Sierra Happenings

Events and Activities

Colors of Lake Tahoe

Colors of Lake Tahoe, an exhibition at Sierra Nevada College’s Prim Library features artworks from a collaboration between scientists at UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC) and artist Deborah Lawrence Schafer.

Schafer created the artworks, a celebration of the Lake’s color, and the area’s scenery, flora and fauna, using spectral measurements of Lake Tahoe taken by TERC scientists. Reflecting the shifting ecology and conditions experienced by the planet at large, each artwork is overlaid with an original handmade graphite sketch featuring Tahoe scenery. Working in mixed media Schafer incorporates a color measurement, geometrical forms, and natural elements in the works to convey the idea of interconnectedness and the concept of Lake Tahoe as a microcosm of our planet.

Date: February 28th

Please click here for more information.

American River Conservancy’s 2019 California Naturalist Class

This 40 hour course combines a science curriculum with guest lecturers, field trips and project-based learning to explore the unique ecology and natural history of the Sierra Foothills. Evening classes will be held at the American River Nature Center in Coloma and field days will be held at American River Conservancy property near Coloma, Pilot Hill and in the Upper Cosumnes River watershed. Geared towards adults ages 18+. Local guest experts will attend classroom sessions and field trips.

Date: February 21st - May 9th

Please click here for more information.

Mule Deer Migration Field Trip

Join us for an informative tour of the Round Valley mule deer herd’s migration corridor. Biologist Tim Taylor with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife will share updates on how the deer are doing over the winter as we explore the beautiful Round Valley migration area.

Date: March 2nd

Please click here for more details.

Free Workshop, Introduction to Grant Writing

Sierra Nevada Alliance is Hosting a Sierra Nevada Conservancy Grant Writing Workshop in Auburn March 5th and 6th from 9:00-3:00. Sierra Nevada Alliance 2019 Member Groups have preference and can register now.

Date: March 5th-6th

Please click here for more details.

California Naturalist Course With Sierra Streams Institute

Join the growing number of certificated California Naturalists across the state. The 10 week course starts March 6th. This natural history survey course gives participants rich background knowledge in the areas of California forest ecology, wildlife, geology, hydrology, and much more in the context of the Sierra Nevada foothills. For more information contact Sol Henson: sol@sierrastreams.org (530) 477-7132 Ext 207.

Date: March 6th - May 26th

Please click here for more information.

AEOE Statewide Spring Conference

Join environmental educators from around the state for the annual AEOE Statewide Conference at Westminster Woods, for a weekend of "Teaching Outside the Box."

Date: March 29th-31st

Please click here for more information.

Wildlife Conservation Science Education Seminar

Learn how to bring outdoor education into your classroom at this four-day seminar geared for teachers of all grade levels. ONLY $50!

Date: March 23rd-26th

Please click here for more information.

Wild And Scenic Film Festival Hosted By The Sierra Nevada Alliance

Sierra Nevada Alliance will be hosting the Wild and Scenic Film Festival at Harrahs at Stateline on April 27th with a matinee in the afternoon and a feature film viewing in the evening. Mark your calendars! Sierra Nevada Alliance is offering early bird ticket prices for a limited time only use promo code: EarlyBird at checkout.

Date: April 27th

Please click here for more details.

American River Conservancy Invites The Public To Celebrate The 150th Anniversary Of The First Japanese Colony In America.

WakamatsuFest150 is a celebration of 150 years of Japanese-American heritage, arts, and cuisine. The festival will feature Japanese and Japanese-American food, art, music, performances, demonstrations, discussions, competitions, and more. Booths will offer Asian and other foods, information, and merchandise. Entertainment will showcase traditional and modern Japanese-American culture. Docents will guide tours and tell stories about the first Japanese colonists who established their tea and silk farm on this Placerville property. Locals, farmers, historians, and naturalists will share knowledge and experience honoring the past, present, and future of Wakamatsu Farm and surrounding El Dorado County.

Date: June 6th-9th

Please click here for more information.

Job Announcements & Volunteer Opportunities

Water Education Foundation

Join the foundation as a Programs and Communications Specialist

Join the team at the Water Education Foundation, a nonprofit in Sacramento that has been a trusted source of water news and educational programs in California and across the West for more than 40 years. The ideal candidate is knowledgeable about water issues and keenly interested in keeping up with water news, enjoys a fast-paced environment and possesses strong communication skills, both verbal and written.

For more info, click here.

Urban Leaders Fellowship

The Urban Leaders Fellowship is a paid summer fellowship for early- to mid-career professionals who are already leaders in their own right and are looking to accelerate their leadership through a seven-week fellowship with a focus on policy and practice. In nine premier cities across the country, fellows work in partnership with other ambitious, mission-driven individuals, organizations, and elected officials with the aim of empowering fellows to bring about real and lasting change in the community in which they work.

For more info, click here.

Tuolumne River Trust- Headwater Forests Program Director

The Tuolumne River Trust has an immediate opening for the newly created Headwater Forests Program Director. The HF Program Director will lead the team’s efforts to expand and oversee TRT’s forest restoration program in the upper Tuolumne Watershed, primarily on Stanislaus National Forest land and adjacent private lands. The Program Director will play a central program and team management role, as well as work closely with project partners to secure funding, manage grants, supervise contractors, and implement projects. For more info, click here.

