Abstract

Conservation groups that depend on the efforts of volunteers often find themselves with a long to-do list to achieve their conservation goals. At the same time, these organizations often seek to include youth in their efforts, but may find it difficult to know where to start. By engaging youth, these organizations not only can expand their capacity to impact the local environment, but also help train the next generation of conservation leaders and informed citizens.

UConn's Natural Resources Conservation Academy (NRCA) programs train teens, adult volunteers and teachers in natural resource science to catalyze on-the-ground conservation projects through a mentorship model. The NRCA has collaborated statewide with 90 conservation partners to mentor 136 service-learning projects that have generated real conservation benefits to Connecticut communities.

In this webinar, NRCA Coordinators Abby Beissinger and Laura Cisneros will: 1. Describe best practices for effectively mentoring while accomplishing conservation goals; and 2. Provide examples of effective mentoring that has led to the success of many NRCA projects.

---

Materials

• PDF version of this webinar presentation
• Conservation Project Development Worksheet (PDF)
• Conservation Project Timeline Worksheet (PDF)