My entire college career was spent hovering over text books, anxiously soaking up time spent in the woods, and crying in my classrooms. Perhaps I am the only one, but I believe this may be a common experience for students in the field of environmentalism. We spend our time sitting behind desks learning that TIME IS RUNNING OUT for four years, then are sent into the world with nothing but fear, student debt, and a relatively useless degree to guide us along our journey of saving the world. My mind is constantly spinning, choosing between ‘stop the world from ending’ or ‘enjoy your life while you can’. It is a dark, scary existence. Feeling on the brink of running out of time forever. I have been stuck for years in this thought loop, when I realized it is not that black or white. It may be too late to stop the change. Summer is longer and hotter, winter is fading away. It may never get back to how it was before we understood the impact of human activity on the climate, or even when we realized the truth and decided to continue on as usual. But the truth of the matter is it will only continue to get worse if we spend our time sitting here debating the best tactic to fix it. Because as hard as it is to admit, there is no fix. And there surely is no sole fix. The fear of the doomed ‘too late deadline’ and the search for the ‘be all and end all perfect one-size-fits-all solution’ is keeping us trapped and stagnant. This is where, once again, Community Based Conservation (CBC) comes to save me from yet another anxiety attack. 

 

At the time I learned of it, CBC was both revolutionary and completely obvious. It is a movement based on the idea that stewardship and protection of ecosystems should be in the hands of the local community and individuals who know exactly what it requires. These individuals are the caretakers of their land, have grown alongside it, and know when and why it is out of balance. Oftentimes, these communities are indigenous populations and other groups who are excluded from conversations regarding land stewardship and resource management. The goal of Community Based Conservation is to not only put the power back into the hands of local populations, but help restore social, economic, and environmental balance and prosperity. These projects are based in regions where biodiversity is being threatened, ie.local species are going extinct. 

 

 From the Community Conservation Inc, here is a checklist to determine whether or not a project is indeed community based:

● Were the project’s goals decided in conversations with locals from the start, or were they pre-decided?

● Is a local organization (or community group) leading or co-leading the effort?

● Is there an understanding that that project may take 5 years or more?

● Is the initial scope of the project small, such as a specific town or habitat?

● Are community members involved in wildlife monitoring, appropriate tourism, educating children, etc. in some way that they themselves feel is beneficial?

 

If you are reading this list and thinking, "Great! I cannot wait to get involved", but have no large scale projects that you could feasibly join, there are a myriad of smaller scale programs and ways to become involved. Even during the flooding that we experienced this summer, the communities of Richmond and Vermont came together to find creative solutions. Both long and short term, as well as local and state wide. This kind of community collaboration and hands-on work at the local level are the keystones to long term effective change. Nobody knows environments better than those who live amongst them, and every environment will need a customized support system. 

 

Supporting environmental conservation through local means can occur in any manner, including:

● Purchasing food from local farms. 

● Buying maple syrup from Bird-Friendly habitats to support a diverse ecosystem and healthy habitat within the sugaring industry. 

● Getting involved with the Vermont Garden Network to support food sovereignty around the state.

● Contributing to community science projects, such as using eBird and iNaturalist to track local flora and fauna

● Becoming involved with local public programs such as the Community Wildlife trainings offered by Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources, or join in Green Up Day in a few months.

○ Or if you have an idea of a public program, submit your own!

 

There is no limit to how you can support the environment while connecting on an individual level with your community. As for me, the best form of local work I have discovered thus far is working with Audubon (which could be accomplished by suggestion #5: Becoming involved with local public programs). The time I have spent at Audubon as the Education Intern has been one of the most hands-on ways I have supported environmental conservation at both a local and global level. The work I have done over the past seven months has helped give children the tools to lead an environmentally conscious lifestyle and love the earth for the sake of it. The act of planting the seed of environmentalism is so integral and powerful to conservation. We are giving children the skills to not only understand the complexity of the natural world around them, but the ability to participate in building a healthy future immediately. For too many this understanding comes later in life, leading to years of habit unlearning and skill building. (Which it is never too late to join the fight to protect the climate! Welcome all!) Teaching environmental education assures a new generation of individuals who understand how to care for our environment just as well as they understand how to walk. 

 

I will not lie, I still have bouts of complete, all consuming environmental dread. I have since I was 9 years old and saw a picture of a starving polar bear on a tiny piece of ice for the first time. This fear, disgust, and mourning will never leave me. And I am okay with that, because it means the deep love I have for the environment is still my driving force in the world. I am happy to carry the weight of environmentalism and all the sorrow that it brings, because I am walking through the world and dropping seeds of conservation everywhere I go. Being able to share the love of this Earth with children has lightened the burden and allowed me to focus on the positive work of conservation, rather than the fear. We are actively making progress towards a healthy and balanced ecosystem every day, even if the results will not be ready for a while. Now when that voice in my head likes to yell TIME IS RUNNING OUT, I can relax somewhat, knowing there are acts I can do every day to ensure a future to be proud of, and trust that there are others all over the world doing their part too (especially little children who are resisting the urge to pick leaves off of trees to let them keep growing).