Our relationship with fire seems fundamental. In fact, it appears in origin stories, myths, and legends for as far back as recorded history. Even before history was recorded — because let’s be honest, history was still happening — there is ample evidence of fire as well. It seems that over generations of living with this, this… well, what is fire? How do you actually talk about it? You cannot hold it, store it, touch it, but it can shape your existence, your surroundings, your life. Fire sounds more like a riddle than an object; more like an emotion than a tangible thing.
A friend of mine once taught me something I'll never forget about working in conservation - he told me that our primary job is to meet people wherever they are on the "pathway to stewardship" and help them up the next step of the path.
What is the pathway to stewardship? It is encapsulated very well by the quote from Baba Dioum: “In the end, we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand and we will understand only what we are taught.”
On August 1, sixteen area high school students arrived at Fort Lewis College for a weeklong kick-off for the Environmental and Climate Institute, an extracurricular program for high school students in partnership with Fort Lewis College. The students came together with the common interest of seeing the local community and region through the lens of critical climate and environmental issues. The group took on projects throughout the region, from tackling invasive deer at Ophir fen to creating a community garden. MSI's Jewel Coleman remarked, "Many (students) had never met before, but they left as best friends. All had a passion for science and came together because they wanted to do something to help the environment.”
“If you have an interest in the Environmental Education field…this is a great way to get your foot in the door. You can test out this career and see if this is for you.” Luke Antonia
Curiosity is a driving factor for many when choosing a hobby or a career path. Internships and service projects, like AmeriCorps, allow us to “test” out roles and gain experiences that propel us to the next place in our journey. Mountain Studies Institute is honored to partner with the Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education (CAEE) to bring AmeriCorps members to serve on our Community Science Team.
Luke Antonia spent the past year embedded in the Mountain Studies Institute Community Science Team as the Bridging Mountains Environmental Education Coordinator, which is an Environmental Education Corps position through Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education (CAEE). Luke collaborated with students, teachers, the community, and other MSI teams on various projects, mostly centering around water quality. One key highlight of his time was his experience with helping launch a new monitoring initiative: the salmonfly citizen science program. Luke's term ends in late July, and we sat down with him recently to reflect on the lessons learned and advice he'd give to the next eeCorps member. Read the entire story here.
Happy Earth Day! This special holiday marks the birth of the modern environmental movement. Since 1970, Earth Day has become an annual event for Americans to honor and demonstrate support for the environment. MSI respects the beauty and uniqueness of the San Juan region with our work every day, and we are excited to share that celebration this Earth Day. This year’s theme: Invest in Our Planet. There’s more green in the economy than our money- we need to include the environment. Investing in our planet takes everyone, not just businesses and industries, to get involved. Effecting change in a large realm can feel like an overwhelming task, but it can happen in our San Juan community! It’s as simple as being conscious of what business practices you support with each purchase! We’ve compiled some practices and products to be aware of- such as deforestation caused by unsustainable palm oil harvesting- as well as some actions we can take in the Durango and Silverton communities to be conscious consumers. Read our story for Earth Day here- and don’t forget to join us in celebrating tomorrow, April 23rd at Rotary Park from 11am to 3pm!
Bootcamp Selects Startups to Pioneer Mining Solutions
Solving the West’s most pressing problems in water pollution and mining reclamation
Virtual Event, December 1-10, 2020: Mountain Studies Institute (MSI) and Telluride Venture Accelerator (TVA) are partnering with Newmont Corporation for a seven-day bootcamp catered towards startups focused on solving problems in water pollution and degraded mine lands, and innovative cleantech.
By Michael Pope
“It was like something out of an old John Ford Western: on the morning of June 1, 2018, a coal-fired locomotive slowly chugged its way through the picturesque San Juan National Forest in southwestern Colorado. The train was part of the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, a national historic landmark and local tourist attraction that has run continuously between the two towns since 1881. As the engine thundered up Shalona Hill, its iconic smokestack belching fiery ash and black smoke, a few smoldering embers managed to escape its exhaust screen and land in the dry brush next to the tracks.
Just like that, the sixth-largest wildfire in Colorado history had begun.”
Our own Dr. Mike Remke appears as an author in a recent publication in the journal of Restoration Ecology on Ponderosa pine seedlings. Click HERE to read the article in full.
Read about MSI and monitoring efforts on the Animas River, featured in the Environmental Monitor. Having already established a water quality monitoring program from the Gold King Mine spill in 2015, MSI is now able to conclusively assess the impacts of the 416 Fire.
In this featured article, MSI’s Water Programs Director and Aquatic Biologist, Scott Roberts, expands on MSI’s programs, including community and educational outreach. “We do on the ground environmental research, mine hydrology, water quality monitoring, and forest health monitoring, and try to distill and distribute that information to address specific concerns that arise in the community. One thing that differs, I think, in our research program is largely driven by concerns in the community, rather than our own kind of academic pursuits. It’s usually shaped by efforts to try to address questions that come about in the community.”
In celebration of our 15th anniversary, we collected 15 stories from friends, family, and staff. Go here to read about the adventures we're gotten ourselves into, and join us to be part of the stories of the next 15 years!
The 2017 Forest to Faucet teacher workshop offered two days of hands-on place-based teacher training designed around the children's book My Water Comes from the San Juan Mountains! Participants spent time in the field with expert guest speakers, went on field visits to rivers, reservoirs, and water treatment plants, and learned new student activities using the My Water Comes from the San Juan Mountains book, teaching kit, and curriculum guide.
