HOAs and condo associations: Sustainable solutions to landscaping headaches, Oct. 4th & Nov. 2nd

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Northern Virginia Community College, Richard J. Ernst Community Cultural Center

Annandale Campus, Annandale VA Friday, October 4 or Saturday, November 2
(Choose one date to attend. The content will be identical.)
9:30am – 1 pm

Is your community association board dealing with erosion or flooding problems? Is your property management company paying to maintain a lot of lawn that is not being used? Is your landscaping committee looking for ways to beautify community property while supporting birds and butterflies?

Unused lawns. Impervious surface. Heavier rain storms. Invasive introduced plants. These are just some of the reasons for our degrading suburban and urban environments. But planting native plants can help address these problems while improving the overall beauty, sustainability, and ecology of our area.

Board members, landscape committees, property managers, and landscape maintenance companies are particularly encouraged to attend, but everyone is welcome. See details and sign up here.

Rain gardens for homeowners workshop, Sep. 21st

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Sully Government Center
4900 Stonecroft Blvd., Chantilly VA
Saturday, 21 September 2019
10am – 12 pm

Come to this FREE workshop to learn about designing and planting a rain garden at your home! Rain gardens, also known as bioretention areas, are attractive landscape features that allow rain water and snow melt to infiltrate into the ground. A layer of mulch and plants intercept water running off streets, driveways, and rooftops, slowing its flow and removing pollutants before the water reaches local streams, the Occoquan River and the Potomac River, which are drinking water supplies for the region. Speakers include specialists from Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District. Registration is limited, learn more and register here.

Stream monitoring events, Sep. – Nov.

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Sugarland Run Stream Monitoring Workshop

Sugarland Run Stream Valley Park, Herndon VA
Sunday, 8 September 2019
10:00am-12:30pm

Join Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District as they discover aquatic life in Sugarland Run! This official NVSWCD stream monitoring workshop covers watershed health, what macroinvertebrates tell us about stream quality, and what you can do to prevent pollution in your local stream. This workshop will also help to prepare you to become a certified stream monitor. Registration is limited. Send questions to Ashley Palmer and RSVP here.

Accotink Creek Stream Monitoring Session

Lake Accotink Park, Springfield VA
Saturday, 14 September 2019
9:30 – 11:30am

Join Friends of Lake Accotink Park and Friends of Accotink Creek for a rewarding and fun time for adults and children who enjoy helping our parks and environment by identifying and counting stream critters to document the health of the stream. RSVP here.

Holmes Run Stream Monitoring Workshop

Roundtree Park, Falls Church VA
Saturday, 19 October 2019
9 – 11:30am

Join Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District as they discover aquatic life in Holmes Run! This official NVSWCD stream monitoring workshop covers watershed health, what macroinvertebrates tell us about stream quality, and what you can do to prevent pollution in your local stream. This workshop will also help to prepare you to become a certified stream monitor. Registration is limited. Send questions to Ashley Palmer and RSVP here.

Reston Association Stream Monitoring Workshop

Reston VA
Saturday, 19 October 2019
1:30 – 4:30pm

What better way to enjoy the changing seasons than to get your feet wet in one of Reston’s streams? RA welcomes new volunteers to assist with stream monitoring at several locations. Get involved with a small team to collect data and identify insects with the goal of assessing the health of Reston’s streams. Not only do you get to learn about streams, it also provides an opportunity to make new friends! Learn more and register.

Reston Association Stream Monitoring Workshop

Reston VA
Saturday, 16 November 2019
11am – 2pm

What better way to enjoy the changing seasons than to get your feet wet in one of Reston’s streams? RA welcomes new volunteers to assist with stream monitoring at several locations. Get involved with a small team to collect data and identify insects with the goal of assessing the health of Reston’s streams. Not only do you get to learn about streams, it also provides an opportunity to make new friends! Learn more and register.

Behavior-centered design for the environment training

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Rare Center for Behavior and the Environment
1310 N. Courthouse Road, Suite 110, Arlington, VA, 22201
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 703.522.5070

October 16 & 17, 2019
9:00 am–5:00 pm

Register now

Want the key to unlocking greater impact from your environmental programs?

