Bi-weekly Email Updates
Table of Contents
- Bi-weekly Email for July 21
- Bi-weekly Email for July 7
Bi-weekly Email for July 21
Hello, VMNs. When you have a chance, we recommend reading this short blog article on Birding and Myth-busting at a State Forest by Ellen Powell, Virginia Department of Forestry. Learn how managed forests support bird populations. You can also take a moment to catch up on the Bi-weekly emails.
This email includes:
- Conference Updates
- Continuing Education Opportunities
- Volunteer Opportunities
Conference Updates
Registration
Conference registration opens on August 6 at 6pm. For those of you who might be considering attending the VMN Conference for the first time, we wanted to share that you are required to sign up for the sessions you want to attend when you register for the conference. Also, session slots can fill quickly (especially field sessions!) and it is first come, first served. So we offer these Steps to Prep and Five Tips for Success:
Steps to Prep:
- Check to see if you already have a VCE account – details on how to do this can be found on the conference web page under Registration
- Look over the sessions and note your first and second choices for each time slot
- Note about the waitlist process – you must accept the email invite within 72 hours
Five Tips for Success:
- Be open to a diversity of topics and sessions. You might find that a topic that you thought was less interesting turns out to be a fantastic, engaging session (we hope they all are!) Yes, some sessions will be more popular than others and those will fill up faster and have longer waiting lists, but, in total, there are more than enough sessions to accommodate the anticipated number of conference participants. Don’t overlook the on-site classroom sessions — especially if you don’t want to spend your conference time traveling back and forth to the field session sites.
- Thoroughly read the session information on our website before registration. Pay particular attention to the transportation information for the field sessions. Some of our field sessions are quite far away. Some field sessions require participants to get themselves there, while others require participants to travel in a van or bus. For some, you must depart from the conference hotel with the group, and for others, you just meet at the field session location. If these details affect your decision-making about a session, we recommend you read them ahead of time.
- Be aware that we have a keynote, plenary presentation first thing Saturday morning, followed by on-site concurrent sessions in the later morning. Participants aren’t required to attend the keynote session, but it is the only session available for that time block.
- If you are able, plan on registering for the Full Conference. This gives you the best chance for getting into at least one field session.
- We use the VCE registration system. This means that the system is maintained and supported by Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) rather than VMN. Yes, it is yet another set of login credentials that you have to keep track of. But! It is the most cost-effective option for us and for you. Please be kind to those who are trying to help and we will do our best to make sure everyone gets registered!
Share Fair
We invite all 30 VMN chapters to participate in the Chapter Share Fair at our 2026 Statewide Conference and Training. Our goal is to have each chapter share information about one meaningful project they have accomplished. This is not meant to be a general outreach table like you would use with the public. The audience in this case is other VMN volunteers and representatives of the VMN sponsoring agencies. We have space for one display per chapter, but anyone in the chapter may be involved in creating it. We will recognize the top displays with awards. Additional details can be found in the Share Fair section of the conference webpage.
As a reminder, the conference will take place September 18-20, 2026 in Herndon at the Westin Washington Dulles Airport Hotel.
Continuing Education Opportunities
Time sensitive: Chesapeake Bay Program webinar July 22
Title: Eyes on the Estuary: How to Become a Chesapeake Bay Community Scientist
Date: July 22, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Description: Do you want to get out on the water while helping the Bay? Join the Chesapeake Bay Program to discover how you can become a vital part of protecting the estuary through community science. This webinar will spotlight three volunteer programs where everyday residents help monitor the Bay’s underwater grasses, track dolphin sightings, and collect water quality samples. You will hear directly from program coordinators about what it takes to get involved and ask questions about how these programs benefit the Bay.
Pre-register for the Chesapeake Bay Program webinar
VIMS After Hours Lecture Series: Shark Tank: Batten School & VIMS Edition
Date: July 30, 6:30 – 8:00 pm
Description: Join the July After Hours lecture, where you will hear two short presentations highlighting innovative, cutting-edge research projects currently being conducted at William & Mary’s Batten School & VIMS. From treating eelgrass with probiotics to enhance restoration success, to incorporating AI technology into promoting disease resistance of larval Eastern oysters, these projects (supported through the Dean & Director’s Innovation Fund) invest in bold, early-stage research with high potential for commercial outcomes.
