Educating and Engaging Valley Communities
by Andy Bicking and Lindsey Danis
Now in its fifth year, Scenic Hudson's public outreach and volunteer program has grown to inform and involve thousands in the ongoing protection and enhancement of the Hudson River and its valley.
Our mission - to empower residents through volunteerism, education, recreation and advocacy - has led us to collaborate with diverse volunteers, schools and community groups. In particular our partnership with AmeriCorps, a federally funded community service program that stations young people with nonprofit and government agencies, has helped us expand the depth and breadth of services we offer.
Together we are creating a Hudson Valley where communities steward the land and water, young people understand the cultural and natural heritage of the region and grass-roots networks advocate for change.
Parks are Classrooms for Budding Environmentalists
Our program begins in elementary school, where hands-on instruction and field trips foster lifelong appreciation of the environment.
Environmental Educator and AmeriCorps member Stacey VonDerahe teaches local ecology and environmental ethics to students from Kingston City School, organizing field trips to nearby Shaupeneak Ridge Cooperative Recreation Area and Black Creek Forest Preserve, both in the Town of Esopus in Ulster County, for outdoor lessons. She works closely with Scenic Hudson Park Planner Rita D. Shaheen, Kingston City School District Elementary Science Facilitator Meg Clark-Goldhammer and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Environmental Educator Rich Parisio.
Efforts are underway to expand to Dutchess County schools, using our Madam Brett Park in the City of Beacon as a setting for a self-guided, place-based curriculum.
 |
| TIP: To get involved in our Environmental Education or Trailmasters programs, please contact Andy Bicking at (845) 473-4440, ext. 232, or abicking@scenichudson.org. |
|
Trailmasters Targets Middle School Students
For middle and high school students, Trailmasters combines community service with lessons in history and ecology. Team-based trail work helps students build a stronger sense of place, conservation awareness and group decision-making skills.
Coordinated by AmeriCorps member and Community Outreach Assistant Sarah Small, Trailmasters days start with a classroom visit to discuss Scenic Hudson's history and explain the pending trail outing. This spring Ulster County BOCES students improved trails at Shaupeneak Ridge and campers at Ramapo Anchorage Camp and the Deveraux Foundation worked on erosion control at Poets' Walk Romantic Landscape Park in the Town of Red Hook in Dutchess County.
Trailmasters currently serves Dutchess, Ulster, Putnam and Greene county schools.
College Interns Collaborate with Program Staff
Dozens of student interns have gained valuable experience working side-by-side with Scenic Hudson staff on campaigns and events.
This spring we were joined by four students from Vassar College in the Town of Poughkeepsie in Dutchess County. Ashley Camhi worked with Park Manager Fellow Sarah Charlop-Powers to restore a trail on Shaupeneak Ridge. Kelly VandenBerg's interest in environmental law led her to a placement with General Counsel Warren P. Reiss to help fight the St. Lawrence Cement Co. plant. Paolo Cozzi recruited college students for our Earth Day Lobby and served as a regional college coordinator for the Great River Sweep. And Lindsey Danis, pictured here, worked with Senior Editor/Writer Kerri Karvetski on this newsletter, the Scenic Hudson Web site and other publications.
With three semesters at Scenic Hudson, Dan Zinder of Bard College in the Hamlet of Annandale-on-Hudson in Dutchess County planned a Great River Sweep and raised awareness about the Hudson River PCB cleanup campaign.
Speakers Program Promotes Scenic Hudson's Principles
Launched in January, our speakers bureau brings Scenic Hudson's message to community groups of all ages and encourages residents to take action on key issues such as cleaning the river and stopping pollution. Presentations by expert staffers have focused on PCBs and water quality, planning livable communities, land conservation and support for agriculture.
Our meeting with the City of Hudson Rotary Club in Columbia County raised awareness about the dangers of the proposed St. Lawrence Cement plant and inspired the organization to coordinate a Great River Sweep with Friends of Hudson. This fall Scenic Hudson will speak to Land Trust Alliance Northeast members about successful volunteer strategies.
We have scheduled roughly a dozen presentations this year and aim to double the number of speaking engagements next year.
Volunteer and Recreational Opportunities Abound
Volunteer initiatives expand our capabilities, provide meaningful work and create a sense of belonging.
At Burger Hill Park in the Town of Rhinebeck in Dutchess County, volunteers open and close parking lot gates and serve on the park management committee. At Poets' Walk volunteers are being trained as tour guides and participate in management decisions.
Recreational events and hikes keep residents abreast of environmental issues as they enjoy the valley's natural splendor. Volunteers often help plan and implement these events, which include poetry readings, meteor shower watches, nature hikes and canoe trips.
 |
|
Supporters ages two to 92 helped us break another Great River Sweep record. This year 5,200 volunteers from nearly 100 communities removed 66 tons of trash from Hudson River shorelines. |
Great River Sweep Engages All Ages in Revitalization
Our largest volunteer event is the annual, award-winning Great River Sweep, which unites thousands of supporters from the Adirondacks to Manhattan in removing trash and beautifying the Hudson River's shorelines, tributaries and public places. It is held the last full week of April, beginning on Saturday and ending the following Sunday, in coordination with Earth Day and National River Cleanup Week.
Evan Weissman, outreach associate, described the sweep as, "an opportunity for riverfront communities to come together, show their pride and revitalize shoreline public places."
For 2002 an Environmental Benefit Project grant from the New York State attorney general's office helped us involve communities in the Adirondacks and gather and analyze information about the amount and type of beverage containers collected. In May we presented the preliminary findings of our litter survey to the attorney general's office. This information will help policy-makers strengthen the state's bottle law and reduce litter.
Scenic Hudson Honored
We also were honored to receive a 2002 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Quality Award, the highest recognition presented to the public by the EPA. This follows our 2001 Clearwater Citizens award, an international recognition of grass-roots efforts that promote beneficial use and protection of local waterfronts. |
|
|
 |
 |
| Environmental Educator Stacey VonDerahe teaches elementary school students about frogs and vernal pools at Black Creek Forest Preserve in Esopus. |
|
