Hitchcock Center for the Environment

Yesterday more than a dozen staff members from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Northeast Region in Hadley volunteered their time to retrofit windows at our Living Building to prevent bird strikes. At this time of so much strain and uncertainty for them, we are particularly grateful for how their staff shared their time and expertise to help us save migratory birds! ?? Read about it in the Daily Hampshire Gazette: https://lnkd.in/e2KS8rNf #WesternMass #AmherstMa #WesternMassOutdoors

Two new Earth Matters articles for bird lovers ?? Have you heard of a bird irruption? Not an interruption, or an eruption, but a sudden arrival of a new species: https://lnkd.in/etdtdXRY

Our Executive Director Billy Spitzer spoke to WBUR about Hitchcock Center's access to federal funding. Hitchcock received a $500,000 grant from the EPA last year for air pollution monitors in rural communities, plus efforts to teach residents how to use them ???

Hitchcock Center's Education Director Katie Koerten collaborated with Kari Percival and The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art to share Kari's incredible new book SAFE CROSSING, teach some frog calls, and turn The Carle Museum's Great Hall into a huge, beautiful salamander tunnel! Big Migrations of local amphibians across Henry Street in #AmherstMa are coming this spring. Join our Big Migrations 2025 email list to get notified about these Big Nights of spring when the weather is rainy and temperatures remain above 40°: https://lnkd.in/eiTepn48?

??? Hurricane Heroes??? ?? April 11–12, 2025 | ?? Amherst, MA Join us at the Hitchcock Center for the Environment in Amherst, MA, for an immersive two-day professional development program! Educators will tackle real-world disaster challenges, design solutions for Storm City, and explore sustainability, resilience, and inquiry-based STEM learning. ? For grades 6–12 educators looking to bring hands-on problem-solving into the classroom! ?? Register here https://ow.ly/JUjk50V5I1y

Board nominations are open through March 14! ?? Hitchcock Center is looking for individuals who are passionate about our planet and interested in joining an inspiring group of “thinkers and doers” representing diverse perspectives on addressing the environmental and societal challenges we face. We’re looking for Board members to serve in several roles, who can strengthen educational opportunities in #ClimateChange, #Sustainability and #EnvironmentalJustice work in the communities we serve and support. Nominate yourself or a friend! https://lnkd.in/ehSADRUd?

Even more seasonal positions have been listed! Make like an invasive species and SPREAD the word ?????? The Connecticut River Conservancy (CRC) seeks two motivated individuals to facilitate the removal and monitoring of invasive species, such as water chestnut and hydrilla in the Connecticut River watershed in Massachusetts and Connecticut. Scheduling and coordinating water chestnut pulling events will be the primary purpose of this role, with support from 2-3 field staff. The Field Manager will schedule 3-4 staff pull days a week and organize weekly volunteer pulling events. All seasonal positions are here: https://lnkd.in/eacrpQYa MA AIS Field Manager: https://lnkd.in/eScx-Vdb CT AIS Field Manager: https://lnkd.in/egY9c2ty

TODAY IS THE DAY! Now more than ever we need to teach the next generation to be problem-solvers who can take on the challenges of climate change. Hitchcock Center programs are designed to do more than just teach; they immerse children in the wonders of nature; foster friendship and healthy risk-taking; lead sustainable design and engineering challenges; and nurturing the growth of hopeful, creative problem solvers. We hope that you will join us today and give the gift of hope for our future! https://lnkd.in/ea7FNHJE #EnvironmentalEducation #HitchcockCenter #EducationForAHealthyPlanet #GivingThanks #ClimateAction #GivingTuesday #ClimateEducation #AmherstArea #WesternMass #ClimateResilience

Today is a tough day. It is hard not to feel despair, and a whole gamut of other emotions. The Hitchcock Center is looking to nature today, as we do everyday, to find the lessons, and solace. The house wren was still flitting about this morning, looking for gnats on the waning clematis vine, the squirrels are still hiding nuts and acorns for the winter (despite the nearly 80 degree day), the trees are dropping their leaves and slowing down their metabolism to conserve energy for the winter. Nature is resilient. Nature is bountiful, even when it is taxed. Nature is stronger because of diversity. Nature gives us hope. Today, we feel all the feelings, but we continue to teach the lessons of nature’s incredibly efficient, resilient, and beautiful systems, and put forth hope and action. “Even a wounded world is feeding us. Even a wounded world holds us, giving us moments of wonder and joy. I choose joy over despair. Not because I have my head in the sand, but because joy is what the earth gives me daily and I must return the gift.” ― Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants #EducationForAHealthyPlanet #EnvironmentalEducation #BuildingCommunity #HitchcockCenter #ClimateAction #Sustainability #rabbit #LivingBuilding #Biodiversity #livingbuildingchallenge #robinwallkimmerer #nature #natureslessons #hope #action

Join us for a fabulous afternoon of food, drink, and environmental sustainability at our annual Hitchcock Harvest Feast & Celebration fundraiser. Help us honor Colleen Kelley, Phil Korman, and Conklin Furniture for embodying the values of the Hitchcock Center in the Community. Enjoy an amazing meal by Wheelhouse and sample beer/wine/cider/kombucha from Artifact, Amherst Brewing, Black Birch Vineyard, Katalyst Kombucha, Progression, and White Lion all while supporting education for a healthy planet! Buy tickets today! https://lnkd.in/e7GBAkU9 Thanks to our sponsors Rare Forms, USA Waste, Greenfield Savings Bank, Wright Builders, Eversource, Amherst Office Park, bankESB, Wagner Wood, Kuhn Riddle and HL Dempsey for making this event possible.