Author: Anshome

ANS Parent Guide

Post author By Anshome
Post date June 22, 2018

For Immediate Release: Thursday, June 21, 2018
For more information, contact Caroline Brewer, caroline.brewer@anshome.org or 202-830-5115 or or Lisa Goodnight, lglisagoodnight@gmail.com, 301-523-5394

CHEVY CHASE, MD – Just in time for summer, a brand new guide from the Audubon Naturalist Society offers families a little instruction book on how – and why -- to help children engage with nature. The ANS Parent Guide: How to Help Children Fall in Love with Nature (and Why), was written by ANS naturalists and educators. The guide is a response to the public health crisis of Americans spending more time in front of screens than ever before, and a tool for parents looking for fun, safe, and developmental activities for children, now that school is out.

The Parent Guide includes 11 fun, educational, and inspirational recipes, such as building forts and dams, tracking animals, dissecting flowers, growing herbs, taking color and shape hikes, and making music with trees. Recipes always include key ingredients for success, such as sticks, rocks, old clothes, hula hoops, and rulers. The guide also highlights dozens of the DC region’s most beautiful places to enjoy nature, meaning there are hundreds of ways to connect with the environment in this one handy book.

The “recipes” were designed with children 8 and younger in mind, but children-at-heart are invited to use it to explore as well.

The nature love book also offers links and summaries to scientific research about the physical, mental, emotional and social benefits of children spending more time outdoors.

"Let your youngsters be the master chefs of their environment!” the authors proclaim. “As your child’s sous chef, you can provide the raw materials they need to create something magical.”

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About ANS: ANS is the oldest, independent environmental organization in the DMV. Throughout its history, ANS has played a pivotal role in conserving our region’s iconic natural places from development including the C&O Canal, Dyke Marsh and, most recently, Ten Mile Creek. Past ANS member and board president, Rachel Carson, author of Silent Spring, is credited with launching the now global environmental movement. ANS’s nature experts provide hundreds of opportunities each year for children and adults to enjoy, learn about, and protect the environment.

Follow ANS at www.Facebook.com/AudubonNaturalistSociety and www.Twitter.com/ANStweets

Uncategorized

Rachel Carson: #OnthisDay in history, May 27 – One of the greatest environmentalists of all time was born

Post author By Anshome
Post date May 25, 2018

Rachel Carson Couldn't Swim - And Other Things You Might Not Know About the Woman Who Started the Modern Environmental Movement

On Carson's Birthday, May 27, ANS Invites You to Learn More
from Her Biographer About Her Remarkable Life

For Immediate Release – May 25, 2018

For more information, contact caroline.brewer@anshome.org or 301-652-9188 x23 or lglisagoodnight@gmail, 301-523-5394

CHEVY CHASE, MD - Schools, parks, and other important landmarks are named after Rachel Carson to honor her invaluable contributions to the environmental movement. While much is known about her life, there is still more to learn.

To mark Carson's 111th birthday, the Audubon Naturalist Society is offering new insight into her life courtesy of Carson's Definitive Biographer Linda Lear, a longtime ANS member, whose ANS lecture: Rachel Carson and Her Friends will debut on ANS's YouTube channel and Facebook page on Sunday.

Lear is willing to speak with media this weekend. Her biography of Carson was awarded the prize for the best book on women in science by the History of Science Society for 1998 and has been translated into Japanese, Chinese, Mandarin, and Korean editions. Lear has been featured in two PBS specials on the life of Rachel Carson, discussing the intimate biography and the legendary scientist's writings and letters.

