Kentucky State Parks Trainer Course

On Monday and Tuesday, we had the pleasure of working with Kentucky State Advocate, Lisa Deavers, on our second Trainer Course of 2010 at Barren River Lake State Resort Park. Lisa, along with eight other participants from Kentucky and Ohio, brought enthusiasm and passion to the course. We had many great discussions about the principles of Leave No Trace, including invasive species, disposal of human waste, and horse use on trails with multi-user groups. In addition, we spent a lot of time on teaching Leave No Trace to children with the PEAK program. It was fun to watch the entire group put on their 8 year old hats and act like a kid again, as we were reminded that we are all kids at heart! Thank you to all the participants for spending a chilly evening outdoors with us. Here is a photo of the newest Leave No Trace Trainers!

Happy Adventuring...Kate and Tracy

Team East joins Alabama State Advocate Skip Essman

After a snowy couple of days in Atlanta, GA we traveled down to Prattville, AL, a small town outside of Montgomery, to be guest speakers at a Leave No Trace Trainer Course led by Alabama State Advocate Skip Essman. The course was held at Camp Tuckabatchee, a beautiful scout camp outside of town. We were asked to speak to the nine participants, as well as other Leave No Trace Master Educators and Trainers who were there to assist in instruction, about the Traveling Trainer program and new initiatives launched this year including Leave No Trace Hot Spots and the Bigfoot Challenge. We would like to thank Skip for inviting us to the course and for all his hard work throughout the year as the state advocate! We look forward to working with Skip again on Tuesday, when he will join us at the University of Alabama in Birmingham for an awareness workshop.

Happy Adventuring...Kate and Tracy

Team East visits Edith Macy Conference Center

Last week we were invited to the Edith Macy Conference Center in New York to be a part of the Outdoor Skills Certification/Conference for the Girl Scouts of USA.  Leaders from all over the country gathered to learn skills that will be essential tools to teach the girls in their councils.  Our first mission was to be a support team on the Leave No Trace Trainer Course, held early in the week.  15 dynamic and passionate participants became Leave No Trace trainers.  Every woman on the course provided thoughtful presentations and discussions to the training.  They are all excited to learn ways to integrate Leave No Trace into their curriculum.  A special thanks to Marj Eby, chair of the GSUSA/Leave No Trace Task Force, JoAnn Schiffer-Burdett, Bureau of Land Management/California State Ethics Coordinator, and Tina Smith, Girl Scout IOT,  for running a great trainer course and making our stay so comfortable and welcoming.  

In addition to the trainer course, we also joined Karen O'Brien, Leave No Trace State Advocate for Massachusetts, at a "meet and greet".  This provided an opportunity for Karen to talk about the State Advocate position and ways people can get involved in the Leave No Trace community.  Thanks Karen!

Finally, we joined Marj and Tina again for a 3 hr workshop with an additional 15 people at the conference.  The workshop provided a great venue to share some of our PEAK Pack activities, talk about the Bigfoot Challenge, and share insight into how these leaders can get Leave No Trace more involved in their councils.  

We had such a fun week working with these women.  Their passion and commitment to building strong girls of the future is commendable.  Keep up the good work ladies!

Safe travels...Kate and Tracy