WILD Times Winter 2017 Issue

Winter Issue 2017 Inside This Issue A Message From the Coordinator Congratulations to the 2017 Facilitator of the Year! Featured Activity: Migration Barriers Grant Opportunity Train the Trainer: Ocala Youth Camp February 23-25, 2018 Call of the WILD 2017 Summary: Save the Date for 2018! LEEF SEEA Conference: March 16-18, 2018: St. Petersburg, FL Up Soon on the Calendar In Memory of Roy King In Memory of Peggy "Bird" Hill

A Message From the Coordinator Dear WILD Ones, I'm thinking of you and wishing you time with loved ones and with nature this holiday season. Wherever we are, in whatever phase of life, we can be fascinated by nature. I found this leaf (see photo below) the other day on a walk near my apartment. Emerson was right about nature. Trees and leaves and flowers offer richness to all, no matter the status of our existence.  Sadly, two dedicated WILD Ones, Roy King and Peggy Hill, recently passed away. Both will be greatly missed. Project WILD has been part of Florida's education community since 1983 because people like Roy and Peggy cared about our wild places. We can celebrate their lives by striving for increased wildlife conservation education in Florida's schools and communities. To see many of you reactivate is amazing--wow! As a human being, with all that life can bring, an absence from active facilitating is common and understandable. When we are able to offer our time and talents to a cause we love, we become active again. Once a WILD One, always a WILD One! New facilitators are becoming WILD leaders, which is tremendous. We witnessed this at 2017 Call of the WILD, as new folks stepped in to offer presentations. The diversity among us is exhilarating. The sharing of ideas from newbies and veterans, priceless. Empowering others with educational tools and inspiring in them a desire to appreciate and conserve Florida's wildlife is a gift that we must give away to keep.  Facilitating workshops is invigorating. Afterwards, I often feel as if the participants had given me more than I gave them. Others have shared a similar feeling. Thank you educators! This mindset is the same with me serving as your coordinator. The facilitators give me tons of inspiration.  We need spring and summer workshop proposals. I'm here to help.  Let's keep getting WILD and staying WILD. Thank you everyone! Anita anita.forester@myfwc.com What is Project WILD Project WILD Workshop/Event Schedule 850-488-4679 Congratulations to the 2017 Facilitator of the Year! Marcia Bisnett became a Project WILD facilitator in the late 1980's. Since then she has led every type of workshop many times over, inspiring hundreds and hundreds of educators to get WILD with their students. She has served as a mentor to incoming facilitators and continues to co-facilitate Train the Trainer weekends. Marcia's experience as a classroom science teacher, combined with her passion for conservation education, has made her a valuable contributor to WILD's Advisory Team and a popular workshop facilitator. She knows how to walk the walk. Thank you Marcia! (Photo left: Marcia Bisnett) Featured Activity: Migration Barriers  Migration is a fascinating topic with many educational applications. Flying WILD has several bird related migration lessons. The learning objective in Migration Barriers from the Project WILD (terrestrial) Guide, page 308 is to recognize that land animals also migrate.  This activity calls for students to create murals depicting wildlife habitat. Territories can be built to scale. Students conduct research. The murals depict this animal's needs for healthy survival as it pertains to wild survival.  Creating and then posting these vibrant murals  stimulates discussion and debate concerning components and placement of habitat. Then, engage students in problem-solving by introducing real-world situations such as determining where subdivisions, interstates, malls, or airports should be placed to balance the needs of wildlife and people.  This activity will encourage students to ask questions and take part in evidence-based debate as they plan wildlife corridors and property development. The leading real-world question is: How do we keep the wildlife population healthy and wild?"     Grant Opportunity Capacity Building Grants: Advancing Scientific and Environmental Literacy in Children and Youth Key Dates and Information Total funding available: $3 million available, with a minimum request of $75,000 Award duration: Up to 24 months Letter of Intent (LOI) An LOI is required for this funding opportunity. December 13, 2017: Online LOI submission opens February 14, 2018, 5:00 pm ET: LOIs due Full Proposal February 15, 2018: Online full proposal submission opens (ONLY to applicants who submitted an LOI) April 11, 2018, 5:00pm ET: Full proposals due  Award Selection and Notification Summer-Fall 2018 For More Information: http://nas.edu/gulf/grants/education-2018/index.htm?utm_source=direct&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2018_education_announcement Train the Trainer: Ocala Youth Camp February 23-25, 2018 If you have attended a Project WILD workshop and are ready to take it to the next level then this training is for you.  