Here are three things people may not know about Carson:

For someone who was in love with the ocean and wrote the incredibly compelling and internationally bestselling The Sea Around Us, Carson was a terrible swimmer. Going underwater in a 50-lb steel helmet and diving equipment, as she did once for observation in a diving bell, was deeply courageous. “The Sea Around Us was nothing short of a biography of the sea, which made Carson the trusted public voice of science in America,” according to her biographer, Linda Lear. (www.rachelcarson.org)
Carson was an ardent Democrat, serving first under Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes, and then Secretary Stewart Udall. She was frequently invited to Robert Kennedy's private think-tank soirees.
Carson embraced the organic food movement, at Marjorie Spock's insistence, but could not be public about it because the Nutrition Foundation would have been even more critical of her. They were one of her biggest critics because she was advocating the end of pesticides, which were used heavily in production of American agricultural products.

Follow ANS at www.Facebook.com/AudubonNaturalistSociety and www.Twitter.com/ANStweets

NEWS RELEASE

ANS Issues Earth Month Challenge for DC to Go Wild for at Least an Hour a Day

Post author By Anshome
Post date April 6, 2018

For Immediate Release:April 6, 2018
For more information, contact Caroline Brewer, caroline.brewer@anshome.org or 202-830-5115

CHEVY CHASE, MD – The Audubon Naturalist Society is challenging the DC area to get up and go outside – for the fun of it! Researchers say Americans live the majority of their lives indoors, despite the well-documented benefits of being in nature and the wilderness. ANS wants to buck this “indoor species” trend by showcasing more than 30 of the region’s most beloved outdoor spaces and challenging the DMV to spend more time – at least an hour a day - in nature for pleasure. Because scientific studies say the great outdoors is good for the mind, body, spirit, and creativity, ANS is hopeful that spending at least 60 minutes connecting with nature will become habit-forming, for adults, as well as children, who, one leading researcher says, are outdoors fewer than seven minutes a day, on average.

Fueled by the slogan, “Wild Places Are Closer than You Think. Follow Me!” the goal of the #ANSEarthMonth challenge is get people to visit outdoor spaces in the DMV, such as Rock Creek Park, Great Falls, the National Arboretum, Dumbarton Oaks, ANS’s Woodend and Rust nature sanctuaries , and the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, where Harriet Tubman grew up. (Download the ANS Earth Month Locations PDF)

Tubman and Henry David Thoreau are inspirations for the new campaign because of their extraordinary connections to nature. As for the modern-day benefits of being outdoors, here are a few facts:

Exposure to trees, the sky and birdsong is beneficial for mental wellbeing of city dwellers.
Memory performance and attention spans improved by 20 percent after people spent an hour interacting with nature.
Parents say their 8 to 12-year-old children spend three times as many hours with computers and TVs each week as they do playing outside.
More than half of adults spend 5 hours or less a week outdoors.
Time spent outdoors can relieve chronic conditions so more doctors and health care providers are actually prescribing nature through a national initiative called Parks Rx.
Increasing time spent outdoors may reduce the risk of developing nearsightedness in children.

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Follow ANS at www.Facebook.com/AudubonNaturalistSociety and www.Twitter.com/ANStweets

NEWS ALERT NEWS RELEASE

Environmental Champions

Post author By Anshome
Post date February 27, 2018

For Immediate Release: February 27, 2018
For more information, contact Caroline Brewer, caroline.brewer@anshome.org or 301- 652-9188 x 23, or cell, 202-830-5115

Chevy Chase, MD – The Audubon Naturalist Society will salute national, regional, legacy, and youth environmental figures for engaging in service that improves the quality of life for under-resourced African American communities in ways that are unique, groundbreaking, and pioneering during the second-ever Taking Nature Black conference.

The 2018 #TakingNatureBlack Environmental Champions are:

MacArthur "Genius" Award-Winner Octavia Estelle Butler is the 2018 Taking Nature Black Legacy Environmental Champion. Butler, who died in 2006, was a writer, cultural critic, and literary force of nature. The Washington Post called her “a master storyteller and one of the finest voices in fiction, period.” Calling attention to environmental degradation and its effects on humanity was a theme she repeated in many of her science fiction novels.

