Brother Yusuf Burgess, Outdoor Afro Contributor

Black Forest Lodge – Cornwall, NY

This summer the Green Tech High Charter School’s BOYS OUTDOOR LEADERSHIP TEAM (B.O.L.T.) was successful at getting 18 participants certified in Outdoor Leadership by the Sierra Club. This Outing Leadership Workshop was held at the Black Forest Lodge, in New York’s Catskill Mountains. This place is worth visiting just for the locale and the lodge itself. It’s close to Bear Mountain and West Point, NY. Both amazing locations in themselves. The lodge had a huge outdoor deck, good spacious rooms accommodating up to 8 per room and compostable toilets! The lodge sleeps 60 and is a “green” home for everything from research symposia to yoga retreats.

The Sierra Outing Leadership Workshop is the nationally-managed program charged with developing new and seasoned leaders from Local (Group & Chapter Outings), Inner City Outings (ICO), and National Outings (the trips listed in Sierra magazine). Brand new recruits with no program affiliation were welcomed as well. This workshop fulfills the Sierra Club’s OLT 101 and OLT 201 requirements.

The Green Tech High students, teachers and volunteers learned how to plan safe and successful multi-day outings, enhance their competence and confidence in leading groups, and enhance their competence and confidence in achieving good group behavior and further their awareness and involvement in the conservation work of the

Sierra Club. Other topics included Conservation through Outings, Trip Planning, Outings Nuts and Bolts, First Aid Kits, Leave No Trace and an Emergency Response Scenario. This workshop was designed to focus more on the interpersonal skills associated with outdoor leadership. These “softer” skills are vital to being a successful leader. These skills include learning how to manage your group, how to create a positive group dynamic, and how to practice a safety-based planning and delivery of an outing.

As the Family Intervention Specialist at Green tech High and one of the lead coordinators of the school’s “Going Green” initiative, we were a group of 45+ Sierrans from all over the tri-state with two purposes in mind for this weekend- to learn all we can about how to lead a successful hike and hopefully to take a hike or two ourselves, being that we were surrounded by unspoilt nature.

All of the young students from Green Tech High and the teachers and volunteers had a fun time outdoors and a great experience in the workshops with the Sierra Club trainers. We ended Saturday by learning about David Brower – Sierra Club’s first executive director. The movie we saw on how David Brower and others reinforced all the great work Sierra Club has hisoritcally been involved in, including the nationalization of the 10 parks and seashore including Redwoods, Pt. Reyes and Cascades.

Our next step is to structure an Eco-Outings Club at Green Tech High and invite our incoming 9th graders, the 8th graders from the Middle Schools and their parents to “Get Outdoors And Learn”

In conclusion, we encourage all to check out any local outdoor activities in your area. There are plenty of organizations and clubs, there’s always of course sierraclub.org. Lets invite others to the restorative power of the outdoors and move forward on a mission to “Leave No Child Inside”.

If you haven’t noticed…birds tend to fascinate me. This month’s feathered friend is like no other. It must be the engineering side of me that marvels at the feats of this month’s tiny avian creation.

We in the engineering world often use the term “operational parameters” when describing a machine or system’s capabilities. It is the operational parameters of this month’s bird, the Ruby-throated Hummingbird, which fascinate and marvel me. Here are just a few of these interesting parameters to which I refer:

• They’re able to fly forwards, backwards, sideways, up, down, and stop and hover in one spot (and for short distances they can even fly upside-down).
• They can fly up to 60 miles per hour.
• They can flap their wings 60-80 times per second in normal flight…but can beat them 200 times per second during courtship dives.
• At rest, their heart beats around 250 times per minute, but during flight their heart beats about 1300 times per minute.
• They migrate for thousands of miles…but the most fascinating thing about their migration is that many make a huge jump across the Gulf of Mexico. A trip of about 500-600 miles, which they are able to do non-stop. (All from a bird that weighs only 0.1 ounce.)
• They almost consume their entire weight in nectar, sap, sugar water, and insects every day. When in its active state, a hummingbird will starve to death if it doesn’t eat every few hours.
• Hummingbirds are not only the world’s smallest bird, but the smallest known animal with a backbone.
• Hummingbird eggs are so small, that a penny could cover 3 of them completely.
• Hummingbirds can see and hear better than we humans, but they cannot smell.
• Hummingbirds only live here in the Western Hemisphere. (About 340 different species)

OK…I’ll stop…I could easily continue, but you get the point. Hummingbirds are “very” interesting indeed.

One of my most memorable bird watching sights this year involved a Ruby-throated Hummingbird. While out birding one day, I had the opportunity to observe a “hummer” delicately and precisely dine on insects that it would pluck out of a spider’s nest. What would seem to be an almost impossible task by any other creature, this hummingbird conquered without any difficulty whatsoever. When the builder of the web came out in protest, it was quickly plucked out just as easily as the trapped insects. Watching this bird eat these insects and spider made me realize that these birds eat a lot more protein than I had previously thought; something I was able to research and verify.

