The American River Conservancy‘s E-Streams newsletter is a great source of ideas for fabulous programming for any nature center, conservancy, or “friends of” organization. ARC is a nonprofit that manages some BLM land in the Sierra Nevada Foothills in Northern California. And even though I live in Los Angeles, a day’s drive away, I still look forward to the arrival of a newsletter announcing a mushroom hunt, an indigenous medicine walk, or an acorn cooking workshop. Local experts teach classes on topics from falconry to origami to permaculture. They host bird walks, lichen walks, spiritual nature walks, and just about any other kind of hike and walk you could think of. I just wish I could go!
I feel like there’s a large untapped market in urban areas for activities like these. And I’m not just talking about nature nuts like me. Classes in esoteric topics, themed walks, and groups dedicated to nerding out on crafts or knitting seem to be trending everywhere. With the right programming, nature centers in and around Los Angeles could be attracting enthusiastic adult audiences.
You can join ARC’s newsletter via a box in the lower right-hand corner of their website’s homepage.
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