Alan Spears, who played a crucial role in the campaign and designation of the Harriet Tubman Underground National Monument from 2011-13, is a National Environmental Champion. Alan is currently the Director of Cultural Resources at the National Parks Conservation Association. He helped gain passage of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Funding Re-authorization Act of 2008. Recently, Alan led, co-led, or supported five successful national monument campaigns including Fort Monroe, Charles Young, Pullman, and Harriet Tubman.

Pioneering Environmental Justice Advocate Vernice Miller-Travis, a former program officer at the Ford Foundation, who created the foundation’s first-ever environmental justice grant-making portfolio, and who served as a member of the EPA's National Environmental Justice Advisory Council, is also a National Environmental Champion. Vernice, in 2017, helped published a report on recommendations for how the EPA could more thoroughly integrate environmental justice considerations into core permitting functions.

Vince Leggett, an expert on the Chesapeake Bay, its tributaries, and the history of African Americans on the Bay dating back to the Underground Railroad, is a Regional Environmental Champion. Vince has served as historical consultant for several documentary film projects focused on the Chesapeake’s diverse history, including the nationally broadcast PBS documentary, The War of 1812. He also has served on the Advisory Committee for the Harriet Tubman National Park.

Award-Winning and Trailblazing Researcher and Environmental Health Scientist Dr. Sacoby Wilson, Director of the Community Engagement, Environmental Justice and Health (CEEJH) Initiative at the University of Maryland, is also a Regional Environmental Champion. Wilson, an associate professor at the University of Maryland School of Public Health in College Park, works in the areas of exposure science, environmental justice, environmental health disparities, water quality analysis, air pollution studies, sustainability, and more.

Kari Fulton, an award-winning environmental and climate justice advocate and organizer, who recently served as Interim Director of the Environmental Justice Climate Change Initiative, the first domestic coalition for Climate Justice, is being honored as a Regional Environmental Champion as well.

The conference's first Youth Environmental Champion is DaJuan Gay, a college student who has fought for low-income citizens to have access to the Chesapeake Bay, and stresses the importance of expanding environmental education to low-income and predominantly minority communities.

The Taking Nature Black Conference is a signature Black History Month event that celebrates African Americans in the environmental space, and provides educational, career-building, and networking opportunities.

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Follow ANS at www.Facebook.com/AudubonNaturalistSociety and www.Twitter.com/ANStweets

TNB2018

Cherod Hicks

Post author By Anshome
Post date February 21, 2018

Cherod Hicks

Cherod Hicks is an Environmental Engineer for the Baltimore City Department of Public Works, Office of Engineering and Construction. He is a project manager in the Environmental Engineering Project Delivery Section. He has experience speaking to the importance of environmental engineering practices, how treating stormwater runoff creates potable water, the importance of environmental engineering and the impact engineering departments have on the communities they serve. Cherod works closely with all members of City Council to educate and inform them of environmental projects his department has planned in their districts. He supports community outreach and educating residents when talking about clean water, stormwater, wastewater, flood mitigation, and other environmental impact issues.

Cherod received his Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering with honors from Morgan State University this past December. He is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity and was president of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Student Section. He is pursuing a Ph. D. in geotechnical engineering.

NEWS MEDIA STATEMENT

White House Budget Proposal

Post author By Anshome
Post date February 13, 2018

For Immediate Release: February 13, 2018
For more information, contact Caroline Brewer, caroline.brewer@anshome.org or 202-830-5115

In response to President Trump’s budget proposal, ANS Executive Director Lisa Alexander issued the following the statement:

“We’re appalled. President Trump has shown a complete disregard for the fundamental American values of conserving clean air, clean water, and green spaces. As we witnessed, once again, during our visits to Capitol Hill just last week, conservation is not a red state issue or a blue state issue. It’s a core American value. He might be finished, but we’re not. We’re going to keep fighting for the Chesapeake Bay Program, which is an economic driver for this region, as are so many of the other programs that are affected by this poorly imagined budget.”

