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News and Naturalist Inspiration from the California Naturalist Program
We're going to post weekly CalNat program highlights here! Ready Set Go...
Published on: May 5, 2016

Hello to those that follow us out there in the blogosphere! We're going to post regular weekly or biweekly CalNat program and partner/Naturalist highlights here. Let us know in the comments or at canaturalist@ucanr.edu if you have suggestions or updates/pics to share about your course, capstone project, partner organization etc! A lot of the content will look familiar if you're already following us on Facebook or Twitter, but we realize no one communication type fits all and some folks miss those updates. To see new posts you can log into the volunteer portal, or look at the bottom right of the page here to find the buttons to subscribe for e-mail updates or add to your RSS feed. Following is a summary of the last few weeks. Enjoy! 

 

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Join us in congratulating our second graduating class of University of California, Merced Vernal Pools Reserve California Naturalists! This spring the vernal pools received more rain than they have in 5 years, creating a breathtaking outdoor classroom that was teeming with life. Capstone projects included developing naturalist and citizen science curriculum for Merced public schools, creating several local interpretive trail guides, implementing a bullfrog eradication project, and participating in citizen science projects including raptor surveys with Audubon California, the Lost Ladybug Project, and water quality monitoring.

 

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Congrats to our recently certified California Naturalists from the Dominguez Rancho Adobe Museum course! The past weekend saw these grads sporting their CalNat pride in front of the Museum's historic oil well. After weeks of studying the culture and ecology of California's past and exploring the unique urban open spaces of the present-day South Bay region of Los Angeles County, these Naturalists are now poised to take action and shape our state's future. Capstone projects ranged from school programs to butterfly surveys to plans for continuing education and distance learning opportunities. We welcome these talented and passionate Naturalists to our statewide community!

 

 

 

 

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CalNat has a lot of teachers to appreciate on National Teacher Appreciation Week! From our 35+ course instructors (pic from the inaugural 2014 CalNat conference) and guest experts, to all the dedicated classroom teachers and interpreters that attend and enrich our classes, we salute you and your important work! Don't forget to‪#‎ThankATeacher‬ this week!

 

 

 

CalNat was well represented at the California Association for Environmental & Outdoor Education - AEOE 2016 Statewide Conference this past weekend in Malibu! CalNat Instructor Chris Cameron from Camp Ocean Pines, and CalNat staff, Shayna, teamed up on a joint presentation, and we ran into a few Certified California Naturalists also enjoying the conference. Outdoor educators and CalNat certification--what a perfect match! Hope to see CAEOE at our CalNat Conference ‪#‎CalNat2016‬!

 

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We're fiddling with new technology to more widely share the wonders of natural history in CalNat classes, conferences, and beyond. This week we had the privilege of participating in InterpTech 2016, organized by California State Parks and the National Association for Interpretation at the Mott Training Center in Pacific Grove. Click on the link to see a dizzying Google 360 photo of Point Lobos State Natural Reserve! We promise to practice a bit more in the future! http://bit.ly/1SNXsjs
 
 
 
Hot off the press! A new Bioscience article by Cameron Barrows UCR College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences (CNAS) and UC colleagues titled "At a Crossroads: The Nature of Natural History in the Twenty-First Century" supports what you naturalists likely already suspect: the value and relevance of natural history to twenty-first-century ecological science is real. Come see Cameron Barrows speak at the upcoming ‪#‎CalNat‬2016 conference! All the early career scientists they surveyed agreed that natural history "is relevant to science and “essential” or “desirable” in their vocation." The authors also point out that the opportunities for gaining natural history skills and knowledge through education and training are hard to come by in academia today. It is time for a natural history revival and its great to see CA Naturalists leading the way!  Full article can be viewed at https://bioscience.oxfordjournals.org/…/biosci.biw043.abstr…
 

Have you checked out the program lately? We have added some amazing speakers! ‪#‎CalNat2016‬ http://calnat.ucanr.edu/2016conference/2016program/

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Happy Earth Day CalNat Conference Discount- This Weekend Only!
Published on: April 22, 2016

Happy Earth Day California Naturalists and Naturalists in training! 

In honor of you and all your hard work on behalf of California's natural resources, we are running a discount this weekend only on registration for the upcoming #CalNat2016 conference.

Start planning now and join your fellow naturalists at the most engaging, informative, energizing, and fun conference you'll attend! Check out the stellar speaker lineup here. Key conference dates listed below.

