“Stewardship is one or more persons contributing to the greater good.” – AmeriCorps interns, Winter-Spring 2012. How do you measure your impact on the community? In bags of weeds pulled? Miles of trail built? Number of bird boxes installed? Amount of sweat lost? Number of new partnerships formed? Smiles and stories shared?Over the past year, over 2,000 Teton Science Schools’ participants, from pre-K to elders, have contributed more than 6,100 service hours in the Jackson Hole Community. Staff and participants not only steward our two residential campuses, they also work with over 20 partnering organizations in the valley. Projects include:
- Aiding trumpeter swan reintroduction
- Harvesting and planting hundreds of willow poles along riparian areas
- Planting native grasses and wildflowers
- Building and maintaining non-motorized trails
- Removing invasive plants
- Building and installing over 100 bird boxes
- Removing and flagging barbed wire fence
- Creating science educational curriculum and materials for partnering organizations
- Removing litter
- Maintaining cultural artifacts in Grand Teton National Park
- Aiding local community gardens
We hope to continually increase our impact in the community: leading by example, inspiring a sense of stewardship and having fun! Thanks to our community partners and all of our participants who have taken action to benefit people, place and nature in a local and global context. Keep up the good work!
