reverses conventional wisdom that old growth forests burn more severely than plantations.
Four years ago, I wrote an article for the Summer 2014 100 Valleys entitled “Fire Is Not The Enemy” analyzing the Douglas Complex fire that burned through a BLM/private industry checkerboard northwest [...]
Field tour
Ken Carloni, PhD.
Along with the amazing work being done with younger students by our AmeriCorps, Christine Smith (see her article in this issue), Umpqua Watersheds continues to support authentic field learning experiences to college students and community members of the 100 Valleys and beyond. Here are some opportunities to get involved:
If you happen [...]
