Bi-weekly Email Updates

Hello, VMNs. The time change has happened, the leaves are almost done falling, and some creatures are approaching hibernation season. I’m sure some of us wish we could join them. As our thoughts turn to planning Thanksgiving meals, take a quick break and catch up on the Bi-weekly emails.

Bi-weekly Email for November 10

This email includes:

1. Reminder: Contribute to #WOW!
2. Reminder: Send us your Urban and Community Forestry Project Stories
3. Reminder: VMN Statewide Program Awards
4. Annual Re-enrollment starts December 1
5. Continuing Education Opportunities
6. Other Opportunities – Seeking Invasive Plants for Collaborative Art Project

Reminder: Contribute to #WOW!

Our volunteer service theme for 2026 has been Wonderful Water! Our goal is to have as many volunteers as possible do at least one service activity related to water this year and to report it in Better Impact by including “#WOW” in the description field when entering hours and adding any measurable impacts in the impacts field. See the #WOW page on our website for more details and suggested activities! If you have done water-related service and forgot to add the #WOW, please ask your chapter’s Better Impact administrator to edit those entries for you.

Reminder: Send Us Your Urban and Community Forestry Project Stories

We are working on the annual update of our VMN Urban and Community Forestry StoryMap. The StoryMap is an online site where we have presented stories of impactful urban forestry projects by VMN volunteers. If you/your chapter has an impactful urban forestry project to add to the map, please, by November 16, (1) check the StoryMap to see if it is already listed, and if it is not, (2) email both Michelle mprysby@vt.edu and VMN Student Assistant Kat Myer katjmyer@vt.edu with a (1) name for the project, (2) the location, (3) a 2-3 paragraph description of what you did and what impacts it had, (4) a photo or two, (5) captions and credits for the photos.

Reminder: VMN Statewide Program Awards

We are now accepting nominations for seven statewide VMN program award categories. Help us recognize the great achievements of VMN volunteers and chapters! The categories are 

1. Chapter Leader of the Year
2. Volunteer of the Year
3. New Volunteer of the Year
4. Chapter Advisor of the Year
5. Most Impactful Project
6. Nature for All
7. Chapter Spirit

The first four categories recognize individuals, and the last three recognize chapter-level efforts.

Nominations are due December 8. Find full details about each category and what to include in the nomination on the VMN blog. 

Annual Re-enrollment starts December 1

Yes, VMNs, our annual Re-enrollment Period is approaching and will open in about three weeks. On December 1, the VMN State Office will send an email to every VMN giving them information and instructions on what they need to do to complete Re-enrollment.

Continuing Education Opportunities

Wild Virginia Webinar: Wildlife, Conservation & DWR’s Funding Crisis

Date: Thursday, November 12, 2026, 6:30 – 7:30 pm

Description: Virginia’s Department of Wildlife Resources plays a critical role from the mountains to the Bay protecting and managing wildlife habitat, restoring imperiled wildlife species, and helping Virginians connect with the outdoors by providing opportunities for paddling, wildlife watching, hunting, and fishing. DWR is also at the forefront of addressing increasingly common human-wildlife conflict in our communities.

Over the past decade, DWR’s responsibilities have grown while its revenue has remained flat and the agency now faces a funding crisis that requires General Assembly intervention. Learn more about this agency’s work, the current crisis, and how we address it.

Registration: Free, but pre-registration is required.

Virginia Backyard Streambank Repair Program workshop

Date: Monday, December 14, 2026, 9:30-4:30

Location: Tuckahoe Area Library, 1901 Starling Drive, Henrico, VA 23229

Description: The goal of this workshop is to provide information on simple streambank erosion control techniques that landowners can implement to stabilize eroding streambanks along small streams. The workshop provides training for individuals who work with the general public on soil conservation and water quality improvement projects, including staff from Soil and Water Conservation Districts, local governments, and non-governmental environmental organizations (NGOs), as well as Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) agents, Master Naturalists, Master Gardeners, and Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professionals. Note: this workshop is not for individual landowners.

Register:   https://pears.io/events/vce/11185/

Virginia Association for Environmental Education Annual Conference

Date: February 25-27, 2027

Location: Fairfax, VA

Registration: Various pricing depending on registration days and type. The lower cost early bird registration is available until December 18. https://www.eevirginia.org/conference-registration

Reminder: VMN Continuing Education Webinar Recordings

We have wrapped up the 2026 VMN Continuing Education webinar series. We held 14 webinars on 13 topics (Living with Coyotes was repeated.) The videos are posted on the VMN Continuing Education webinar page, ready to help you get to your 8 hours of CE to achieve Certified VMN status!

Seeking Invasive Plants for Collaborative Art Project

From Evans Akwasi Ahenkorah: “I am reaching out on behalf of a collaborative art and sustainability project that uses invasive plant species throughout Appalachia to create handmade paper and installation artwork. By repurposing these plants as creative materials, we hope to foster both environmental awareness and community engagement. We are currently seeking information about potential harvesting locations for paper mulberry, white mulberry, oriental bittersweet, and kudzu. I would be grateful for any recommendations, site information, or connections you might be willing to share.”

Please reach out directly to Evans at eahenkor@vt.edu. 