Location: Live webinar or in-person at Batten School & VIMS – Davis Hall, Owens-Bryant Boardroom, 7539 Spencer Road. Gloucester Point, VA 23062
Registration required, but the event is free
See the VIMS website for more information and registration
VMN CE Webinars
We have many upcoming VMN CE webinars with guest presenters from Virginia and beyond. All will be recorded, but we’d love for as many as possible to join us live. Please see the VMN CE Webinar webpage for webinar descriptions, presenter bios, links to recordings, etc.
Our Underwater Grasses: Monitoring to support future restoration efforts in the Chesapeake Bay
Date: Wednesday, July 29, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Description: Representatives from The Nature Conservancy will be discussing the SAV (Submerged Aquatic Vegetation) Watchers program, which is a community science-driven initiative to collect data on underwater grass distribution and health. They will also be talking about SAV ecology and why SAV is so important to the Bay’s recovery.
Presenters: Mary Gartner and Kati Booth from The Nature Conservancy.
Registration: Pre-register for Our Underwater Grasses.
Living with Coyotes
Date: Thursday, July 30, 6:30 – 8:00 pm
Description: Learn about coyotes and what humans can do to reduce conflict with these interesting animals that are becoming more common in urban areas. Note: For this webinar to count as the required train-the-trainer session for VMN volunteers who want to do public presentations and outreach about coyotes using the DWR materials, those volunteers must attend the live webinar, not just watch the recording. This is a repeat of the training webinar held in February.
Presenter: Leah Card from the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources.
Registration: Pre-register for Living with Coyotes.
From Shoreline to Solutions: How the International Coastal Cleanup Drives Change
Date: August 4, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Description: The webinar will focus on how to get involved in the Virginia Waterways Cleanup, part of the Ocean Conservancy’s ICC. We will discuss how to organize or participate in a cleanup, how to collect data using CleanSwell, and how that data is used to drive meaningful change.
Presenters: Christina Trapani and Emily Bodsford from Clean Virginia Waterways.
Registration: Pre-register for From Shoreline to Solutions
Beyond Debate: Navigating divisive issues in outreach conversations
Date: August 19, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Description: Ever felt the heat when discussing wildlife management or water quality? Conversations about environmental topics can raise controversies that often make participants feel distressed and confused. But sidestepping these tough topics means missing a vital chance to foster informed public engagement. Join this dynamic webinar to discover how to prepare for and address divisive subjects across various outreach settings. We will discuss proactive strategies to prevent friction before it starts and practical techniques to defuse tension when it arises. Participants will gain fresh perspectives on controversial issues, reflect on personal biases, and come away with practical methods for navigating controversies with confidence.
Presenter: Andrea Lorek Strauss from the University of Minnesota Extension and Minnesota Master Naturalist program
Registration: Pre-register for the Beyond Debate webinar.
Reminder: Virginia Backyard Streambank Repair Workshop
Date: August 13, 2026, 8:30 – 4:00 pm
Location: JMU Festival Conference and Student Center, 1301 Carrier Drive, Harrisonburg, VA
Description: The workshop provides information on simple streambank erosion control techniques that landowners can implement to stabilize eroding banks along small streams. This workshop is designed for individuals who work with the general public on soil conservation and water quality improvement projects, not individual landowners.
Registration: For more information and to register, see https://pears.io/events/vce/7978/
Volunteer Service Opportunities
Count Monarchs!
The International Monarch Monitoring Blitz is back for its 10th anniversary! From July 31 to August 9, join the celebration and help search for monarch butterflies and milkweed plants in your area.
The Monarch Blitz is a community science initiative open to anyone in North America. Last year, over 9,000 volunteers contributed thousands of observations. For our 10th anniversary, help reach the goal of 10 Years: 10,000 More Participants!
Choose from several different monarch-focused participatory science projects and observation platforms. As always, check with your chapter leaders to determine what service activities are approved and how to report them in Better Impact.
