January 2009

In this issue

	Volunteer Work Parties
	Volunteer Classified
	News From Around the State

Other news

To view this and other future issues online, visit the volunteer page of our Web site.

Questions or comments?

Contact Barbara French, Volunteer Program Manager, at bfrench@tnc.org or at (206) 343-4345, ext. 361.

Volunteer Work Parties

Prairie Restoration
Thurston County

Although winter is upon us, volunteer work parties continue year-round in the South Sound. Join other hardy volunteers in planting native plants, conifer removal, pulling Scotch broom or building bat boxes. Come learn about prairie restoration and meet other volunteers. Work parties are from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

January 10, February 14: Work parties are held at Glacial Heritage Preserve every second Saturday of each month. Occasional bonfires and potlucks are a special treat. Contact Carri Marschner at cmarschner@tnc.org or             (360) 480-7534.

January 17, February 21: Every third Saturday of each month, volunteers restore the lovely prairies at Tenalquot Preserve. Contact Grace Diehl at gdiehl@tnc.org or (360) 870-5500. New faces always welcome!

February 28: Join a work party at the fascinating Mima Mounds on the fourth Saturday of the month, hosted by our partners, the Washington Department of Natural Resources. Snacks and drinks provided. Contact Birdie Davenport at roberta.davenport@dnr.wa.gov or (360) 789-5754.

Ivy and Holly Pull
Saturday, February 21
Foulweather Bluff, Kitsap County

Each year in winter or early spring, volunteers scour the forest at Foulweather Bluff in search of young holly or ivy sprouts to keep the preserve free of these invasive plants. Be prepared to scramble over logs and crash through dense brush. You’ll get wet and muddy, but that’s half the fun!

We can use as many volunteers as we can get, so bring your friends. Not suitable for young children or those not physically agile. Plan to bring full raingear, boots, gloves, lunch and water. We will meet at the site at 10 a.m. and work until 3 p.m. To sign up and for more information please contact Barbara French, bfrench@tnc.org or (206) 343-4345, ext. 361.

Volunteer Classified

Database Design
Seattle, King County

Are you a whiz with Access? Do you enjoy designing databases? The Conservancy’s marketing department could use your help. We’ve set up a database and are now seeking a volunteer who can complete the design and train our team on how to pull the information we need. To find out more, contact Jeff Compton at jcompton@tnc.org or (206) 343-4345 ext. 384.
 

Digital Assistant, Climate Adaptation Team
Seattle, King County

The Conservancy's climate adaptation team is seeking a volunteer to post project information to an online site to keep team members informed of project updates. Will provide instruction for uploading and organizing documents. Volunteer will solicit and collect content from team representatives, design a process to manage online updates and assist team in updating an Excel database.

Requirements include: excellent follow-through and organization skills, attention to detail, familiarity with Word, Excel, Powerpoint, public information Web sites and digital resource libraries; adept at learning new software. Project can be done from home or Conservancy's Seattle office.

Be part of this exciting team that is working on priority issues for the Conservancy. For more information, please contact Barbara French at bfrench@tnc.org.
 

Office Assistance
Seattle, King County

It’s clean-up time in the grants department. We’re in need of a volunteer to purge two file cabinets, discard old files by recycling or shredding materials and update an Excel file. Several partial days of work should complete the project. The only experience required is basic computer and typing skills. For more information, contact Barbara French at bfrench@tnc.org.

News From Around the State

Nature and Economics to Collide in Olympia?

Do your elected representatives know how you feel about our rich natural heritage? The State Legislature is about to start its 2009-2011 session. They've got a huge budget problem and, like many other areas, nature will feel the pinch.

But investments in Washington's natural heritage remain a great way to ensure a better quality of life. Ask your representatives to support conservation this year. Speak up for nature this winter! Click here for help in getting started.
 

Help Us Reach Out Online

The Conservancy would like to make it easier for environmentally-minded folks like you to find us. To that end, we’re interested in connecting with relevant online communities. What forums, blogs, message boards, list serves, social networks and other online communities do you think we should be a part of? Where do you go online?

If you have any thoughts, suggestions or time to share your knowledge on this topic, please contact Jeff Compton at jcompton@tnc.org. He'd love to talk with you!