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The Link — Fall 2022 Newsletter

  • Post category:News
  • Reading time:9 mins read

The Link is a quarterly newsletter produced in coordination between Friends, the National Wildlife Refuge Association and Coalition of Refuge Friends & Advocates.

Here in Central Minnesota, when goldenrod is abuzz with pollinators and school supplies fill the shelves of big-box stores, we know that back-to-school time is nigh. Unfortunately, at the same time in some years—like this one—names like Katrina, Maria, and Ian monopolize the news, and photos of their devastation give us pause. Our hearts go out to our Friends/friends in Florida and the Southeast as their lives, homes, and refuges deal with what the hurricane has left behind. Our thoughts are with you.

Since environmental education is one of the Big Six public uses of national wildlife refuges, we have decided to focus our fall issue on education and how some of our Friends are supporting it at their refuges. Here at Sherburne NWR, over the past 12 years, we have been fortunate to work with staff at the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center (PWLC), part of the Fergus Falls Wetland Management District, to develop a nature education program to meet our needs. The PWLC was the logical go-to resource, not just because of its proximity, but because of the exceptional hands-on learning options they offer, supported by the Friends of the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center.

The PWLC offers a standards-based curriculum geared to the season through a variety of programs for preschool and K-12 students as well as multi-day and overnight visits for 5th graders and older. This is impressive by itself. However, what makes the PWLC special is their Prairie Science Class, “an award-winning, internationally recognized partnership with Fergus Falls Public Schools.” This partnership uses “the local prairie wetlands ecosystem as an integrating and motivating context to engage 4th and 5th-grade students in science, language arts, critical thinking, problem-solving, and writing through real world, field-based learning experiences.” In short, the same 200 4th and 5th-grade students spend half of each school day for a full school year at the PWLC, where four district teachers have their own classrooms plus the 330-acre outdoor classroom for providing hands-on learning for their students.

At Sherburne, we have incorporated the principles of the PWLC Compass to Nature method into our approach and have developed our own standards-based curriculum for our work with our partner schools. Further, our education volunteers and some of our partner-school teachers have participated in the excellent Teaching in the Outdoor Classroom Workshop at the PWLC. We are grateful to the staff of the PWLC (past and present) as well as to the PWLC Friends for providing and supporting this valuable program. The Friends’ support has been essential—whether handling registrations for the outdoor classroom workshop, providing essential funding for the naturalist who manages the PWLC greenhouse, or rewarding Prairie Science Class students with ice cream on the last day of school. Hats off to the staff and Friends at the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center!

Our Fall Features Include:

Read All Of The Stories!

Sincerely,
Sue Hix, Editor
Friends of Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge. MN

Credits

The Fall 2022 version of The Link has been a coordinated effort between the National Wildlife Refuge Association and Coalition of Refuge Friends & Advocates. 

To receive the next issue of The Link, complete the form at the bottom of this page https://www.refugeassociation.org/friends. And please add refugeassociation.org to the safe list for your email account.

You’re invited to join the CORFA Facebook group, a place to connect with other amazing members of the Friends community to share information, insights, and experiences concerning nonprofit governance, management, and advocacy. Go to  https://www.facebook.com/groups/coalitionofrefugefriends/ and request to join this private group.

  • Sue Hix (Editor) – Friends of Sherburne NWR
  • Joan Patterson (Co-editor)—Coalition of Refuge Friends and Advocates 
  • Libby Marking—NWRA Director of Government Affairs & Public Policy
  • Eden Taylor (designer)— NWRA Communications Associate 
  • Friends Editorial Staff:
    • Cheryl Hart—NWRA Board, Board member of Friends of Tualatin River NWR 
    • Kathy Woodward—Former NWRA Board Member, Board member of Friends of Great Swamp NWR 
    • Jim Stone– NWRA Board, Board member of Friends of the Wichitas

Continue ReadingThe Link — Fall 2022 Newsletter

The Link — Summer 2022 Newsletter

  • Post category:News
  • Reading time:6 mins read

The Link is a quarterly newsletter produced in coordination between Friends, the National Wildlife Refuge Association and Coalition of Refuge Friends & Advocates.

Summertime and more folks are on the road again visiting family and friends, state and national parks—and our national wildlife refuges and fish hatcheries. This issue features stunning photos by Friends of refuges from Hawaii to the east coast. Friends mentors have been on the road again as well; enjoy photos from their visits to Maine and California. 

Vacation time means that we also have the opportunity to meet with our elected officials as the House and Senate take recess. We have included tips for inviting your Congress members to visit your site and an example of a compelling story that can help you compose your own story to tell once those representatives arrive at your refuge or hatchery. On the subject of advocacy, “meet” Libby Marking, the new Director of Government Affairs & Public Policy for the National Wildlife Refuge Association. 

Finally, read about CORFA and fellow Friends meeting with USFWS Director Martha Williams, participate in a CORFA online questionnaire, and see what webinars are on the calendar for the next few months. It’s another jam-packed issue for you to enjoy! 

Our Summer Features Include:

Read All Of The Stories!

