Connect in Clark. Our first-ever series of Intertwine Alliance County Summits
kicked off with packed houses at both the East Multnomah County event on May 12 and the Clackamas County Summit on May 16. Participants were fired up to zero in on the network of parks, trails and natural areas right where they live, work and play; many good ideas and follow-up tasks were generated. Let's keep the energy and enthusiasm going for the third event: the Clark County Trails Summit on Tuesday, June 14, in Vancouver. Please RSVP today. It's free, and open to all. Questions? Email David Cohen at david@theinterwine.org.
One to watch. Welcome to
The Intertwine Alliance
, World Salmon Council! Founded in 2012, the council is currently focused solely on the Salmon Watch program, which was founded by Oregon Trout (now The Freshwater Trust) in 1993. Over the past two decades, the program has educated more than 60,000 Oregon schoolchildren. We're swimming with happiness to welcome this new partner.
Project party. Hello, all you lovely leaders of
Intertwine Projects! Just a reminder that your next quarterly gathering is coming up on
Tuesday, July 12, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., here at the David Evans & Associates building (home to The Intertwine Alliance). We'll be joined by world-class storyteller
Will Hornyak, who will lead a workshop about furthering organizational and project goals through the telling of whopping good tales. It's sure to be lots of fun, and as always, lunch will be served. Please RSVP
here by July 5.
Also, the following efforts -- all quite big deals, if we do say so -- are pending, and will be announced as official Intertwine Projects soon:
Leach Botanical Garden's Upper Garden Development,
Regional Trail Signage,
The Green Loop and
The Big Float. Interested in getting support for
your work?
Here's how.
Join the beta band. We're beyond
excited that the long-awaited
Daycation Mobile App will be in the hands of Intertwine Alliance partners and the public this summer. To get it soonest of all, volunteer to be part of our beta test crew. We're looking for a team of volunteers to test the app in July and provide detailed feedback before the official launch. Interested? Please email Communications Manager Tara Wilkinson at tara@theintertwine.org. It's also time for all partners and friends to submit their Daycations for inclusion in the app; anyone and everyone is invited and encouraged to participate. Very soon we'll provide a Daycation Tool Kit, including a multimedia Daycation example and some helpful hints. But no need to wait: You can get started today with the
Daycation Creation Station. Please contact tara@theintertwine.org with any questions or ideas you'd like to brainstorm.
Our ED, the slam poet. The Intertwine Alliance Annual Meeting on Wednesday was a hoot, with special guest author Brian Doyle regaling us with anecdotes and readings both soulful and funny. In another highlight, Executive Director Mike Wetter surprised us all -- staff included -- by delivering his annual report as a rap. The video shot at the meeting didn't turn out very well, but since words don't do justice to Mike's dance style, he agreed to
perform it again for us in the office. Or you can read the short, oh-so-clever, rhyming report
here.
But wait, there's more! We debuted Intertwine T-shirts, the design of which plays on and draws from the art for the Daycation app. We handed them out as a thank you to all Annual Meeting attendees -- but, lucky you, we
do have extras! We're selling them for $10 each. Contact lauren@theintertwine.org for available sizes and payment methods.
Conserve the date. The next
Quarterly Conservation Forum is set for
Thursday,
July 21, from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. We're not sure about location yet, but we'll publicize it soon. What we do know is pretty nifty: The format will be a classic information-sharing event, with participants invited to give 3- to 5-minute presentations about their organizations' program priorities. Read more about planned activities, and how to get involved,
here. Then
RSVP to save your seat at the table. Questions? Please send them to david@theintertwine.org.
Down to the wire. The
Outdoor School for All Campaign is in its final stretch, working 'round the clock to to ensure that a measure funding a full week of outdoor school for all Oregon sixth graders appears on the fall ballot. As of today, the campaign has gathered 81,000 of the 120,000 signatures needed. If you haven't signed the petition yet,
please do! The campaign also urgently asks that you forward an email to your friends and family asking them to sign, too, and to get involved with the
Day of Action this
Saturday, June 4. If you'd like a message template, please email Nancy Becker at nancy@outdoorschoolforall.org.
Good yarns. May was merry
'round the
Outside Voice blog, with Urban Greenspaces Institute's Mike Houck delighting us with the history of Great Blue Heron Week and
how Portland got its official city bird. We also received a much-anticipated
update on the Willamette Falls river walk design from Metro's Dave Elkin and the City of Oregon City's Christina Robertson-Gardiner.
Outside Voice showcases the ideas, opinions, concerns and projects of Alliance partners. Please direct your ideas or submissions to tara@theintertwine.org. You can also sign up to receive publication
notifications by email.
Other headlines from around The Intertwine:
Don't miss the fun! The 30th annual Great Blue Heron Week is going on now through June 12 with public activities and field trips throughout The Intertwine, including grand finale the Ross Island Regatta.
- The 10th annual Science to Policy Summit, presented by the Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership, is on June 17 in Vancouver. Congressman Earl Blumenauer will give the keynote address.
Funding Opportunities
Go wild. Oregon Zoo is accepting applications for its 2016
Future for Wildlife grants supporting animal conservation and wildlife welfare programs in the Pacific Northwest. Projects must contribute directly to the survival, health and welfare of free-living populations and the ecosystems in which they are found. Awards typically range from $500 to $5,000. Applications will be accepted through
June 30, with recipients announced in September.
Put your project on the map. The Gray Family Foundation has announced a new grant program to stimulate and promote the integration of geographic concepts into K-12 curriculum and instruction. The
Geography Education Program will fund projects that help students develop a command of geographic tools and perspectives, foster a sense of place in their local and global community, and prepare them to engage in a way that sustains Oregon’s natural and built communities. Apply by
June 15.
Mark your Calendar
Highlights of the month ahead. See the Intertwine event calendar for more.
- National Get Outdoors Day is Saturday, June 11! Celebrate it locally at Fort Vancouver with hands-on activities like fishing, archery and rock climbing. Booths and food vendors will line East Fifth Street, in front of Pearson Air Museum.
Explorando el Columbia Slough, a family-friendly, bilingual environmental festival offering activities in Spanish and English, returns Saturday, June 11. Brought to you by the Columbia Slough Watershed Council, the event is free, includes guided canoe trips, live music, folk dancing, storytelling, arts & crafts, workshops, raffle giveaways and more.
- Tryon Creek Watershed Council and the West Multnomah Soil & Water Conservation District present the State of the Watershed on Thursday, June 16, from 6 to 8 p.m. Peruse
displays and talk with organization staff about water quality, fish surveys, culvert removal projects, maps and more. RSVP appreciated.
- Meet some hard-working friends of the farm at Sauvie Island Center's Pollination Celebration, an annual event supporting National Pollinator Week, on Saturday, June 18, at Howell Territorial Park and the Sauvie Island Organics farm. Partake in art stations, honey tasting, a bee sting info station, flower and seed dissection, and more.
