My Summer with the refuge was extremely exciting and eventful! In August we celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge. It was an amazing event where over 200 people came together to show appreciation and gratitude. I witnessed what the refuge means to the community and the Fish & Wildlife Service. Many leaders from the Pacific Regional Office and other government officials were present and gave great speeches! Overall, it was so heart- warming and although I spent half of the day helping to drive the shuttle to and from the refuge from the local park-n-ride, I was still able to hear about how much visitors enjoyed the event.
I was honored to design the banner, flyers, and program utilizing the 50th anniversary logo that one of the volunteers created. I was equally honored to make the Margaret McKinney exhibit “What one person can do.” It was displayed during the event and then relocated to the visitor’s center, where it lives through the Fall season. Margaret McKenny was a garden designer, writer, teacher, photographer, lecturer, and conservationist recognized both locally and nationally. She was an expert mycologist and founder of the Olympia Audubon Society. Margaret is a significant historical figure who made a huge impact on the community. The exhibit highlighted her efforts to show gratitude to one of the leaders who helped make the refuge possible. The display was designed to inspire the community and encourage conservation actions, giving ideas of what they can do, too!
Immediately following the anniversary, I packed my bags and went across the country to Virginia where I attended the Urban Community Engagement Fellow internship workshop. I gave a presentation along with the other UCEF interns at the US Fish & Wildlife Service headquarters. I’m thankful that I received a high score and helpful feedback. The other interns were so inspiring, and it was great to see what they were doing at their refuges in other regions around the country. We toured the US Department of the Interior building and met incredible leaders who empowered and encouraged us by sharing their stories and giving helpful advice. It was an unforgettable insightful, heart-warming, and motivational experience that I will take with me throughout my entire career. I’m grateful to HAF and the USFWS for allowing me to participate and feel so much support from everyone at the workshop.
Upon my return from the UCEF workshop, I began working hard on the program schedule for the Nisqually Watershed Festival. I’m happy to be able to design a program that hundreds of community members and leaders used at the celebration! The event was full of fun, creativity, great food, amazing exhibitors, and so much more. Everyone came together and had a great time at the refuge celebrating the Watershed.
The summer ended with Latino Conservation Week! BFJNNWR hosted a Photo Contest called “Nature in the City” or “Naturaleza en la Ciudad”. This was a creative way to get inner-city community members out into nature! We aimed to encourage people to discover the nature that surrounds them, even in our urban cities. The photo contest challenged participants to explore nature within their surroundings. Discovery, exploration, and the awareness of wildlife within our environment can significantly contribute to personal development because of its mental and physical health benefits. This was our fun way of celebrating the Hispanic Access Foundation Latino Conservation Week to help build a stronger community. In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, the photo contest accepted submissions during the duration of the celebration. Unfortunately, due to technical issues with the phone lines promotion of the contest was quite limited so we did not get as many participants as we’d hoped for. However, the submissions that we received were truly amazing! In the process of outreaching to promote the contest, I was able to establish connections with wonderful leaders with the Hispanic Roundtable organization. The board members invited me to the Latinx Youth Summit in Grays Harbor, where I will be facilitating a workshop for high school Latinx youth! Students who participate will enjoy fun and insightful personal and professional development activities. Including a Wildlife Personality Quiz and a Conservation Career Map Game. Both activities will encourage and empower youth to explore who they are and how they can serve the community in this field. Providing insightful information about why it's important to take care of wildlife and our public lands. Bilingual resource packets will be provided along with tips and practical ways to continue exploring their passions that can lead to a career in conservation. I will also be volunteering and tabling at the event, introducing people to the refuge and providing resources for internship and job opportunities.
As you can see it was an amazing summer and I’m extremely grateful to be an Urban Community Engagement Fellow at the Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge Complex. More events, projects, and community connections are yet to come!