Environmental and conservation organizations have deep expertise in the natural sciences. But if human behavior is the biggest threat to the environment, we need a better understanding of what motivates people. Join Rare for an interactive behavior-centered design training, and gain tools and techniques for moving people toward more sustainable behaviors.

What is Behavior-Centered Design (BCD)?

A process that blends insights from the behavioral sciences and approaches from design thinking to build breakthrough solutions to environmental challenges.

Who is this training for?

• Conservation and environmental practitioners

• Program designers and policy staff

• Sustainability professionals

Why would a BCD training help you?

• Behavior is at the root of both conservation problems and solutions

• Strategies that incorporate human behavior can achieve larger and lasting impact

• BCD holds the potential for unlocking fundraising opportunities

• It provides a step-by-step process for identifying target behaviors and developing strategies       to achieve them

What will I leave the training with?

• Applicable skills and easy-to-use tools

• Hands-on experience with a behavior-centered design process

• A tutorial on Rare’s behavior change toolkit

• A  membership in a learning network of practitioners

 

Upcoming programs at the gorgeous Clifton Institute

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Six exciting programs are coming up at The Clifton Institute:

Creatures of the Night

Walk with A Naturalist

Bugscaping: Regenerative Landscaping for the 21st Century

Colors of Clifton: Preserving the Palette of Autumn

Mindful Naturalists: Nature Yoga

Nature Journaling with Joyce Andrew

 

Some are free, some have a small fee, all require registration.

Beginning woodland owners’ retreat, 20-21 Sept., register by Sept. 6th

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New Kent Forestry Center, Providence Forge, VA
20-21 September 2019

Eastern Virginia landowners can learn more about actively managing their forestlands.

These retreats:
are geared towards landowners who are new to forest management
provide information on both hardwood and pine forest management
offer chances for interaction with natural resource professionals from various agencies in Virginia, as well as with other landowners
provide information on estate planning, management planning and certification
provide hands-on experience with tree identification, forestry equipment, and more…

Topics include forest stewardship planning, pine management, timber sales, wildlife management, tree identification, and more. A tour of local properties will showcase forest management in action.

Full retreat registration, including materials, meals, and lodging on Sept. 19 and 20 is $95 per person or $170 per couple. For those who live nearby, a commuter option, including materials and meals only, is $55 per person or $90 per couple.

To register online or download a mail-in brochure, visit www.forestupdate.frec.vt.edu. The deadline to register is September 6.

For more information, contact Jennifer Gagnon at 540-231-6391 or [email protected]. Or go to the Virginia Forest Landowner Education website and click on the retreat, then agenda.

Hidden Oaks Nature Center offers art classes for adults, Sep., Oct., & Nov.

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Photo (c) by Barbara J. Saffir

Hidden Oaks Nature Center
7701 Royce St., Annandale VA
Various dates and times (see below)

Naturalist and artist Avery Gunther will be leading these classes.

Drawing Animal Eyes (16- adult)
Thursday, September 12, 2019, 7-9pm. Code- FD1.1092

Animal eyes are so varied and intricate. If you draw an animal’s eye realistically, your drawing of an animal comes to life. Practice drawing individual animal eyes up close from photographs and live animals. Watch a demonstration, then try drawing eyes using pencil, colored pencils and/or watercolors. A suggested list of supplies will be provided when you sign up. $5 material fee due the day of class.
Meet at the Nature Center.

Ferns of Hidden Oaks- Hike and Draw (16 – adult)
Saturday, October 5, 2019, 1:00 – 3:00 pm. Code – 22B.1C7D

Learn some tips to identifying ferns that live in local woods on a hike. Then spend time drawing ferns in the Hidden Oaks shelter or on nearby trails. A suggested list of supplies will be provided after you sign up. Meet at the Packard Center Parking lot in Annandale Community Park. Go to the Annandale Community Park entrance off Hummer Road. Once you turn in, proceed to the right and follow the signs to the Packard Center. The instructor will meet you at the parking lot.

