Master Naturalist Conference~Day 1

Last week I received a phone call that I had been chosen to attend the Nebraska Master Naturalist Conference in Nebraska City on a scholarship.  The 3-day conference is put on by NACEE-Nebraska Alliance for Conservation and Environment Education and provides an amazing opportunity for Nebraska’s formal and non-formal educators, resource professionals, and citizens to network and share ideas.  The 2012 Conference is filled with fantastic speakers ranging in topics from grant opportunities to no-material activities to sustainable schoolyards. I found the opportunity to be an adventure in the making and decided to put on my flannel and puffy vest and join the tree huggers for the weekend.

 

Day one-A small group of "master naturalist" and I spent four hours surveying the flood damage from last year.  I found myself being the only early educator within the group.  I quietly observed and didn't have much to say-not normal, I know.  Yet, that is exactly what I cherish about nature.  The opportunity to be quiet, to observe, to dig deep into the roots that have kept me into Nebraska.  While most of the time I have no idea what kind of tree or plant I'm looking at, I have this established appreciation for all things living.