Tuolumne River Trust- Development Associate

We have an immediate opening for a Development Associate to manage the Trust’s online presence, implement member and community events, and support the implementation of a comprehensive fundraising plan which will increase and diversify the Trust’s base of support to protect and restore the Tuolumne River. For more info, click here.

P-Crew Summer Youth Corps Leader

The Sierra Institute for Community and Environment is seeking four dynamic individuals with excellent leadership skills to lead diverse groups of high school-aged students in a variety of restoration and resource management projects as part of its youth corps program: Plumas Conservation Restoration & Education in Watersheds (P-CREW). For more info, click here.

National Forest Foundations- 2019 Conservation Connect Fellowship

The National Forest Foundation (NFF) invites masters or doctoral students to apply to the Conservation Connect Fellowship Program, with a practicum in the summer of 2019.

For more info, click here.

Highlights

February Webinar: Featuring Sierra Nevada AmeriCorps Partnership

February 28th, 3:00pm-4:00pm

What do you know about the Sierra Nevada AmeriCorps Partnership (SNAP)? Have you ever been curious about hosting a SNAP member? Would you like to learn more about who becomes a SNAP member and what they do? Join us for a webinar on February 28th form 3:00-4:00 to learn everything you need to know about the SNAP Program. Meet three of our current SNAP members, Taylor Faye, Andrea, and Dana and learn about the work that they do for their communities.

Please click here to sign up for the January 28th webinar from 3:00pm-4:00pm.

SNAP Spotlight: South Yuba River Citizens League

The South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) is a Nevada City non-profit founded in 1983 with the sole purpose of protecting the South Yuba River from dams. It succeeded in permanently protecting 39 miles of this beautiful river under California’s Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. Today, SYRCL is a wide-reaching non-profit; not only does it still have a large impact on the local watersheds, but it also hosts the Wild and Scenic Film Festival in an effort to raise awareness of, and inspire activism for, environmental issues worldwide. This year’s SNAP members have been able to participate in many of SYRCL’s various activities.

As the River Monitoring Coordinator Jesse Armfield participates in a whole slew of water quality monitoring activities. Jesse monitors surface- and ground- water quality on the three forks of the Yuba as well as on its tributaries and in its montane meadows. This monitoring area spans from the high elevation meadows just west of Truckee down to just before the confluence of the Yuba and the Feather River. Much of this water quality monitoring is done through SYRCL’s citizen science driven river monitoring program which regularly monitors 35 sites throughout the watershed. Jesse deploys and collects temperature loggers placed in key locations throughout the watershed which provides SYRCL with important information about salmon habitat. Jesse is also responsible for monitoring montane meadows previously restored by SYRCL to track changes in water quality and hydrometrics ushered in by our restoration efforts.

Asia Jones, the Restoration Coordinator, works mainly in the mountain meadows that contribute water to the Yuba watershed. For most of the year, she goes up to the meadows, collects data to assess their health, and then implements the needed restoration techniques. To redistribute water through meadows that have had channels artificially put in, Asia helps to build structures to restore natural flows, like artificial beaver dams and plugs for the channels. In order to reduce erosion in areas where channels were recently filled, Asia plants willow stakes and native seed mixes and then covers them in mulch for long and short term erosion control. When not in the field, Asia helps SYRCL create outreach material, enters the data collected in the field, and makes maps to better convey the work SYRCL does.

As the Stewardship Coordinator, Andrea Tineo aids with volunteer recruitment and coordinating for a variety of projects throughout the Yuba. She is the main point of reference for community outreach and education at SYRCL. Most recently Andrea organized the EnviroFair, a community event where people can connect with local nonprofits to learn about their ongoing projects and environmental activism during the Wild and Scenic Film Festival. She also helps coordinate outreach opportunities at SYRCL throughout the year. In the summer she will take on the oversight and management of the River Ambassadors program which serves to educate the community to take care of the Yuba River. Andrea will recruit and train over 60 River Ambassador volunteers to educate the public on the impacts of trash and dog waste pollution at the river, as well as raise awareness of the dangers of broken glass and potential of wildfires.

Through the Sierra Nevada Americorps partnership with SYRCL we are able engage in environmental work and advance our career goals in communities we would normally not have access to whilst getting things done for America.

Resources

Natural Resources Funding Opportunities

Current Funding Opportunities: grant and loan programs within the Natural Resources Agency, and its departments and conservancies.

Learn more here.

Service+Tech

Service+Tech, an initiative of Service Year Alliance, is an opportunity for service year corps members and alums to develop essential technology skills, discover pathways into tech careers, and leverage technology to solve society’s most pressing challenges. The initiative allows participants access to free, exclusive programming — from speaker series to career fairs — that connects them with opportunities to utilize technology-centered approaches to solving America’s most pressing problems.

Learn more here.

Capital Region Climate Readiness Collaborative - Survey

For the past five years, the Capital Region Climate Readiness Collaborative has been working across the counties of El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo, and Yuba to find solutions to address our region’s shared climate challenges - drought, extreme heat, extreme weather events, wildfires, and more. A crucial component of our work is to meaningfully engage community members in order to build their capacity to adapt to the impacts of climate change, and ensure that long-term plans and investments are rooted in community priorities and needs.

This anonymous survey aims to gather input from residents living in the counties of El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo, and Yuba. Survey responses will directly inform several ongoing projects and help guide future planning efforts in our region. After completing the survey, you will have the opportunity to enter a raffle for a chance to win a $200 Visa gift card among other local prizes!

Learn more here.

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