Welcome to the Utah Society for Environmental Education (USEE) E-Newsletter! This publication exists to connect educators and our community with valuable news, information, and opportunities!
Whether you are an educator, business owner, agency personnel, or a concerned citizen…we hope that you will find something useful and interesting in each month’s publication!
In This Issue:
USEE News
Community Corner
EE Jobs, Internships and Volunteer OpportunitiesHappy Holidays from USEE!
On behalf of USEE's Board of Directors and Staff, we would like to thank you for being a part of Utah's Environmental Education community!
We especially want to thank all of the individuals and organizations who have supported USEE this year, participated in our programs & services, and served with us as we strive for excellence in Environmental Education in Utah! We look forward to another great year in 2008!
USEE News
USEE Names New Executive Director; Receives National E.P.A. Grant
The Utah Society for Environmental Education (USEE), Utah’s only non-profit dedicated to promoting environmental education throughout the state, recently named Jason Taylor as its new Executive Director. Taylor replaces Jennifer Visitacion who led the organization since 2000.
Taylor joins USEE after a four-month nationwide search. Most recently he served as the education director at The Ecological Society of America (ESA), a Washington D.C.-based professional association of ecologists. Taylor was recently honored at a White House ceremony by President Bush, where ESA received the President’s Award for Excellence for Science Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring. The Award is the highest of its kind in the nation and is administered by the National Science Foundation.
Also this week, USEE announced it is the recipient of a major grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The grant will support The Utah Project for Excellence in Environmental Education, and will allow Taylor and his staff to complete a statewide environmental education needs assessment.
To read the full press release, please click here
This is an exciting time at USEE. Other exciting plans and projects for 2008, will include…
- Providing more professional development opportunities to education providers throughout Utah;
- Revamping our webpage to help our members network with each other as well as the public;
- Strengthening and growing the Project Learning Tree and Great Basin Earth InstitutePrograms;
- Continuing the Certification and Resource Review Programs which provides strong and reliable environmental educators in Utah;
- Continuing to be one of the leaders in EE efforts and initiatives in the Nation.
To do these things we need your help. We will be relying on our members to assist with guiding and directing USEE’s programs. Please take a moment to become a USEE member by visiting https://payments.auctionpay.com/ver3/?id=w024425. You can also donate directly to USEE without becoming a member at the same site.
Community Corner
Upcoming Events
Winter Solstice Festival, Red Butte Garden
Saturday ~ December 22, 2007 11:00 am - 3:00 pm
Back by popular demand, our Winter Solstice Celebration will be filled with festivities for the whole family to celebrate the return of light! Join us in the Children's Garden anytime between 11:00 am and 3 pm for Yule log art, storytelling, evergreen crafts, and visits from Father Oak and Mother Earth. Warm up with hot drinks around the cauldron filled with fire and annual wishes, visit with the elves and faeries, and enjoy the beautiful winter Garden. All ages welcome, no limit to number of participants. Regular Garden Admission +$2 For Adults & Children.
Did You Know..?
- 2.6 billion holiday cards sold each year in the United States could fill a landfill the size of a football field 10 stories high;
- conventional lights on the Christmas tree contribute up to nine times as much greenhouse-gas emissions as the leaner-burning L.E.D. models;
- some Christmas-tree growers use as many as 40 different pesticides, as well as chemical colorants, on their crops
there are many easy things you can do for an eco-friendly holiday and New Year…. see below!
Tips for an Eco-friendly Holiday from Salt Lake City Green
This New Year, take one step each month to lose 3,000 pounds of Carbon Dioxide, then keep shedding that weight.
Month |
Activity |
Calculation |
CO2 Savings |
January 1 |
Turn down your thermostat by 2 degrees |
(53 lbs./mo.) x 6 mos. |
318 lbs. |
February 1 |
Run dishwasher only when full and on its energy-saver mode |
(70 lbs./mo.) x 11 mos. |
770 lbs. |
March 1 |
Wash clothes in cold water rather than hot |
(42 lbs./mo.) x 10 mos. |
420 lbs. |
April 1 |
Keep tires properly inflated |
(21 lbs./mo.) x 9 mos |
189 lbs. |
May 1 |
Dry half your clothes on the clothes line or drying rack |
(60 lbs./mo.) x 8 mos. |
480 lbs. |
June 1 |
Raise your thermostat from 72 to 73 degrees this summer |
(40 lbs./mo.) x 4 mos. |
160 lbs. |
July 1 |
Plug electronics into power strip and turn off when not in use |
(20 lbs./mo.) x 6 mos. |
120 lbs. |
August 1 |
Insulate your water heater |
(26 lbs./mo.) x 5 mos. |
130 lbs. |
September 1 |
Caulk and weatherstrip your home |
(72 lbs./mo.) x 4 mos. |
288 lbs. |
October 1 |
Take the bus to work one day a week |
(13 lbs./mo.) x 3 mos. |
39 lbs. |
November 1 |
Clean your refrigerator's coils and defrost it regularly |
(58 lbs./mo.) x 2 mos. |
116 lbs. |
December 1 |
Replace one 70 watt bulb with a 9 watt LED |
(5 lbs./mo.) x 1 mo. |
5 lbs. |
YEAR TOTAL |
|
|
3,035 pounds |
If every U.S. household took these steps |
|
|
160 million tons |
EE Jobs, Internships, & Volunteer Opportunities
AmeriCorps Position Opening
Tree Utah Permaculture Garden Steward/Community Outreach Coordinator/ Youth EducatorApplications are now being accepted for a full-time, 10-month (1700 hours) AmeriCorps position to begin in early February 2008 and likely continue through mid-December, 2008. This is an individual placement position through the Utah State University, Utah Conservation Corps (USUUCC), AmeriCorps Program. Applications must be received by Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5 pm. Send a cover letter, resume and contact information for three to five references to Kendy Radasky, Community Forestry and EcoGarden Coordinator, at kendy@treeutah.org; fax to (801) 364- (801) 364-6889; or via US mail at: TreeUtah Attn: Kendy Radasky/UCC Internship 740 South 300 West, #301 Salt Lake City, Utah 84101.
Volunteer Opportunities – Project Feeder Watch
Stokes Nature Center (SNC)
SNC has joined the team of Project Feeder Watch. This program is based out of Cornell University and uses data collected all over the country to map the different patterns of birds. The viewing period is November through April. If you are interested in birds and research this is the perfect opportunity for you. To volunteer for this or any other opportunity at SNC, please contact Sadie Enright at 435-755-3239 or email at smenright@logannature.org.
Internship Position
Utah House & Utah Botanical Center, Kaysville, UT
Utah Conservation Corps, an AmeriCorps program, is offering one full-time 2008 internship with Utah State University’s Utah House (UH) and Utah Botanical Center (UBC). This is an exciting opportunity to learn more about sustainability, resource conservation, and education. To learn more about the UH and UBC please visit www.utahbotanicalcenter.org. Applications for these positions are due January 4, 2008. Please contact Jayne Mulford regarding application procedures at: (801) 544-3089, jayne.mulford@usu.edu