Home » Blog

Blog

Conservation Caption Competition, WINTER 2012 Edition, Round 4

Submitted by jthurston on Tue, 11/27/2012 - 13:35

Winter is on and so is Round 4 of the Conservation Caption Competition. Who's going to win a prize pack of choice SCA goods? Whoever comments with the cleverest caption (as judged by caption quality evaluator, and Follow Me blogger, Danielle Thompson).

Entries are due, either here or on Facebook, by Thursday at 5 PM EST.

Special thanks to SCA national partner Dr. Pepper Snapple Group for making the Conservation Caption Competition, WINTER 2012 Edition possible.

Click here for the rules.

2012 Got Dirt? Winner Most Definitely Has Dirt

Submitted by jthurston on Mon, 11/19/2012 - 14:35

We posed a question and it was this: Got Dirt?

The winner of this year's Got Dirt? Photo Contest chose to answer that question literally, and with a resounding "Yes!"

Put on a smock and some goggles and acquaint yourself with "The Sandman," this year's grand prize-winning photograph. It was snapped by none other than Lia Heifetz, who will soon be zipping off to the destination of her choice courtesy of SCA and our official air travel partner, Southwest Airlines. Congratulations, Lia! 

Here at SCA, a photo like this inspires us to pull on our boots and head out into the woods (Though honestly, most things inspire us to do that, like a cool breeze, or a cloudless day, or the sound of our alarm clocks for example.).

In any case, there were piles and piles of excellent photos submitted this year, which made choosing a winner a joyfully difficult task. Thanks so much to everyone who participated!

Second prizes (it was a tie!) go to Chad Trexler and Micah Berman for "Alpine Start" and "A Nice Water Break," respectively. Nice work fellas. Kudos!

National Parks Traveler: SCA at Glacier National Park

Submitted by garrett on Mon, 11/19/2012 - 11:51

Source: National Parks Traveler - 'Postcard From The Backbone Of The Continent: Days Of Discovery At Glacier National Park' by SCA Intern Ashley Alvarez

Editor's note: Ashley Alvarez an intern with the Student Conservation Association, spent her summer working in Glacier National Park in Montana. Through the SCA, high school and college students get to work in national parks and on other public lands in various roles. For Ms. Alvarez, her assignment at Glacier was interpretation. Here's her story.

My heart nearly stopped when I received the internship offer from the lead interpretive ranger at Glacier National Park. My first question, of course, was “Where’s that?”

As a Floridian, I had never heard of this Glacier and could not believe I would be heading to Montana. Beyond that, I had no idea what an interpretive ranger was. I had never taken any related courses beyond public speaking and I wasn’t exactly fond of talking to large groups of people. However, there was no way that I was going to turn down the offer of a lifetime, so I packed up my bags and headed north to the “Backbone of the Continent” to begin my internship with the Student Conservation Association. ... Continue Reading on National Parks Traveler

SCA Alumni Council Illuminates Conservation Careers for a Youthful Outdoor Nation

Submitted by jthurston on Tue, 11/13/2012 - 18:15

 

On the third weekend of October of this year, the Outdoor Nation San Francisco Summit brought together young outdoorsmen from all over the US to encourage them to lead their peers off of the couch and into the foliage. SCA's Alumni Council gathered at the event to play a special role: Highlighting the fact that an active outdoor lifestyle is the perfect precursor to a career in conservation. As leading exemplars of SCA's commitment to fostering lifelong dedication to environmental stewardship, the Alumni Council was well suited for the part.

Among the highlights of the two day event was AC member Jeff Chen's spirited account of how discovering litter in a national park during his stint on an SCA crew inspired him to cofound Pick Up America, and lead a coast to coast march to clean up trash along America's scenic byways. Another highlight came on Sunday, when AC member Jaci Saunders participated in the Outdoor Nation jobs panel. She used the opportunity to share how her SCA experience helped her find the path to a career in oceanography.

Head here for a Storified account of the weekend's events, including a bayside service project in Oakland, and an aerially photographed "human painting" of the Tree of Life.

Here are some highlights:

Hurricane Sandy Recovery: The scope of devastation

Submitted by garrett on Sun, 11/11/2012 - 12:28

This post is from the SCA Veterans Fire Corps, who helped clear Hurricane Sandy-ravaged streets along the Jersey Shore. For a full scope of SCA's response to Hurricane Sandy, read SCA President Dale Penny's letter to constituents. Also read more about post-Sandy restoration with Hudson River Park Trust.

The scope of the devastation is hard to comprehend, even when you’re standing in the middle of it. Blocks and blocks of homes in splinters. Giant limbs and entire trees lying on the ground. Streets filled with sand and debris. Some have likened it to a war zone. They are not far off.

The people here are toughing it out but you can see signs of strain. Many of the homes that survived Sandy are still without power as temperatures fall. But when the saw crew shows up, residents are buoyed. “They honk their horns, cheer. They ask if they can buy us meals,” says Project leader Mike Madalena. “We tell them ‘thank you’ but explain as government workers we cannot accept.”

On Friday, the SCA corps members – who were trained in chain saw operation earlier this fall to thin Arizona forests and reduce the risk of wildfire – roamed the Jersey Shore, “clearing highways of downed trees with the county guys,” Mike says. “Look like this weekend we’ll clear trees from school grounds and local public areas.

“That’s Chris Zinski in the photo with the massive 880 chainsaw he used to cut up a big pine tree that had fallen into the road.” Chris, from Marquette, MI, did four years in the Marines. His career goal is to work for the Forest Service. He likely never thought he’d achieve it on the streets of New Jersey.