I’m not alone when I say that this year’s MEES Conference was reinvigorating.  Each year I rely on the MEES Conference to inspire me for months.  This year’s spring weather climbed to eighty degrees and the environmental educators in attendance at the College of Holy Cross were even warmer.

After reconnecting with friends and colleagues, I attended three fabulous workshops.  Author Michael Wojtech’s Bark: Get to Know Your Trees, whose easy and enthusiastic style kept participants actively involved and excited about a valuable tree ID method that works all year long.  Next, I attended Lush Habitats: Schoolyard Design to Engage Children with MA Learning Standards with Virginia Sullivan, Principal at Learning by the Yard.  Sullivan’s passion for teaching and learning was obvious.  I was inspired by her creative and innovative ability to develop outdoor learning spaces.  Lastly, I attended the MEES Board’s Environmental Literacy Plan, facilitated by Amy Hoffmaster.  The room was filled with environmental educators from a diverse range of backgrounds developing a collected vision for the future of Massachusetts’ Environmental Literacy Plan.  It was wonderful to see all of the participants sharing their visions.

With all of the networking, idea sharing and collaboration at this year’s MEES conference, I have my work cut out for me. Looking toward the future, my head is filled with a year’s worth of new and exciting projects for Nature’s Classroom.  And I can’t wait to see MEES’s continued work on the Massachusetts Environmental Literacy Plan!  It certainly is an exciting time to be a Massachusetts environmental educator.

Difficult Topics:
Diversity and Inclusion
By Ann Gisinger

I had the pleasure of attending Garry Dow and Sarah Bursky’s MEES Conference workshop “Inclusion and Diversity in Environmental Education: A pragmatic approach to shifting demographics”.  They tackled a very difficult set of topics – what does diversity and inclusion look like?  “Who” is included in the discussion?  What are the key questions to ask yourself (and your team) when thinking about diversity and inclusion?  Are there universal steps in the right direction?

These are tough questions and Garry and Sarah addressed them in a very hands-on way – with a worksheet designed to make each person think outside the box.  Folks were very engaged and came away from the program a little bit more energized and ready to make some change!  I personally enjoyed the discussion that was encouraged by the presenters during major points in the workshop.  We all need to be challenged when it comes to diversity and inclusion within our organizations.

I commend these two for presenting a difficult topic in a down-to-earth way.  I really appreciated hearing from them about how The Trustees of Reservations, their parent organization, had begun to think through its statewide diversity and inclusion initiative.  What a refreshing and honest workshop.

MEES BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS

Thank you to our departing friends!

The MEES Board would like to extend a heartfelt thank-you to our three departing board members! We are very sad to see Dana McNamee, GayLynne Samsonoff, and Betsey Clifford jump off the board. Wishing them the best of luck this spring and beyond!

The MEES Board would also like to thank Emily Carreiro for her time as President of MEES. She has stepped down but remains an ever-cheerful and all-knowing member of the board. We’re glad to see her smiling (and relaxed!) face at each meeting.

Announcing the newest MEES Officers!

• Amy Hoffmaster, President
• Louise Beaudry, Vice-President
• Kathryn Parent, Treasurer
• Ann Gisinger, Clerk

CALL FOR BOARD MEMBERS