Andrea Grant at the National Park Service

Over the summer, I have been working with the National Park Service as a Community Volunteer Ambassador (CVA). For the past few months, I have been in the orientation phase of the internship program but now I am beginning to work on some of my practicum deliverables. These include an outreach plan, habitat restoration and conservation projects, service learning curriculum, and diversity, equity and inclusion training.

First, the outreach plan has been centered around a newly implemented site within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA), Rancho Corral de Tierra. Through guidance from current NPS site supervisors and partnership with other CVAs, I am working on drafting the plan, creating outreach materials, recruiting volunteer groups and members of the public, and organizing the work days at this site. Because this is a new site, the planning that is done here will be implemented as policy for future work. There is a lot to be done here and a few prominent safety concerns, but we are working through those.

Second, in regards to the habitat restoration and conservation work, I am actively planning beach-cleanups for the entire month of September along with other ongoing projects at several other sites. I have worked with other people in the National Park Service, Presidio Trust, Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and volunteer groups to remove invasive species, sow seeds, wash posts, monitor plant pathogen spread, restore historic sites, and maintain gardens and parks. In the past few months, I have been able to do this work at Baker Beach, Presidio Batteries to Bluffs, Crissy Field Marsh, Rancho Corral de Tierra, Black Point Garden, Lobos Creek Valley Trail, Alcatraz, Marin Headlands Nursery, Fort Funston Nursery and Presidio Nursery. The upcoming work will be at any of these sites or anywhere else within the GGNRA.

Third, I have started creating a service learning curriculum with iNaturalist integration for some of the aforementioned sites and their supervisors. I have already worked with some volunteer groups in the past few months and observed how they are using the app and how programs can increase usage and integration in the future. There has been some delay with volunteer groups due to COVID, so plans are always changing. However, I think this may still be doable in the future.

Lastly, the diversity, equity and inclusion work has come about mostly from our division’s partnership with Enterprise for Youth, which specifically hosts youth of color to participate in conservation and restoration projects at various park sites in their community. I was able to create enrichment materials for these groups, host activities, and work with them on some of their projects at these sites.

Overall, most of the work that I have done has already shaped our division’s policy on natural and cultural resource management within the interpretation and education division. I am looking forward to the next phase of my practicum as I complete the first quarter of my term here.