Not only am I impressed with the hummingbird because of its abilities, but in my opinion, hummingbirds are some of the world’s most beautiful birds. I’m sure the Spaniards who first laid eyes on them thought so too…because when these early explorers saw them for the first time they called them “Joyas Voladoras” or “Flying Jewels”. A very fitting name indeed!

If you get the chance, check out the making of a wonderful film on hummingbirds.

If you have time to watch the entire PBS nature video “Hummingbirds: Magic in the Air” check it out!

Lynne Arrowsmith

Douglas “Birdman” Gray has been birding almost all of his life. He grew up on a family farm near Clarksville, Tennessee, where they grew crops ranging from apricots to wheat, and most things in between. They also raised chickens, guineas, pigs, horses, and a cow named…….Apples. Doug’s grandfather identified the birds they would see daily on the farm.

Doug now resides in Indianapolis and works in Parenteral Engineering with Eli Lilly and Company. Most of his current birding takes place in Indiana, with a concentration on Central Indiana, where he leads bird walks for “Backyard Birds”. Doug can be reached at 317-255-7333.

So after meeting up with Brother Yusuf Burgess my second time on a recent diversity panel on the east coast, it felt perfectly natural to ask him to represent the groundbreaking work he does as a more visible part of Outdoor Afro.

Most in the field of Environmental Education are already quite familiar with the work of Brother Yusuf over many years. He a real innovator of culturally relevant programing in Albany, New York that reaches young people of color, especially males, that has become a national model and gets young lives back on track.

He writes, “as a father of five sons, ranging in ages from 40 to 10 years old, I have been able to measure, and even do some personal comparisons and contrasts about the impact that being outdoors can have on youth and especially our young men. My role as a husband, Environmental Educator, former Gang Prevention Coordinator and current Family Intervention Specialist at an all boys high school enables me to share the various ways we can collectively begin using the power of nature to transform urban youth.”

So start checking for Brother Yusuf here on Outdoor Afro, who will begin submitting regular articles that discuss his personal experiences and vision with you all — please join me in welcoming Brother Yusuf!

Nestled in Manhattan’s Upper East Side, Swindler Cove Park represents the crown jewel among New York Restoration Project’s (NYRP) public park projects, encompassing five beautiful acres along the Harlem River.

“Check out the Swindler Cove camp graduates! Behind them is a children’s garden, which was planted and cared for by 4th graders during the school year, but tended and harvested through the summer by these summer campers. Food from the garden was used in all of the camp meals prepared over six weeks!”

–Akiima Price, Chief of Education Programs, New York Restoration Project

The week began with some high-flying times with family and close friends for the Berkeley Kite Festival on what felt like the windiest day of the year. Even if you did not have a kite of your own, there were many beautiful and dynamic kites to see. Some highlights included the kite candy drop; pony rides provided by African American cowboys (more on this later), and bike parking provided by Richmond Spokes, since auto traffic was rough. Note to self for next year: do not bring cheap kites because they will get smacked down in the first 10-minutes of your arrival and you will be laughed at by strangers (trust me on this one). View more pictures

On Tuesday evening, Outdoor Afro joined up with Memorial Tabernacle Church in North Oakland, California for National Night Out to share resources, books, and local programs

for the church and community members to connect with the outdoors in new ways. As much as I enjoy the digital conversation, I recognize not everyone can be reached online, so it’s always enlightening to speak with people directly about their experiences and barriers to the outdoors. I was especially heartened to hear about how Memorial Tabernacle was already leading hikes to Muir Woods, one the most dazzling National Forest sites in the area. View more pictures

Finally, I was interviewed by ABC local affiliate for its Sunday morning show, “Behind the Headlines” that examined the topic of Nature Deficit Disorder, a term coined by Richard Louv, who wrote the ground-breaking book, Last Child in the Woods. It was great to be on the show with friends from Bay Area Wilderness Training, and San Francisco’s Chrissy Field Center. For my first time doing a television interview on this topic, I think it went pretty well and I had a blast! I can’t wait to share the video embed and link with the community as soon as it becomes available.

This upcoming week I am looking forward to the Children and Nature Network’s  Grassroots Gathering in Princeton, New Jersey to be on a panel discussing diversity, and social media strategies to connect more people to the outdoors with some of my closest friends and pioneers of this movement from across the country.

No matter where you are, I hope you are finding ways to enjoy your summer. It’s still not too late to get out and make some warm weather memories for you and your loved ones. Check out the Outdoor Afro community site to get some ideas and find people in your area to connect with. There were also many fun ideas discussed on the Outdoor Afro Facebook page and I’ll publish some of these suggestions later this week to inspire you to get outdoors!

