Embedded Files
Presentation from Thursday, February 9, 2023: Seeing Nature through Drawing with Vera Ming Wong
As naturalists, drawing can be a great tool for observation, recording images, taking notes, communicating, reflecting, and/or meditating. Whether your goals include self-expression, exhibition, or illustration, the process of drawing or painting can expand your awareness of nature through deeper visual exploration. It’s also an engaging tool to share with students on trips into woods or prairies.
Each artist develops their own process and areas of focus. Through some of my own illustrations and artwork, as examples of various intents or instigating thoughts, I’ll share some of my process, how it evolved, and how I continue to evolve through my work. I’ll also demonstrate a few drawing exercises that you can try, to start developing skills to see and record/reflect on paper.
My goal is to help you, as Master Naturalists, become more comfortable with the process of learning to draw, to use as a tool in your own investigations or in helping others see, experience and understand aspects of nature. You might even take a class and/or experiment on your own!
Seeing Nature through Drawing Presentation Link
Presentation from Thursday, March 9, 2023: Cranes over Minnesota with Stephanie Schmidt
Minnesota is home to the Sandhill Crane and the endangered Whooping Crane. In the 1940s both Sandhill Crane and Whooping Cranes reached drastically low population sizes. Today Sandhill Cranes are one of the most populous cranes in the world and there are over 650 wild Whooping Cranes, a few of which will migrate through or summer in eastern Minnesota each year. While their population numbers are growing, both Whooping Cranes and Sandhill Cranes continue to face threats. Join Stephanie Schmidt, Whooping Crane Outreach Coordinator for the International Crane Foundation, to learn about the cranes of Minnesota. Following this presentation, you will be able to identify Sandhill Crane and Whooping Cranes; know the history of both crane species, the habitats they use, and the threats they face; understand the current work crane conservation partners are doing to protect cranes in Minnesota and throughout their flyways; and find out how you can be an ambassador for cranes in Minnesota.
Cranes over Minnesota Presentation Link
Presentation from Thursday, April 13, 2023: Beavers Are the Answer, the Question Is Irrelevant with Steve Windels
Beavers are well-known as ecosystem engineers, capable of altering landscapes on a scale rivaled only by humans and elephants. Beaver activities are generally considered to be positive, as their dams and ponds create water storage capacity, reduce downstream nutrient flows, and increase biodiversity across a wide range of plants and animals. However, they also create conflicts with human societies, including flooding and damage to roads, trees, and agricultural areas, or with real or perceived impacts to recreational fisheries. Understanding the relative contributions, both positive and negative, of beavers to various ecological, economic, and social systems is critical to watershed management, and management of beaver populations themselves.
Beavers Are the Answer, the Question Is Irrelevant Presentation link
Presentation from Thursday, May 11, 2023: Roads to Conservation with Christopher E. Smith
Did you know the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) has an Office of Environmental Stewardship? Their job is to conserve and protect the natural resources surrounding our state’s transportation infrastructure. Christopher Smith works in the Environmental Assessment Unit of the stewardship office. His presentation will provide an overview of the MnDOT stewardship program and highlight some of the work being carried out by staff to protect plants, fish, and other wildlife in Minnesota and beyond. There are nearly 12,000 miles of state and U.S. highways in Minnesota that are the responsibility of MnDOT. Roadsides provide habitat for grassland birds and many insects, including bees and butterflies. The stewardship office is also responsible for cliff swallows and brown bats that roost beneath the bridges, as well as mussels in the waterways.
Roads to Conservation Presentation link
Presentation from Thursday, September 14, 2023:Trees, Trash to Treasure, How Minnetonka Is Turning a Problem into a Resource with Hannibal Hayes (Minnetonka City Forester)
The City of Minnetonka is in a unique situation to pursue a one-of-a-kind solution to a problem all cities in the metro area face. With the onslaught of emerald ash borer, along with continued risk and diseased tree removals, more and more woody debris is being dropped at the city’s organics site. That is why in 2020, the City of Minnetonka began implementing a wood utilization program and kicked it off by purchasing a portable sawmill. Come learn about the past, present and future of our wood utilization efforts!
Trees--Trash to Treasure: How Minnetonka Is Turning a Problem into a Resource Presentation link
Presentation from Thursday, October 12, 2023: Amazing Bats with Jay Ritterson
Bats are truly amazing, and their place in the process of evolution continues to matter very much. This presentation covers bats from the time of the dinosaurs to the present and reveals the evolution and distribution of bats as well as the mechanics of their flight and echolocation. Time permitting we will review how bat threats have changed and the specific threats now faced, and what we can do to forestall further harm.
Amazing Bats Presentation Link
Presentation from Thursday, November 9, 2023: For the Love of Lichens, Minnesota Lichen Map Project with WMC members Zan Tomko and Elaine Larson
The Minnesota Lichen Map is a citizen-scientist project imagined by MN Master Naturalists Zan Tomko and Elaine Larson, with the support of statewide allies, to educate and enlighten citizens of Minnesota and protect Minnesota lichens. The project is guided by traditional land-values of Minnesota’s Indigenous people, and led by members of the scientific community who are working to understand MN lichens. The project will use technology to map data about the lichen population throughout Minnesota.
For the Love of Lichens, Minnesota Lichen Map Project Presentation Link
Due to tech problems not all of the presentation was recorded; click here and you will find the Power Point Presentation and other helpful information on Lichens.
Presentation from Thursday, December 14, 2023: Exploring the Mississippi by Canoe: Dam Portages and River Angels with Mary Lynn Kenknight
To celebrate her 60th year, Mary Lynn Kenknight decided to go canoeing. On the Mississippi. All 2,350 miles of it. She ordered a 19-foot canoe and maps, and enlisted two of her adult children on the adventure. After much learning and planning, they entered Lake Itasca in early May with 400 pounds of gear and planned to make the Delta by mid-August. But the river doesn’t always respect the plans of those who traverse it. With a few unscheduled layovers, the last leg of the trek is planned to be completed in late September 2023.
Exploring the Mississippi by Canoe: Dam Portages and River Angels Presentation Link
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