Volunteers needed at Audubon Ballona Wetlands Education Program
[Posted by Chuck Almdale, submitted by Cindy Hardin]
Nature Nexus Institute has taken over the operation of Los Angeles Audubon’s school outreach program of school field trips to the Ballona Wetlands. Santa Monica Bay Audubon Society has helped support this organization for several decades.
Nature Nexus Institute is all about sharing and teaching local school children about the special habitats found right here in Los Angeles. They will be starting their six-week Fall Training on 17 September to get ready for school field trips to the Ballona Wetlands. Their tours take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays. All you need to be a volunteer is a love of the outdoors and the enthusiasm to work with school age aspiring nature lovers. Please contact Cindy Hardin at chardin@naturenexusinstitute.org or give her a call at 310-745-2118 if you are interested.
The following announcement is from them.
One of the Ballona Salt Marsh channels (Leslie Davidson ’07)
We are looking for Volunteers!
Time: 9 am to noon, unless otherwise noted (see below)
Contact: Cindy Hardin, Ph/Text 310-745-2118, <chardin@naturenexusinstitute.org>
September 17th – Welcome back and welcome newcomers, an overview of the program, the mission of Nature Nexus institute, description of Learning Stations and route of field trips. Speaker: me, Cindy Hardin!
September 24th – Wetland Ecology by speaker Dr. Dave Bader. Dave handles education at the Marine Mammal Care Center in San Pedro, and has lots of knowledge to share about the unique and vanishing wetland habitats of our coast. He is new to our roster, and I hear he is an excellent speaker!
October 1st – Program history and goals, Restoration Ecology and Education by Dr. Margot Griswold. Margot has been the driving force behind our work at both the Baldwin Hills and Ballona, and has done numerous restoration projects throughout the region. Her knowledge of native plants and habitats is unparalleled! She has also done huge advocacy work to spread knowledge to underserved communities-our target audience!
October 8th – To be determined. I am hoping that Greg Pauly, curator of Herpetology at the Natural History Museum will be available, but I am waiting to hear back from him. I will keep you all posted. If Greg is not available we will fill in the slot with another program. If anyone has a suggestion, I am all ears!
October 15th – Gabrieleno History, Practices and Culture by Matthew Teutimez. Mr. Teutimez has a wealth of knowledge about local indigenous culture, and he is a very compelling speaker. I have seen a couple of his talks, and they are quite informative and memorable. He will be very helpful in showing us what we can best communicate to our student visitors about local Native Peoples. PLEASE NOTE: OUR START TIME FOR THIS SESSION WILL COMMENCE ONE HOUR LATER THAN USUAL, AT 10 AM.
October 22nd – Birds and Birding with our own Walter Lamb. Walter is a fantastic birder, and patient and generous in sharing his skills and knowledge. He has a huge following for his Bird Walks that he leads during our Open Wetlands events, and I am so glad he has the time to work with our group.
Thanks,
Cindy
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