Also, if you have not been an active facilitator and would like to reactivate, this training is for you! This weekend training is provided cost free, which includes bunk housing, meals, and training materials.  We do ask that you follow-up by facilitating or co-facilitating a workshop in your area.  If you are interested in attending this training please contact anita.forester@myfwc.com for an application. The deadline is approaching quickly! **Note** We still need experienced WILD Ones to attend as mentors. Please let me know if you can help out. Thank you! Call of the WILD 2017 Summary: Save the Date for 2018! Next Call of the WILD is scheduled for November 9-11, 2018 at the Ocala Youth Camp. Call of the WILD is the annual professional development retreat and awards celebration for facilitators. It was held November 10-12, 2017 at Ocala Youth Camp and included inside and outdoors professional development, camaraderie, and networking.  This year we were fortunate to have a Florida Trail Association's Van Tran present and two Florida Trail  volunteers led a hike! Peter Kleinhenz from Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission presented on the amazing aspects of the Wildlife Management Areas. We experienced educational as well as entertaining presentations from several WILD Ones, helping us learn how to improve our WILD workshops. Many of us took advantage of the outdoor skills session to practice paddling as we yakked and kayaked the beautiful Lake Eaton. We experienced the traditional Cracker Swap, campfires, crafts, and storytelling. Thank you! A 2017 Call participant photo is posted below. For more photos, go to www.Flickr.com and search people for Florida Project Wild or https://flic.kr/ps/38i3vW Advisory Team: 2018 Meeting Dates Project WILD has an informal, ever-changing, but valuable advisory team. The input from participants aids in the decision making process for budget planning, best practices, and continuous improvement of our programs and trainings. If you are interested please notify anita.forester@myfwc.com so that we can put you on the reminder email as the meeting dates approach. We welcome your input. Thank you! 2018 WILD Advisory Meeting Dates January 25, 2018 (Phone Conference) 3:30pm to 5:00pm April 26, 2018 (Phone Conference) 3:30pm to 5:00pm July 26, 2018 (Phone Conference) 3:30pm to 5:00pm November 9, 2018 (Face to face meeting, Camp Ocala, 1:00pm-3:00pm)  The conference call phone number is 888-670-3525.  When prompted, log in with the following code: 1719080072 followed by the # sign  LEEF SEEA Conference: March 16-18, 2018: St. Petersburg, FL Conference Theme: Environmental Education in a Changing World This is a great opportunity to get WILD and stay WILD! Florida Black Bear 90 minute session: Saturday March 17 Schoolyard Wildlife With Citizen Scientist Twist: March 18 Flying WILD Workshop: March 18 Check out the full conference schedule at: https://www.seea-leef2018.com/ The early bird registration runs Dec. 15, 2017 - January 31, 2018. https://www.seea-leef2018.com/          See you there! Up Soon on the Calendar January 13: Growing Up WILD: St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge Contact: lori_nicholson@fws.gov  January 13: Aquatic WILD: Greynolds Park, Miami Contact: seleefer@webtv.net January 20: Project WILD/Aquatic Combo: Plant City Contact: ehollen@gswcf.org January 20: Growing Up WILD: Selby Gardens, Sarasota Contact: tracydigsplants@gmail.com January 27: Field Investigations in Conservation, Miami Contact: seleefer@webtv.net  For the full WILD Workshop Calendar please go to: http://outreach.myfwc.com/events/event_list.asp?show=&group=&start=12%2F14%2F2017&end=&view=&cid=4095 In Memory of Roy King Carrie Hamby, former Project WILD Coordinator, sent the following about Roy King: "...Roy King was my friend, neighbor, colleague and mentor. Roy was always inquisitive, respectful, fun to talk with, and an ally when I needed moral support in the often difficult work of education. Once, when I was overwhelmed with the task of avoiding the slings and arrows, he advised me to 'let it roll off your back like a beautiful wood duck.' That always stuck with me, that he would identify the species of duck. I missed seeing Roy these last few years, but I know he was doing what he loved..." (Photo right, Roy King) In Memory of Peggy "Bird" Hill This was sent by Lisa Hickey, WILD Facilitator: "Peggy was so good at facilitating PLT and all the Project WILD activities with me.  She was a great mentor." Audrey Swindal, longtime WILD One, sent this: ."..Peggy is also a past president of LEEF, but Project WILD was closest to her heart.  We will miss her.  She is one of the older, in years of service, of our facilitators.  I believe I'm probably one of the last facilitators who attended the very first Florida WILD at the Lake Eton camp with Jim Phillips and Dale Crider..."  (Photo left: Peggy Hill)  Note: 2018 Spring Issue of WILD Times submission deadline: March 2, 2018   Questions or comments?  E-mail: anita.forester@myfwc.com       Ph.:  850-488-4679

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