Sincerely,
Sue Hix, Editor
Friends of Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge. MN

Credits

The Summer 2022 version of The Link has been a coordinated effort between the National Wildlife Refuge Association and Coalition of Refuge Friends & Advocates. 

To receive the next issue of The Link, complete the form at the bottom of this page https://www.refugeassociation.org/friends. And please add refugeassociation.org to the safe list for your email account.

You’re invited to join the CORFA Facebook group, a place to connect with other amazing members of the Friends community to share information, insights, and experiences concerning nonprofit governance, management, and advocacy. Go to  https://www.facebook.com/groups/coalitionofrefugefriends/ and request to join this private group.

  • Sue Hix (Editor) – Friends of Sherburne NWR
  • Joan Patterson (Co-editor)—Coalition of Refuge Friends and Advocates 
  • Libby Marking—NWRA Director of Government Affairs & Public Policy
  • Eden Taylor (designer)— NWRA Communications Associate 
  • Friends Editorial Staff:
    • Cheryl Hart—NWRA Board, Board member of Friends of Tualatin River NWR 
    • Kathy Woodward—Former NWRA Board Member, Board member of Friends of Great Swamp NWR 
    • Jim Stone– NWRA Board, Board member of Friends of the Wichitas

Continue ReadingThe Link — Summer 2022 Newsletter

The Link — Spring 2022 Newsletter

  • Post category:News
  • Reading time:6 mins read

The Link is a quarterly newsletter produced in coordination between Friends, the National Wildlife Refuge Association and Coalition of Refuge Friends & Advocates.

Spring is taking its time getting to Central Minnesota this year. For several days in mid-March, warm, sunny days got our hopes up, but those hopes were soon dashed by bone-chilling winds, persistent gray clouds, below-normal temperatures, and s-n-o-w—that we’re still experiencing in mid-April. Despite the weather, though, the distinctive sounds of sandhill cranes, trumpeter swans, and red-winged blackbirds in the wetlands have assured us that Mother Nature is still on schedule; and once the ice goes out and we see loons on the lakes, we’ll know for sure that it’s time to start checking ourselves and our pets for ticks. Ah, spring!

The definition of “spring” varies with location, so we’ve asked some Friends from across the country to send us photos of springtime on their refuges and tell us what special activities are in store for people visiting those refuges in the next couple of months. For example, here at Sherburne, there will be the opening of the Wildlife Drive, a couple of bird hikes, a Spring Celebration, and visits from Partner School students as we cautiously proceed to greet visitors in person after the long COVID-19 hiatus. 

We at The Link hope that you’ll enjoy this issue with photos of spring and other features geared to the interests of Friends everywhere.

Our Spring Features Include:

Read All Of The Stories!

Sincerely,
Sue Hix, Editor
Friends of Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge

Credits

The Spring 2022 version of The Link has been a coordinated effort between the National Wildlife Refuge Association and Coalition of Refuge Friends & Advocates. 

To receive the next issue of The Link, complete the form at the bottom of this page https://www.refugeassociation.org/friends. And please add refugeassociation.org to the safe list for your email account.

You’re invited to join the CORFA Facebook group, a place to connect with other amazing members of the Friends community to share information, insights, and experiences concerning nonprofit governance, management, and advocacy. Go to  https://www.facebook.com/groups/coalitionofrefugefriends/ and request to join this private group.

  • Sue Hix (Editor) – Friends of Sherburne NWR
  • Joan Patterson (Co-editor)—Coalition of Refuge Friends and Advocates 
  • Caroline Brouwer—NWRA VP of Government Affairs 
  • Eden Taylor (designer)— NWRA Communications Associate 
  • Friends Editorial Staff:
    • Cheryl Hart—NWRA Board, Board member of Friends of Tualatin River NWR 
    • Kathy Woodward—Former NWRA Board Member, Board member of Friends of Great Swamp NWR 
    • Jim Stone– NWRA Board, Board member of Friends of the Wichitas

Continue ReadingThe Link — Spring 2022 Newsletter

You’re Invited to a Conversation about Arctic NWR

  • Post category:Advocacy
  • Reading time:2 mins read
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is one of our nation’s most majestic public lands, home to the Porcupine Caribou Herd, denning polar bears, musk oxen, wolves, and nearly 200 species of migratory birds. Its biological heart, the coastal plain, is no place for oil and gas development. 
 
As goes that Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, could go any refuge. Joining the effort to protect the Arctic Refuge, in turn prepares refuge advocates to protect their local refuge.  The National Wildlife Refuge Association is hosting a series of conversations designed to educate and engage refuge friends groups through an online discussion.  Please join Kristen Berry for a one hour online discussion to learn how you can help. 
 
