Program Spotlights
- Salmon to Sanctuary: Empowering Students to Take Care of Salmon
News & Announcements
- Save the Date: Sept 18 is Coastal Cleanup Day!
- Staff Spotlight: Danielle Ashton
In Case You Missed It
- Summer Oak Maintenance Days
- Napa RCD in the Napa Valley Register
- Napa Open Space District August Update
- Napa Art Walk
Upcoming Programs
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Salmon to Sanctuary:
Empowering Students to
Take Care of Salmon
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The 2020-2021 school year was challenging for schools and students. Students spent part or all of the year learning from home, and off-campus field trips were not permitted. Meanwhile, the need for outdoor education and connection with nature was perhaps greater than ever.
One way that Napa RCD supported teachers and students last year was by adapting our Salmon to Sanctuary (S2S) program to a virtual format. S2S engages high-school students in investigating “How can salmon be restored to the Napa River?” Staff and partners developed phenomenon-based modules which allow students to discuss, communicate, and take action around issues related to riparian forest loss, fish passage barriers, ocean acidification, and the removal of indigenous people from ancestral lands. Check out our virtual curriculum here.
As they went through the module activities, which included time with Napa RCD educators and time on their own, students asked questions and made observations about declines in species richness and abundance over time. They used virtual tools to view locally relevant data about changes along the Napa River over the past several hundred years. Students also explored actions that are taking place today to try to restore salmon populations.
Here are highlights from the school year:
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Napa RCD worked closely with The School Garden Doctor to evaulate the impacts of S2S. We know that S2S results in significant improvement in student understanding of and ability to explain the concepts of Ocean Acidification and Barriers to Fish Passage, key drivers of salmonid declines in the region. We also strive to improve students' agency in being able to make a difference for the future, and we do find that the current program helps empower students. Napa RCD will be working with teachers and administrators in the coming year to adapt the program to have even greater impacts on student agency.
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Save the Date!
Coastal Cleanup Day is September 18, 2021!
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After what we will call an interesting year in terms of cleanups and volunteer events, we are excited to welcome all of you back for a mostly normal Coastal Cleanup Day 2021! Working closely with the California Coastal Commission, Napa RCD is ready to help coordinate safe and fun cleanup sites throughout Napa County.
This year we will have sites in Calistoga, St Helena, Napa, and American Canyon, and our friends at Solano RCD will be hosting volunteers at Lake Berryessa. We are also encouraging folks that can't make it to the September 18 gatherings to do what we all did last year- start at your own front door and do a neighborhood cleanup. Napa RCD has supplies to lend out any day except Sept 18, so contact us if you need trash grabbers or buckets. |
We had a great turnout for Earth Day Napa this year, bringing out the most Earth Day volunteers we've had since 2010, and we're hoping y'all can keep up that energy for Coastal Cleanup Day! Our Napa County record for Coastal Cleanup Day is 589 volunteers in 2008. Let's aim for 600 and see where we land!
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Staff Spotlight: Danielle Ashton |
Meet Danielle Ashton, a Project Coordinator at Napa RCD. Danielle spends much of her time helping to develop and implement environmental education programs for students of all ages throughout Napa County. However, she also enjoys assisting other Napa RCD efforts such as forestry, soil sampling and irrigation, as well as volunteer and community events. Danielle would say she has the best of all worlds at Napa RCD!
Before joining Napa RCD, Danielle explored the environmental education field by working seasonal jobs in Colorado, California's Central Valley, and Point Reyes National Seashore. Danielle was interested in starting a career in environmental education because nature plays such an essential role in her own life, and she wants to help others learn about and form a connection with the nature around them. She loves that her job allows her to work outside, meet different people, and face challenges that build upon her knowledge and experiences.
In the past year, Danielle completed an Environmental Educator Certificate program through the Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education in which she met an amazing group of educators while learning more about the field, program development, and program evaluation. She also just participate in the Forestry Institute for Teachers where she gained tools in teaching about forestry and forest health to students of all ages.
When not working, Danielle enjoys exploring new places, camping and rock climbing in some of the most beautiful places in California.
Danielle is excited to continue her career with Napa RCD and build on her connection with Napa County's communities.
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Join us at Alston Park on Saturday, August 14 from 9-11am or Sunday, August 29 from 9-11am. We're going to be weeding and mulching oak trees that were planted by community members in November of 2019.
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Napa RCD in the Napa Valley Register! |
We were proud to see Napa RCD featured in the Napa Valley Register a couple times in the past month!
Conservation Project Manager Ruby Stahel wrote an article for the Climate Connection titled "What's a Butterfly to Do?" that was featured in the July 25th edition. Check it out here!
On August 1, Sustainable Agriculture Program Manager Miguel Garcia was featured in an article by Sam Jones about Napa RCD's work to help vineyard managers improve the efficiency of their irrigation systems. See the irrigation article here!
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Napa Open Space District August Trails Update |
Keep an eye on what's open and what's happening at our Open Space District and State Parks!
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Napa Art Walk Opens in August |
The theme for the seventh Napa Art Walk Exhibition is 'Play!' Using kinetic art, movement, and/or light to define dimensions and interaction in space, this art contains symbolic movement or requires motion for its effects.
There are 10 sculptures throughout Napa, and there is a map coming soon to the Art Walk website. The Art Walk installations will be in place until 2023.
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Did you know that we have a separate email list for volunteers? |
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Help support Napa RCD - Donate Today!
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Napa County Resource Conservation District | 707-252-4189 | NapaRCD.org
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