Who: YOU! Certified California Naturalists and Naturalists-in-Training only

What: 10% off conference registration ($135 this weekend only)

Where: http://calnat.ucanr.edu/2016conference/reg/

When: Register right now through Monday morning, April 25th at 9AM

Why: Because your dedication is inspiring! We want to honor all your hard work on Earth's big holiday weekend! 

 

Key dates for the upcoming #CalNat2016 statewide conference: 

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2015 CalNat Service Pin
Published on: November 12, 2015

 

 

Check out the 2015 California Naturalist Service Pin, Naturalists! 

This year we feature an endemic species, the California Newt (Taricha torosa) on the annual service pin. To acknowledge your hard work, we will issue this beautiful 18k gold and enamel pin to every California Naturalist that logs at least 40 volunteer hours in the volunteer portal by the end of the calendar year. Please start logging your hours today! The link to the volunteer portal will always be available on the top yellow menu of our home page under “Record Service Hours.”
 
Want to start collecting the CalNat Annual Service Pins?
Step 1) log your 2015 hours into the Volunteer Portal. Here's a guide that explains the categories of service and how to log your volunteer hours.
Step 2) update your capstone project title and mailing address in the "Edit your profile" section of the volunteer portal. 
We'll take care of the rest! And we'll remind you again in December. (Pepperwood and Tejon Ranch stewards only, we'll get your hours from your instructor, but we still need you to update your address in the portal)
 
Why log hours? Our community of over 1200 certified California Naturalists has volunteered over 33,000 hours in four years! We suspect that is a HUGE under representation of the time you actually spend volunteering. And we understand- logging in and reporting isn't likely your motivation or the most rewarding part of your efforts. But the bottom line is that when you report your activities, we have a metric we can share with our colleagues at UC and the UC Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, our partnering organizations, and beyond that demonstrates that our collective efforts are making a significant impact in this state. That metric eventually translates into allocations of resources from collaborators and sponsors to keep offering and expanding programming (like theupcoming Statewide Conference!) that will keep our network growing, connected, and learning together. We hear about your inspiring restoration, conservation, education and citizen science activities daily. You are part of a larger, longer UC legacy of stewardship. Please help us measure your impact!
 
What are the rules for volunteer hours? Volunteer hours are defined as any time spent for which you are not paid tending nature, teaching others, doing environmental science, or taking action on behalf of conservation. Volunteer hours should take place in California and fall into the four categories of restoration/conservation, education/interpretation, citizen science, or program support. Hours also need to be attributed to an institution- please choose your organization in the drop down menu of partner institutions that offer the course, or specify “other” institution. Volunteer work you've already done in 2015 can be counted today! Your 8+ Capstone Project volunteer hours should be logged and will count toward the pin, however class time doesn't! Here's a guide that explains the categories of service and how to log your volunteer hours. We offer a new pin design every year to qualifying Naturalists, so if you can't make it to 40 hours this year, you'll have future opportunities!
 
Need help? Issues gaining access to the site or logging hours? Here's a guide that explains the categories of service and how to log your volunteer hours. Please e-mail Shayna Foreman at sforeman@ucanr.edu for further troubleshooting. She can re-send your portal invitation or help if you're having trouble gaining access.  
 
We look forward to celebrating your service and sending your new pins in February!
 
Thanks for all you do!
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CalNat wins national Program of the Year award
Published on: October 4, 2015

CalNat is proud to announce that we received the Program of the Year Award at the Alliance of Natural Resource Outreach and Service Programs annual national meeting. Considering the company we keep in that fine organization and the relative infancy of the California Naturalist Program, we are quite honored to share this award with our naturalists, our many partners, and our colleagues at UC Agriculture & Natural Resources that make our community so vibrant! Read more here.

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Save the Date for the 2016 CalNat Conference!
Published on: September 28, 2015

Calling all naturalists: we're headed to the mountains! We're excited to announce we have a venue and dates for the 2016 CalNat Statewide Conference: Observe nature. Foster partnerships. Plan for change. September 9-11, 2016 at Pali Mountain Retreat & Conference Center in Running Springs, in the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains (http://www.paliretreat.com/). Details to emerge over the next few months, including ways to participate, present, and sponsor and scholarships. We look forward to seeing you in the mountains! http://calnat.ucanr.edu/2016conference/

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