Examples of how Trump’s budget could affect the DC metro region:

Many programs funded by these agencies send critical grants for local conservation to states and community organizations. For example:
· The 28% cut to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, which funds local stream restorations, urban tree planting, wildfire restoration, and so much more. This program has been a huge contributor to restoring the Anacostia River.

· The 90% cut to the Chesapeake Bay Program, which delivers tens of millions of dollars in grants throughout the six-state Chesapeake Bay watershed to improve water quality and restore stream habitat and Bay health. Many of these grants go to farmers to improve their practices on their farms to reduce waste and control water pollution.

· The 100% cut to the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund, which provides grant funding to states to conserve and restore endangered species habitat. 100% cut!!

· Also, the White House release claims that, “To further boost hunting opportunities, the Budget invests $34 million in North American Wetlands Conservation Act grants, a program that finances conservation of wetlands and associated uplands habitat to benefit waterfowl.” This is indeed an important source of funding for wetlands conservation…but that topline trumpeting of its importance hides the fact that the request actually reduces this amount by 11%!

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Follow ANS at www.Facebook.com/AudubonNaturalistSociety and www.Twitter.com/ANStweets

TNB2018

Dawone Robinson

Post author By Anshome
Post date February 7, 2018

Dawone Robinson

Dawone Robinson works for the Natural Resources Defense Council, focusing on promoting increased access to energy efficiency and renewable energy resources for multifamily and low-income households. As part of the Energy Efficiency for All project, Dawone helps organize state coalitions and provides educational support for organizations and individuals working on energy efficiency and renewable energy policies.

He currently serves as a member of the Virginia Advisory Council on Environmental Justice, an appointment he received from former Governor Terry McAuliffe. In his previous role, Dawone served as Virginia policy director for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, an organization focusing on climate change impacts and clean energy solutions in Virginia. Dawone received his bachelor's degree from Iowa State University and a J.D. from Drake University Law School.

ANS EXPERTS CONSERVATION EDUCATION ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY POLITICAL ACTION WATER QUALITY WATERSHED

Eliza Cava

Post author By Anshome
Post date February 7, 2018

ELIZA CAVA

Eliza joined ANS as Director of Conservation in 2016. She is an avid canoer and kayaker and believes that healthy streams mean healthy communities. Prior to joining ANS, Eliza worked at Defenders of Wildlife, analyzing federal projects and policies that touched upon a broad range of renewable energy, land management, and wildlife conservation issues. Before working in environmental policy, Eliza was an environmental and outdoor educator in Maryland, Massachusetts, Tennessee, and Oregon.

Eliza received a B.A. in Environmental Education from Swarthmore College and a Master of Environmental Science from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, and is a Senior Fellow in the Environmental Leadership Program’s Chesapeake Regional Network.

ANS EXPERTS CONSERVATION EDUCATION ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ENVIRONMENTAL RESTORATION POLITICAL ACTION Uncategorized WATERSHED YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

Lisa Alexander

Post author By Anshome
Post date February 6, 2018

LISA ALEXANDER

Lisa Alexander has served as ANS’s Executive Director since 2013. As Executive Director, she has created a visionary Master Plan that will transform ANS’s iconic headquarters at Woodend Nature Sanctuary Headquarters into a living laboratory for the study of restoration and ecological balance in our increasingly urbanized region.

Lisa plays a leading role in setting diversity, equity, accessibility and inclusion goals for environmental organizations throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Prior to stepping into the role of Executive Director, she served as both Deputy Director and Director of Environmental Education at ANS. Lisa launched the ANS GreenKids Program, an environmental education partnership with public schools that has served more than 30,000 school children in Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia since its inception in 2005.