Illustrating Your Nature/Travel Journal (16- adult)
Thursdays November 7, 14 and 21. 7 – 9pm Code – 7BB.9F97

Learn how to take your field sketches and turn them into a journal page. Starting with a pencil sketch you can add fine line marker, water colors or colored pencils. Participate in a lesson of how to use various art media each class. Discover ways to add photos and mementos to your journal. A suggested list of supplies will be provided when you sign up. Meet at the Nature Center.

Please register online through the Fairfax County Park Authority Parktakes:
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/parktakes.  Then pick “go directly to search.”
Next fill in the “search text/catalog ID “ and plug in the program code above, then hit the “search activities” button and it will pull up the class.  Scroll down to see the class and sign up.

Fundamentals of Avian Biology: The Study of Birds, Fall Session (6 classes)

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Classroom Instruction:National Wildlife Federation
11100 Wildlife Center Drive, Reston, VA 20190
Thursdays, 7:00 – 9:00PM; Oct. 3, 10, 17; Dec. 5, 12, 19

Field Trips: October 12; December 14 (location TBD)

Dr. Chris Haney, Founder and President of Terra Mar Applied Science

Limit: 30 students. Don’t delay, this class will sell out quickly.
Fee: $250 members, $275 non-members

Register here.

Audubon Society of Northern Virginia is pleased to present this in-depth course about birds, designed for all skill levels. Experienced birders and novices will improve their understanding of birds and birding skills through classroom sessions and field trips.

Fundamentals of Avian Biology: Fall Session, will feature close scrutiny of the modern theory and field methods used to interpret the life of birds. Topics to be covered will encompass basic avian biology, life histories, evolution, behavior, ecology, geography, migration, and human socio-cultural relationships. Whenever appropriate, contrasting perspectives will be offered, including some controversial views, and distinctions made between different historical approaches of professional ornithology and birding. Classroom presentations will include PowerPoint slides, auditory or video supplements, and some participatory exercises.

Instructor: Dr. Chris Haney’s expertise straddles the fields of ornithology, including: marine science, climate change, wildlife biology, ecosystem management, and conservation policy. His projects and scholarly work have taken him to Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Bahamas, Lesser Antilles, several countries of southern Africa, and the former Soviet Union. He has authored over 80 peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, and technical notes, and over 150 reports, abstracts, and testimony. He has delivered more than 150 seminar, conference, and workshop presentations. Dr. Haney’s knowledge and enthusiasm in the classroom is contagious!
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This course is designed and presented at a university introductory level in two separate sections (Fall and Spring) with a total of 12, two-hour classroom sessions. The two sections are independent and field trips will focus on birds that are present during the season. The Spring Session will begin in late winter 2020, there is no prerequisite for this section. 

Birds, Blossoms, and the Bull Moose: A Natural History Hike of T.R.’s Memorial in the Potomac, Sep. 15th

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Theodore Roosevelt Island
Sunday, 15 September 2019
1-3 pm
Wear shoes that can handle mud
Free but registration required

Trek around Theodore Roosevelt Island, an 88-acre living memorial to the first president to make conservation a centerpiece of his presidency. Meet our 26th president — or rather a 17-ft. bronze statue of him — the rich Manhattanite who became known as the protector of more than 230 million acres of public land. Saunter around the island to sample its natural and not-so-natural history.  See the plants and critters that thrive on this 88-acre island in the Potomac River.

FMN quarterly chapter meeting Sept. 16th, Fairfax County recycling program

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Hidden Oaks Nature Center
7701 Royce St., Annadale VA
Monday, 16 September 2019
7:30 – 9 pm

Our chapter will have a brief meeting, enjoy some food and drink, and learn from a presentation on recycling in Fairfax County by Erica Carter, Fairfax County Solid Waste Management Program, Recycling Coordinator.

There’s been a lot of talk about recycling these days – what can we recycle? Where does it go? Is China still buying? More importantly, what can you do to minimize the amount of waste that you and your family create? We’ll take a quick look at the current state of waste management in Fairfax County and answer everyone’s questions about what they can and cannot recycle.

Fairfax Master Naturalists earn one hour of continuing education credit for this event.