Traveling from headwaters to intake so that they could better understand the journey detailed in "My Water Comes from the San Juan Mountains", teachers started by examining macroinvertebrates in the Upper San Juan River to assess water quality.
Who participated? Fifteen teachers from seven schools (Dolores Elementary, Juniper School, Bayfield Elementary, Mesa View Middle, Montezuma-Cortez High School, Pagosa Springs Middle, Park Avenue Elementary) and two environmental programs (Audobon Rockies and Ute Mountain Ute Environmental Programs).
Here, teachers use an index to identify the macroinvertebrates they find. The knowledge they gained will help them to teach from the associated "Macroinvertebrate Mania" lesson plan.
Steve Hartvigsen shares a wealth of knowledge from his lifelong service with the USFS. This forest lecture focused on the relationship between forest health and water quality and quantity.
The Forests to Faucets Workshop offers hands-on, relevant activities that equip educators with up-to-date knowledge of local watershed science and provides them with engaging tools for bringing that knowledge back to their classroom.
Upon integration of the curriculum into their classrooms, it is estimated that these teachers will bring watershed science to an additional 300-450 students per year. Additionally, the workshop offers graduate credit (in the form of continuing education credit) from Fort Lewis College, helping to grow the credentials of our local teachers.
By offering this workshop to local educations, F2F build teachers’ capacity for teaching watershed science across the region by providing place-specific knowledge and activities that can easily be integrated in science, math, and social studies curricula.
This program would not be possible without the support of Alpine Bank, The Ballentine Foundation, The Community Foundation Serving Southwest Colorado.
If you're interested in signing up for future F2F workshops, contact amanda@mountainstudies.org.
Four weeks ago, I began this internship seeking experience in environmental education and field work. So far, I have gotten just that. In just the past two weeks, I have worked with over 40 students from 5 to 15 years old. The students' enthusiasm and curiosity has blown me away and made me even more excited for the programs that lie ahead.
Last week, Amanda Kuenzi and I guided 15 Boston middle-schoolers around Durango and Silverton. After students spent a day practicing macroinvertebrate sampling in Junction Creek, we designed an experiment to test the effects of pollution from cement creek on the macroinvertebrate community downstream. The students jumped in to the project with enthusiasm, quickly gaining an understanding of the complex interactions that oxygen, temperature, pH and particulates play in overall stream health.
During our final day with the group, we switched from aquatic to terrestrial ecology. Among the verdant slopes and raging waterfalls of Cunnigham Gulch, we documented signs and sightings of American Pika, a temperature-sensitive species that is considered one of the best early indicators of changing (warming) climates in the US. From there, we drove up South Mineral Creek Road, stopping at beaver dams to discuss the ecosystem services of wetlands. During our final hike up the Ice Lakes Trail, I was amazed to hear students point out Douglas fir and native flowers after they had spent only three days in an entirely new ecosystem.
Last week, we switched over to working with younger, local students at Silverton School. Every year, Mountain Studies Institute leads three days of Ecology Camp for the students. We spent our first day in the school garden. Kay Phelps, kicked off the camp with a discussion on seeds and their different mechanisms of dispersal, from dandelions that blow in the wind to grass seeds that stick to your socks. We also dissected lima beans and identified all the parts of a plant contained within the tiny seed coat. Next, students each chose a flower to examine and draw with a "scientist's eye and an artist's hand." After reviewing the life cycles and needs of plants, we dug into the soil and planted seeds. Each team tackled an area of the garden, planting radishes, kale, edible flowers, carrots, chard, peas, and more.
Our second day together was even more exciting than the first; the younger group, grades K-3, examined benthic macroinvertebrates with awe, exclaiming that they "never would have imagined there are so many little animals in the river!" The older students, grades 4-8, spent the afternoon in Cunningham Gulch learning about glacial geomorphology through sand sculptures with MK Gunn of San Juan Mountain Association. During our third and final day, the younger group focused on trees while the older ones got their own time with macroinvertebrates. The young kids were quick to figure out the stresses caused by overcrowded forests, droughts, and floods when we played "Every Tree for Itself." With both groups, we created a display town to explore watersheds and pollution. Each student had the chance to help build the town, identify pollution, create rain to wash the pollution downstream, and identify solutions to pollution.
Although I know I have so much more to learn about education, I'm amazed at how well everything has gone thus far. My initial fears of failing to teach the students feel far away now. One student even asked, "how do you come up with so many creative, fun activities for us?" I am grateful to have had the expertise of Amanda, Kay and MK as we planned and implemented the lessons for the last two weeks. I'm hopeful the next seven weeks will be as impactful and rewarding as the first four.
Photo: Priscilla Sherman
"In a region of the state where mining legacy is big business—both as an active industry and as an offshoot of tourism—it is not surprising that more than 150 people attended the seventh annual San Juan Mining Conference in Ouray last week..."
Read the full article from the Ouray County Plain Dealer.
MSI's Executive Director, Marcie D. Bidwell appears as an author in a peer-reviewed publication released in July 2015. Click below to read the full peer-reviewed publication.
Citation:
C. Ray, D.M. McKnight, M.D. Bidwell, T. Fourment, C. Flanagan Pritz & A.H. Rinehart (2015): Children’s book series and associated curricula support elementary education and outreach in water resources, Plant Ecology & Diversity, DOI: 10.1080/17550874.2015.1050711