Ms. Alexander previously worked on numerous, nationally-based educational programs and outreach efforts. She served as an Educational Resource Specialist in the National Digital Library of the Library of Congress, the Director of Product Development for Delta Education, the Science Product Manager for the School Division of Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, and as National Science Consultant for Scott, Foresman and Company.

Lisa is the 2008 recipient of the Montgomery County “Outdoor Educator of the Year” award and was honored by The Washingtonian magazine as a 2009 recipient of their Green Award for her work with GreenKids. She serves on the steering committee of the Choose Clean Water Coalition and was a member of the 2015 Rock Creek Park Green Ribbon Panel.

She has two sons and lives with her husband just steps from Rock Creek Park where she enjoys frequent hikes.

Uncategorized

William J Roberts

Post author By Anshome
Post date February 4, 2018

William J. Roberts, Esq

As the Legislative Director for Representative Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Will Roberts brings nearly a decade of experience in public policy, progressive advocacy, and coalition building to the table. As the former Legislative Director of a national advocacy organization, he helped to craft and gain support for various legislaitve proposals at the local, state, and national level – culminating in passage of several of those proposals at the ballot and through local legislatures.

In his role with Rep. Raskin, Will manages the Congressman’s legislative team and the implementation of his policy agenda. In addition to overseeing the Congressman’s work on the House Judiciary Committee and House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Will has a wide-ranging legislative portfolio including issues pertaining to Housing, Financial Services, Education, Transportation and the Environment.

William holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science with honors from Howard University and received his Juris Doctor from the Howard University School of Law. He is licensed to practice law in the state of Maryland.

ANS Parent Guide

NEWS RELEASE

ANS Experts Offer Parents Trusted ‘Recipes' Designed to Get Children to Revel in Nature

NEWS ALERT

Rachel Carson Couldn't Swim - And Other Things You Might Not Know About the Woman Who Started the Modern Environmental Movement

ANS Earth Month Challenge

NEWS RELEASE

60 Minutes a Day Earth Month Challenge Because, It’s Wild!

NEWS ALERT

Octavia E. Butler, Harriet Tubman Advocate and Other Trailblazers to Receive Awards February 28 at Taking Nature Black Conference

Get Involved

Cherod Hicks

STATEMENT

Statement on Trump's Budget and the Problems It Will Create for the DC Metro Region

Get Involved

Dawone Robinson

Media Resources

EXPERTS

DIRECTOR OF CONSERVATION
ANS

ELIZA CAVA

TAKE A TOUR

WOODEND SANCTUARY

RUST SANCTUARY

Media Resources

EXPERTS

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
ANS

LISA ALEXANDER

TAKE A TOUR

WOODEND SANCTUARY

RUST SANCTUARY

Get Involved

William J. Roberts, Esq

ANS Parent Guide

NEWS RELEASE

ANS Experts Offer Parents Trusted ‘Recipes' Designed to Get Children to Revel in Nature

NEWS ALERT

Rachel Carson Couldn't Swim - And Other Things You Might Not Know About the Woman Who Started the Modern Environmental Movement

ANS Earth Month Challenge

NEWS RELEASE

60 Minutes a Day Earth Month Challenge Because, It’s Wild!

NEWS ALERT

Octavia E. Butler, Harriet Tubman Advocate and Other Trailblazers to Receive Awards February 28 at Taking Nature Black Conference

Get Involved

Cherod Hicks

STATEMENT

Statement on Trump's Budget and the Problems It Will Create for the DC Metro Region

Get Involved

Dawone Robinson

Media Resources

EXPERTS

DIRECTOR OF CONSERVATIONANS

ELIZA CAVA

TAKE A TOUR

WOODEND SANCTUARY

RUST SANCTUARY

Media Resources

EXPERTS

EXECUTIVE DIRECTORANS

LISA ALEXANDER

TAKE A TOUR

WOODEND SANCTUARY

RUST SANCTUARY

Get Involved

William J. Roberts, Esq

DIRECTOR OF CONSERVATION
ANS

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
ANS