Visit the International Monarch Monitoring Blitz website for more information.
Lead a Clean Up!
Clean Virginia Waterways is now recruiting site captains for waterway cleanup events to take place in 2026. Captains can choose the date, time, and location for their cleanup, so this is a great opportunity for VMN volunteers to give some attention to local waterways that need some TLC.
Bi-weekly Email for July 7
Hello, VMNs. We hope you took advantage of the longest day of the year and enjoyed it in your own way. When you have time, take a moment to catch up on the Bi-weekly emails.
This email includes:
- New Video Storage System
- VMN Snapshot – Quarter 2
- Continuing Education Opportunities
- Volunteer Opportunity
Heads-Up on a New Video Storage System
Virginia Tech has changed their video storage software to a program called Panopto. Your VMN State Office has tried to make this change invisible for you by manually updating all of the links to webinar recordings and other videos on the VMN website, the Chapter Leader Guide website, and Better Impact e-learning modules. If you run across a link to a video from the VMN State Office that is no longer working, please let us know.
VMN Snapshot – Quarter 2
To help communicate and celebrate all that our VMN volunteers are accomplishing, we share quarterly summaries of VMN volunteer service. Here are some statistics for April 1-June 30, 2026 and an update on our 2026 service theme of Wonderful Water (#WOW).
Outputs
- Volunteers who have reported service for April – June 2026: 2,332 volunteers (62% of all currently enrolled volunteers)
- Chapter Administration 9,891 hours by 1,039 volunteers
- Citizen Science 23,784 hours by 1,454 volunteers
- Continuing Education 6,826 hours by 1,541 volunteers
- Education and Outreach 16084 hours by 1158 volunteers
- Stewardship 17,581 hours by 1,235 volunteers
- Total service hours reported: 67,340 hours
2026 Service Theme: Wonderful Water (#WOW)
This year, we are celebrating Virginia’s water resources with a volunteer service theme of Wonderful Water! We’re asking all VMN volunteers to try to do at least one service activity directly related to water. Remember to include #WOW (just like that!) in the Description field when you enter your hours on Better Impact for any service that is directly related to water resources, such as water quality monitoring, shoreline cleanups, and Project Wet.
In Quarter 2 of 2026, there were 544 entries of #WOW volunteer service made by 157 volunteers, for a total of 1,582 hours.
Some highlights of #WOW service this quarter:
Promoting recreation on Virginia’s waters: Volunteers cleaned part of West Neck Creek in Virginia Beach, cleaning up trash and removing downed trees that blocked the waterway. “We have kept West Neck Creek navigable for about 10 years!!!” Volunteers in other parts of the state led paddle trips to help increase public appreciation of our waterways.
Engaging our next generation of water stewards: Volunteers helped lead Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences that reached nearly 1,400 K-12 students. Activities included macroinvertebrate identification, release of trout raised in the classroom, and learning about stream flow and erosion.
Monitoring water quality: Chemical, biological, bacterial – VMN volunteers are doing all kinds of water monitoring in partnership with VDEQ, the James River Association, Izaak Walton League, and others. “Dock Watch” volunteers are collecting water samples at Smith Mountain Lake and examining them under microscopes to look for harmful algae.
Improving shorelines and riparian buffers: Volunteers helped plant living shorelines and buffers in Newport News and Virginia Beach. “This transformation will not only create space for the existing marsh to migrate but will also establish a beautiful, low-maintenance meadow for residents to enjoy.” (Chesapeake Bay Foundation)
Continuing Education Opportunities
VMN CE Webinars
We have two CE webinars for you in July. Please also save the date for the two August webinars. We will have the registration information for those next time.
- August 4, 12:00 – 1:00 pm: From Shoreline to Solutions: How the International Coastal Cleanup Drives Change.
- August 19, 12:00 – 1:00 pm: Beyond Debate: Navigating divisive issues in outreach conversations.
