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Wetland Stewards Events

Most of the Stewards' time is spent in the classroom, in the lab, in the field, and with middle school students. (See the Wetland Stewards page.) The following video was a student project presented at the Stewards' 2008 graduation, described further below. Brenda Hermosillo (9^th grade) and Edgar Toledo (12^th grade) created the video.

Two highlights of the Wetland Stewards' year were the Stewards' graduation and celebration and, previously, a two-day field trip to Big Sur:

Wetland Stewards Class of 2007 – 08

Seven Wetland Stewards, who are in high school, went out with a bang at our June 2, 2008 final presentations and celebration. They made their parents proud as they presented their personal projects to their families, Watsonville Wetlands Watch staff, board members, docents, and other guests. These presentations were the culmination of the students’ year-long internships at the Fitz WERC. Each student pursued his or her personal interest and that resulted in unique and diverse projects like a video, bird boxes around the wetlands, a petition to help protect our coastline, and an interactive plant guide.

But that’s not all the Wetland Stewards did this year. During the 2007 – 08 school year, the Wetland Stewards went through a 5-week training where they learned about the importance of our local wetlands, ecological restoration, and techniques for inquiry-based learning. This prepared them to lead 12 field trips for visiting elementary school and middle school students from Pajaro Middle School, MacQuiddy Elementary, and Ramsay Park Family Center. The Wetland Stewards served as mentors to these younger students and helped them develop an appreciation and excitement for their local environment through fun games, activities, and trips to the wetlands. Little by little the word is getting out that the Watsonville wetlands are a precious natural resource worth exploring and protecting!

Big Sur Field Trip

To reward the Wetland Stewards for all their hard work and further develop their knowledge and appreciation of their natural environment, the Stewards and two mentors spent two days camping and exploring Big Sur in May 2008. They walked miles of beautiful redwood trails, discovered dozens of wildflowers, helped band birds with the Ventana Wildlife Society, roasted marshmallows, fell into creeks, and came home exhausted! It was a trip they say they'll never forget!

Wetland Stewards at Big Sure, May 2008

A Lazuli Bunting the Stewards helped band at the Big Sur Ornithology Lab provided an exciting up-close look at bird life there.