What did your community do for National Night Out?

What other Faith Based Organizations do you know that are connecting people to the outdoors?

Courtesy of the Friends of the Regional Park

A botanic garden is a terrific place to go for an easy refuge from nearby urban spaces, and a chance to visualize the diversity and importance of plants in a natural environment.

Spanning ten acres, the Tilden Park Botanical Garden was designed in the 1940′s as a preservation area, and showcase of California plants including rare and endangered grasses, shrubs, trees, and flowers. The area features a year-round creek that runs through the gently sloping site into a cool rainforest preserve with several grassy enclaves for picnicking or quiet meditation. And for those who want to learn about the wide array of plants, many species are labeled by name and region.

According the garden’s website, it includes “nearly all of California’s conifers and oaks as well as collections of California manzanitas wild lilacs, grasses, aquatic plants, and flowering bulbs that are among the most complete to be found anywhere.” A visit here is indeed a virtual tour of the Golden State.

But did you know that botanical gardens are found near or within urban centers all over the country?

Billy Discovers the Creek

Here is a website that lists the best botanical gardens across the United States.

What is your favorite Botanical Garden? What do you like to do there?

“Green is Good for the Hood” was this year’s theme, which was intended to create local awareness and a response to environmental concerns at a neighborhood level.

The event started with a rally to highlight environmental and health issues in Oakland at Tassafaronga Recreation Center, followed by a parade with Scraper Bikers, drummers, and youth dancing. In the afternoon, there was a health fair, vendors, youth performances, basketball tournament, and more at ACORN Woodland Elementary.

It was a privilege for Outdoor Afro to connect directly with its targeted demographic of adults and children. KIND generously donated bars and the local Berkeley REI pitched in a display tent we filled with the bars and Outdoor Afro stickers — a real hit and ice breaker that got the kids talking about camping.

Most importantly, there were many breakthrough conversations at the table that helped parents, grandparents, and children imagine new ways to interact with their local outdoor spaces.

“I don’t like bugs!” was a frequent comment that opened up discussions about biking or bird watching as other recreational activities to engage with the outdoors with perhaps fewer crawling critters! And I was able to share information about some of my local program partners, such as Feather River Family Camp, and Golden Gate Audubon Society to plug families into affordable activities right in their own back yard.

Click to learn more about the fabulous work of  Communities for a Better Environment.

Happy Earth Week!

Did you know it’s National Environmental Education Week? Since 2004, the National Environmental Education Foundation has coordinated the week before Earth Day as a time to foster greater awareness of environmental education and to encourage children and adults to enjoy the outdoors.

What is so great about environmental education? The obvious benefit is that it gets kids and adults outside. But research also shows that environmental education and outdoor and community-based learning improves student achievement across the curriculum and can have a positive effect on classroom and social behavior. Adults can benefit as well, as outdoor activities have been shown to improve mental focus and can be therapeutic for those suffering with stress-related problems and physical health issues.

Even though EE Week started on the 11th, there is still time to participate. Here are some ideas:

First, just get outside! In North Carolina, we use our Web site, press releases, blog and other social media outlets to let people know about the outdoor recreation and environmental education opportunities that are out there. Our Web site is also a partner with the Southeast Environmental Education Alliance (SEEA), which has a similar calendar of events for each member state. Wisconsin has also joined in on this partnership, and we hope more states will in the future. If your state is not covered by SEEA, check with your state, local and national parks and natural resource agencies. Also, most states have an affiliate environmental education association and/or a state office of environmental education that may be of assistance. And exploring your own backyard or neighborhood can work just as well. Here are some N.C. based activities for kids (and adults) that work anywhere: EE Parent; Take A Child Outside Activities; N.C. Junior Ranger Activity Book and Model Inquiries into Nature in the Schoolyard (available through a partnership with Virginia Tech). The Children and Nature Network also has tips on places to visit as well as strategies and research that promotes outdoor and nature activities (April is Children and Nature Awareness Month).

North Carolina has proclaimed it Environmental Education Week on the state level, and some cities across the U.S. have also declared it EE Week. The National EE Week site has sample proclamations and press releases. In addition, schools and organizations can still register as EE Week participants at www.eeweek.org. Our office uses EE Week as a kick-off for a whole informal “Environmental Education Month” and promotes Earth Day and Arbor Day events and workshops as well. We encourage schools, colleges, organizations, cities and counties and other government agencies to promote their events through our site. We also do an “EE Month” blog and feature reports and photos from around the state. This has been really popular and helps others plan events for next year.

So, there’s a variety of ways to celebrate Environmental Education Week right in your own neighborhood. EE  Week is an opportunity to invest a little time in promoting environmental awareness that will pay off all year in your state and community!

Marty Wiggins is a Community Development Program Manager. He works with the North Carolina Office of Environmental Education within the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

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