U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service 2010 Southeast Region Friends Conference Connecting People with Nature – Southern Style

Who should we connect? All Southeast Region FWS Employees Friends & Volunteers Parents, grandparents, and other caregivers Educators – formal and informal Children Partners – Traditional and New!

The South is Changing The south is projected to receive 52% of the U.S. net growth between 2000 and Three of the largest and fastest growing states are in the south – Florida, Georgia and North Carolina. By 2030, 9 of the 10 Southeastern states in our Region will exceed the current Florida percentage of people 65 years and older. Eighty percent of the U.S. population now lives in urban or suburban areas. How do they recreate in the outdoors?

What’s Happening in our Region ? Connecting People with Nature (CPN) Executive Team Connecting People with Nature (CPN) Executive Team CPN Annual Plan CPN Annual Plan State Ambassadors State Ambassadors State Champions State Champions

Regional Goals Inreach Health connection Social Media PartnershipsOutreach Environmental Education Youth Conservation

Animal Olympics Flap your arms and migrate like a monarch butterfly – or – jump like a frog and see how far you can travel in 5 hops. Flap your arms and migrate like a monarch butterfly – or – jump like a frog and see how far you can travel in 5 hops.

St. Marks NWR – Ideas to Share - Host a Wildlife Heritage & Outdoors-type festival with partners -Add pre-school focus “Tots on Trails” -Add Families in Nature programming -Loaner optics, cameras, GPS units What works to get Families outdoors in your area?

More Ideas Add Senior Focus Partner with health organizations Partner with schools Join your statewide organization

Start a Photo Club! Digital cameras connect people to the outdoor world. They expand our view of wildlife and wild places.

Provide funding source to the biological and educational programs at refuge. Provide funding source to the biological and educational programs at refuge. Funded initial EE position & now summer EE support Funded initial EE position & now summer EE support Offers grant support and matching funds Offers grant support and matching funds Recruit members and volunteers to run programs Recruit members and volunteers to run programs Transportation scholarships for groups to refuge Transportation scholarships for groups to refuge Support family programs and special events – e.g., Coastal Cleanup, Monarch Butterfly Festival, WHO Festival Support family programs and special events – e.g., Coastal Cleanup, Monarch Butterfly Festival, WHO Festival St. Marks Refuge Association helps:

Creative Projects with Friends Adopt-a-School, Fishing Clinics, fund teacher workshops, Junior Friends group, Junior Explorer Club, Healthy Kids Club, Earth Caching, Shutterbug Pals, brown paper bag art contest, translate web pages, auctions, raffles, Junior Ranger Programs, map invasive plants, video for doctors, and more! THANK YOU!