Our Underwater Grasses: Monitoring to support future restoration efforts in the Chesapeake Bay
Date: Wednesday, July 29, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Description: Representatives from The Nature Conservancy will be discussing the SAV (Submerged Aquatic Vegetation) Watchers program, which is a community science-driven initiative to collect data on underwater grass distribution and health. They will also be talking about SAV ecology and why SAV is so important to the Bay’s recovery.
Presenters: Mary Gartner is The Nature Conservancy’s Seagrass Monitoring intern. This summer, she is focusing on volunteer engagement by organizing community science events and writing an email newsletter to inform the public all about SAV! She is excited to collect SAV data all across Virginia before entering her senior year at William & Mary, where she is double majoring in Environmental Science and Integrative Conservation.
Kati Booth is The Nature Conservancy’s Chesapeake Bay Wetlands Program Manager and a wetland restoration scientist. She’s been with TNC for 13 years and focuses on tidal and non-tidal wetland restoration science, project management, and policy. She is very excited about exploring ways to support SAV restoration efforts in the Bay. Kati loves kayaking and identifying plants, so the SAV Watchers program is a perfect way to do both at the same time!
Registration and Recording: Pre-register for Our Underwater Grasses. As with all VMN CE Webinars, the recording will be posted to the VMN CE Webinar webpage.
Living with Coyotes
Date: Thursday, July 30, 6:30 – 8:00 pm
Description: Learn about coyotes and what humans can do to reduce conflict with these interesting animals that are becoming more common in urban areas. Note: For this webinar to count as the required train-the-trainer session for VMN volunteers who want to do public presentations and outreach about coyotes using the DWR materials, those volunteers must attend the live webinar, not just watch the recording. This is a repeat of the training webinar held in February.
Presenter: Leah Card is the furbearer biologist with the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources.
Registration and Recording: Pre-register for Living with Coyotes. As with all VMN CE Webinars, the recording will be posted to the VMN CE Webinar webpage.
Mapping the Dragon: An Indigenous History of Bacon’s Rebellion
We want to share this in-person event that’s a little different and has a mix of both human and natural history.
Date: July 15, 6:00 pm
Location: Jamestown Settlement, 2110 Jamestown Road, Route 31 S., Williamsburg, 23185
Description: Rarely acknowledged in historical narratives, Virginia’s Indigenous nations shaped American history in countless ways, including the events surrounding Nathaniel Bacon’s 1676 insurrection. The panel draws on traditional ecological knowledge alongside military history, environmental and archaeological evidence, and both traditional and non-traditional documents to highlight the Indigenous perspectives of what is now known as Bacon’s Rebellion.
Presenters: Allyson Gray (Pamunkey citizen, cultural practitioner, and artist), Edward DuBois Ragan, Ph.D. (Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the Rappahannock Tribe), Jeff Wright (Certified Virginia Master Naturalist volunteer, President of the Old Growth Forest Network, Past President of the Friends of Dragon Run), Julie King, Ph.D. (George B. and Willma Reeves Endowed Chair in the Liberal Arts at St. Mary’s College of Maryland.)
Registration: $15. See the Jamestown Settlement website for more registration and additional information.
Blue Ridge PRISM Summer Online Webinar/Meeting
Date: July 22, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm
Description: Vermont-based forester, ecologist, and bestselling author Ethan Tapper of How to Love a Forest discusses stewardship, hope, and what it takes to heal forests in a changing world. This free online talk will draw on themes from Tapper’s highly anticipated second book, The Forest Year: Finding Hope in a World Worth Saving.
Registration and Recording: Blue Ridge PRISM will record the talk and send the YouTube link to everyone who registers. More information and registration for the PRISM Summer Meeting/Webinar
Volunteer Opportunity
It is time for the annual DWR turkey summer survey! Volunteers are asked to record and submit all observations of wild turkey made between July 1 and August 31. As always, please inquire with your chapter leaders to make sure the activity is approved and to find out how to report your hours spent on it. Note that there are some changes to the survey this year. They are no longer collecting grouse observation, and there is a new online survey form.
More information and survey instructions for the DWR turkey summer survey.
Connect with Us
For general inquiries about the Virginia Master Naturalist program, please contact:
masternaturalist@vt.edu540-231-0790