14th Annual Conservation Days

It’s the end of the school year in the North Fork and the Western Slope Conservation Center ended the year with another fantastic Conservation Days field trip for Delta County’s third grade students! 

The Western Slope Conservation Center hosts our annual Conservation Days at the Paonia River Park, connecting Delta County schools with opportunities to bring kids outside, materials to help kids observe their natural environment, and experts to teach kids about how scientists work to understand and monitor natural resources. This year was the 14th annual Conservation Days, and educators from The Nature Connection, US Fish and Wildlife Hotchkiss Fish Hatchery, US Forest Service (USFS), US Geological Survey (USGS), Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the Delta County Conservation District and NRCS, the North Fork Historical Society, and our own WSCC River Watch program joined us to offer a variety of hands-on activities.

We had a great two days at the Paonia River Park with over 250 students from Paonia, Hotchkiss, Cedaredge, and Delta. Kids enjoyed activities like studying macroinvertebrates(think caddis flies and crawfish) that live in the river, performing hydrology testing with USGS, identifying animals by pelts and skulls with CPW, and learning Leave No Trace principles with USFS to understand responsible outdoor recreation. We are so lucky to have so many amazing organizations in our valley and beyond to help put on these awesome educational activities. 

Conservation Days teaches kids about conservation science and opportunities, and children are often teachers in their own homes, bringing their families vital knowledge and connections through their experiences and interactions with educators. By teaching kids about conservation work happening in our communities, we help to inspire them to future careers in conservation and encourage greater awareness of vital programs going on right now to protect our environment. 

A special shout out to all the community volunteers who supported the event this year,  and for financial support from Friends of Youth and Nature, ELEVATE and the Kampe Foundation. 

We are looking forward to hosting our 15th annual Conservation Days next year!