We are offering several sessions that you and other refuge advocates can join in order to get the latest information and support in finding out the best ways you can contribute your voice to the effort to protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. These will be small, intimate groups where you can ask questions and learn how you can join the fight.
To register go to: REGISTRATION CLOSED
Continue ReadingYou’re Invited to a Conversation about Arctic NWR

Your Mission Matters

  • Post category:Advocacy
  • Reading time:6 mins read

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Your Mission Matters
by Joan Patterson

Many years ago one of the founders of the Friends of Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge proposed amending the group’s bylaws to change its mission from supporting the Service to supporting the refuge. I am so thankful that the membership had the foresight to approve the amendment.

You see this particular founder was a leading advocate for the creation of the refuge and even donated 12-acres to get the refuge established. She and others in the area saw the refuge as a community asset. However, twenty plus years ago a refuge in a metropolitan area was controversial and some members of the community had a nagging concerns that the Service might pull the plug on the project.

Thankfully that did not happen and the refuge is now one of the Refuge System’s leading urban refuges.

In the case of Tualatin River changing the wording of the Friends’ mission from “Service” to “refuge” ensured the Friends’ ongoing support for the refuge’s natural, cultural, educational, and recreational resources. In the original mission statement, the word “Service” referred to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service organization and not the Service’s mission which is “…working with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people.” This change to the group’s mission is even more important today than it was then.

The Refuge System is faced with external and internal threats. Historically, Friends have spoken up against external threats such as: militants occupying Malheur National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), language in the Puerto Rico debt relief bill to transfer ownership of a portion of Vieques NWR, and current legislation to transfer portions of Desert and Monomoy refuges out of the System. The National Wildlife Refuge Association keeps Friends informed of these threats.

Proposals or actions by an Administration can create predicaments for Friends. For example, the current GOP platform (and I’m not saying which party I support), calls for the transfer of federal lands to states. It declares,“Congress shall immediately pass universal legislation providing for a timely and orderly mechanism requiring the federal government to convey certain federally controlled public lands to states.” Imagine a future Administration implementing this provision – YOUR national wildlife refuge could easily be turned over to the state and thus no longer protected under the Refuge System Administration Act or Refuge System Improvement Act – both ensure lands and waters in the System are managed for biodiversity and wildlife dependent public use. As federal employees who work for such an Administration, Refuge System staff would have to support such a proposal, but Friends who support the mission of their refuge, the Refuge System, or the Service’s mission (instead of the Service organization) could take action against such a proposal. However, if your group’s mission supported the Service, you would also have to support the Administration’s proposal.

There may be times that Friends will disagree with an action proposed by the Service. This year the Service began discussions about potential support of legislation to transfer the National Bison Range in Montana to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. Transfer of this national wildlife refuge would require legislative action by the U.S. Congress. The National Environmental Policy Act requires proposed legislation that has a significant effect to include an environmental impact statement (EIS). The Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility and others believe that this transfer proposal would have a significant effect and, therefore, the Service must conduct an environmental analysis. However, the initial legislation that the Department of the Interior helped draft specifies that the transfer is not a major federal action and therefore does not require environmental analysis. Or take another example when in a previous Administration: the Service was supportive of the de-designation of wilderness at the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska and subsequent transfer of lands to the state in order to build a road through the heart of the refuge. Or yet again during a previous Administration when the Service supported drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Regardless of whether the proposed transfer at the National Bison Range might be appropriate, the Service needs to adhere to the National Environmental Policy Act and adhere to regulations of the President’s Council on Environmental Quality. An EIS would provide a transparent, public forum for the Service to explain its proposed transfer and alternatives to it, and discuss the relative impacts of such actions. Hopefully the Service will not support legislation that will bypass Federal environmental requirements that would chastise another agencies for attempting to avoid. Additionally, while the draft legislation states that this transfer should not be viewed as precedent for any other federal properties or facilities, in fact it would establish a dangerous political precedent. This is a difficult situation tied up in history and culture and hopefully whatever the resolution is will ensure the protection of the wildlife the Range currently protects.

If a future Administration were to implement the transfer of federal lands to willing states, I just can’t imagine supporting the removal of the Tualatin River NWR from the Refuge System. My family and I, like so many community members, dedicated so much time and energy to getting that refuge established and open to the public so everyone can experience the wonders of nature.

So I am very thankful that one of the leading advocates for the creation of the Tualatin River NWR had the foresight to propose amending the bylaws and more importantly having discussions with the board, members, and the Refuge employees on the importance of supporting the refuge, its resources, and the entire Refuge System versus the Service organization. It was important for both parties to discuss what the term “Service” means.

That discussion at Tualatin about our mission enhanced the partnership between the Friends and Refuge employees. It affirmed our joint commitment to conserving and restoring habitat for the benefit of wildlife, the surrounding communities, and the nation. This affirmation recognized our common vision and acknowledged that both organizations could support the vision through different means. Friends and Refuge employees knew that based upon our shared vision we would work together and on those rare occasions when either party’s policy or action conflicted with the shared vision, Friends and the Service had the capacity to respectfully disagree.

I urge you – if you haven’t yet – to have this mission conversation with your Friends board. Ensure that you can always be a powerful voice for your refuge, your community, and for your National Wildlife Refuge System. Our voices supporting public lands is more important now than ever.

Continue ReadingYour Mission Matters