EVANS AKWASI AHENKORAH

Creative Technologies, MFA 

Virginia Tech Invasive Species Collaborative, Affiliate 

Bi-weekly Email for October 28

Hello, VMNs. Happy Halloween! Is your costume ready? Do you have enough candy? Did you get one of those cool porch lights that are a fun color or look like a flame? If you’re donning a nature-themed costume this weekend, we’d love to see a photo! If you’re into a quiet Halloween, you can always spend the evening eating candy and catching up on the Bi-weekly emails.

This email includes:

1. Send us your Urban and Community Forestry Project Stories
2. Continuing Education Opportunities
3. Volunteer Service Opportunities

Send Us Your Urban and Community Forestry Project Stories

We are working on the annual update of our VMN Urban and Community Forestry StoryMap. The StoryMap is an online site where we have presented stories of impactful urban forestry projects by VMN volunteers. If you/your chapter has an impactful urban forestry project to add to the map, please, by November 16, (1) check the StoryMap to see if it is already listed, and if it is not, (2) email both Michelle mprysby@vt.edu and VMN Student Assistant Kat Myer katjmyer@vt.edu with a (1) name for the project, (2) the location, (3) a 2-3 paragraph description of what you did and what impacts it had, (4) a photo or two, (5) captions and credits for the photos.

Continuing Education Opportunities

Callery Pear Webinar with Friends of Machicomoco State Park

Date: October 29, 6:30 pm

About one-quarter of Machicomoco State Park located in Gloucester County has the invasive Callery Pear. Volunteer-led BioBlitz data indicates that Callery Pear is the second most prevalent tree species at the park, coming in just behind Loblolly Pine.  Friends of Machicomoco and partner organizations have engaged in habitat management projects and advocacy to address this invasive species at the park. In this webinar, Dr. David Coyle of Clemson University, a leading expert on this species, will discuss Callery Pear history, biology, and what we know about management. 

Join Zoom Meeting

Meeting ID: 993 8941 3219

Passcode: 579812

Please direct questions to friendsofmachicomoco@gmail.com. 

Another Doug Tallamy event!

Date: 7:00 – 8:00 pm, November 5, 2026. Doors open at 6:00 pm.

Location: EC Glass High School in Lynchburg, VA

Host: Greater Lynchburg Area chapter of Wild Ones; find more information on their website

November VMN CE Webinar: “Other Than Oak: What’s so great about Oak and are there other trees in Virginia that are as awesome?”

Presented by Adam Downing, Extension Forester, Virginia Cooperative Extension Northwest District,  November 9, 12:00 – 1:00 pm. 

Pre-registration required

As with all of our VMN CE Webinars, this session will be recorded and made available on the VMN CE Webinar page of our website. 

Blue Ridge PRISM Webinar: How To Create An Invasive Plant Management Calendar

Date: November 12, 12:00 – 1:00 pm

For registration for this and other Blue Ridge PRISM events, see the events page of their website.

Virginia Natural History Society Annual Meeting

A full day of exploration, discovery, and discussion about the natural world of Virginia

Date: 10:00 am – 4:00 pm, November 14, 2026

Location: Averett University, Frith Hall in Danville, VA

Registration closes on October 31.

Find more information on the VNHS site 

Volunteer Service Opportunities

Looking for plant-related projects? We have a couple for you this time!

Lingering Hemlocks

Help document surviving eastern and Carolina hemlock trees in order to find trees that may have resistance to the invasive hemlock wooly adelgid insect. Volunteers document hemlock trees and measure the characteristics of the surrounding forest, then report data using the Tree Snap app. This activity is best done in winter. A short training is required and can be completed online or by requesting a webinar training for your chapter. If you are interested in participating, please contact your chapter’s service chair so that they can get the activity approved. We sent an activity proposal form for Lingering Hemlocks to all chapter service chairs in early October. Learn more at https://lingeringhemlockproject.org/lingeringhemlocksearch/ or by contacting the project coordinator at info@lingeringhemlockproject.org.   

Native Seed & Plant Projects with The Nature Conservancy

Check with your chapter leaders before participating to make sure the activity is approved and to find out how to report it correctly in Better Impact.

• Sun, Nov. 1 at 1:30 p.m. – Native Seed Collection with VHCC & BRDC (Troutdale, VA), learn more & sign up
• Fri, Nov. 6 shifts from 8:30-12:30 and 12:30-3:30 – Native Plant Prep & Pack at Virginia Department of Forestry (Courtland, VA), learn more & sign up
• Wed, Nov. 11 (Veterans Day) at 12:30 p.m. – Longleaf Pine Seedling Planting at Piney Grove Preserve (Waverly, VA), learn more & sign up
• Tue, Dec. 1 at 12 p.m. – Longleaf Pine Seedling Planting at Piney Grove Preserve (Waverly, VA), learn more & sign up
• Native Seed Collection in the Virginia Pinelands (Waverly, VA)
  • Tue, Dec. 8 at 12 p.m., learn more & sign up
  • Thur, Dec. 10 at 12 p.m., learn more & sign up
  • Tue, Dec. 15 at 12 p.m., learn more & sign up