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Please send items of interest to Kristen.
Industry, Innovation, and Inquiry: Bringing the Science of Berkshire Innovators into the Classroom
Berkshire Museum to host MITS summer institute for middle and high school teachers – July 14-18
The focus of this valuable professional development opportunity is on enhancing science content, promoting best practices in STEM-related curriculum design, and introducing teachers to local leaders in innovation and industry. During the week, teachers will get a chance to take ‘back stage tours’ at the facilities of these science and technology leaders, including:
The Chamberlain Group: where they specialize in designing and building life-like models of human organs for use by medical professionals to practice and develop medical procedures.
General Dynamics: where engineers develop and test state-of-the-art technology used on military submarines and surface ships.
Sabic Innovative Plastics: specializes in testing, treating, and manipulating plastics and other polymers to meet the needs of a wide variety of clients.
The Samson Environmental Center at the Darrow School: home of a Living Machine that uses bacteria, plants, and natural filtration methods to treat the campus waste and return it, clean, to the watershed.
New State Land Report Out Now
from Mass Audubon’s Beacon Hill Weekly Roundup
Thanks to a $280 million investment in land conservation by Governor Patrick’s Administration, 100,000 acres of land in Massachusetts have been permanently protected and 150 new parks have been created. The 100,000 Acre Report, recently released by the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, explores how members of the public, land trusts, and municipalities helped to make this effort happen.
See the full report here: http://www.mass.gov/eea/docs/eea/land/100k-acre-report-r1.pdf
House Budget Amendments Filed
from Mass Audubon’s Beacon Hill Weekly Roundup
The House Committee on Ways and Means released its version of the FY15 budget on Wednesday, April 9th, and 1,175 proposed budget amendments were filed. Mass Audubon weighed in on the amendments we feel should be approved, in keeping with our advocacy for public environmental programs that help protect the nature of Massachusetts.
The amendments we support include increased funding for the Blue Hills Trailside Museum, State Parks and Recreation, Climate Change Adaptation and Preparedness, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and increased support for Natural Heritage Areas, among others.
The full House will begin the FY15 budget debate on Monday, April 28. See our letter for more details.
Berkshire Harvest Rental Kitchen
Are you growing food and wishing you could add value to it via use of a commercial kitchen? Well a space with rental opportunities is now open in Lee, Mass, the brand-new Berkshire Harvest Rental Kitchen, 195 Water St. in Lee (Route 20, just east of Prime Outlets and next to the East Lee Package Store).
The kitchen is owned by Tina and Rod Clark, who also own Clark’s Garden Center in Lee.
Pass it on, contact there is Tina Clark <bhrk195@gmail.com>
Work with Greenagers this summer!
We’re hiring: Greenagers has 40 (yes, 40!) trail crew positions available for this summer. The Greenagers Community Work Initiative is a Summer Employment Program for local youth, aged 15 to 18. This program focuses on providing cohesive, respectful, and skillful work crews for our local conserved and agricultural lands. There are 5 crew options this year, three in Berkshire County and two in Columbia County. The three Berkshire County crew options are outlined below; if you or someone you know is interested in the Columbia County crews, please contact the Greenagers office for crew details and an application. We also have a strong Farm Apprenticeships program (paid work on local farms). If you would prefer to spend your days farming, that is the program for you. Contact the office for details.
Crew 1 (Berkshire): Trails and Farms (mostly trails). June 30th – Aug. 7th, Mon.-Thurs.
Crew 2 (Berkshire): Trails and Farms (mostly trails). July 27th – Aug. 20th, Mon.-Thurs.
Crew 3 (Berkshire): Appalachian Trail Crew. July 7th – Aug. 1st. Mon. – Fri.
The day begins at 8:30 at the Greenagers office in Great Barrington, the workday ends at 5 p.m. (with lunch and snack breaks in-between, of course) back at the office. Workers are expected to arrive ready to go, with proper clothing, footwear, water, and lunch.
Skills involved include rock work, soil work, hand tool work, plant and tree identification, trail maintenance methods, invasive species mitigation, and more. Crew members are not expected to have these skills, but they are expected to be willing to learn them.
Berkshire County Crew Applications can be downloaded here. Applications are due by the end of the day on Wednesday, April 30th.
For more information, or to receive an emailed or hard copy application, please contact Greenagers at office@greenagers.org or 413-644-9090. Applications are also available at the guidance departments of Monument Mountain and Mt. Everett High Schools.
Thank you to our program partners: National Park Service, The Nature Conservancy, Columbia Land Conservancy, Berkshire Natural Resources Council, Housatonic River Walk, CHP, Monterey Preservation Land Trust, Berkshire Co-op Market, Myrin Preserve, and Great Barrington Land Conservancy.
And a big thank you, also, to our program sponsors: Berkshire United Way, Berkshire Bank Foundation, Berkshire Hills Fund for Excellence at Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation.
Greenagers
Greenagers provides employment and volunteer opportunities for teens and young adults in conservation, sustainable farming, and environmental leadership. Through vocational programs, Greenagers prepares youth for success in their educational and work life.