Updates & Stories

During my three months as a solar heat outreach specialist, I have worked to make connections with community resources while figuring out exactly how my job works. Lately, I feel a lot more like I know what I am doing. I performed my solar furnace presentation for a crowd at an event called Solar Day, which I had devoted much of my work time to since starting. Despite my newness, everything went well. I managed to start a couple of relationships with groups interested in using solar furnaces for themselves and had fun sharing with various others. I even got to be on the local news! It was satisfying to see the payoff of jumping right in. That day is definitely a highlight of my service so far. Read More

I found myself buried in snow somewhere between “I think I can climb out” and “Maybe they’ll find me in a couple days”. As I lay there, it seemed to me that I was going about this whole walking in the snow business all wrong. The snowshoe is a foreign concept to those of us from the Southeastern U.S. For thousands of years however, the snowshoe represented the pinnacle of technology for traversing frozen landscapes. It was only logical then, that I should become proficient in the use of these vehicles if I had any intention of surviving Minnesota. So with a little trial and quite a bit of error I was able to devise a few tips for those with a more temperate disposition. Read More

In mid-March, an Iowa crew cleared brush from a creek edge to enhance a trail running through the city of Eldon, Iowa, famous for the Grant Wood painting, “American Gothic.” They had a little fun while on site! Read More

Despite the early spring chill, Corps crews have been firing up their chainsaws and climbing through snow-covered woods to remove invasive Oriental bittersweet in southeastern Minnesota. Several crews have collaborated with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) to control the spread of this beautiful but noxious woody vine, which twines around trees and chokes them out, breaking off limbs and ultimately killing them. Read More

Youth Outdoors graduates say they are higher academic achievers, have taken a science course, regularly volunteer and plan to pursue higher education because of their Conservation Corps service. The findings, from a recent study by a University of Minnesota researcher, showed the afterschool program’s positive, long-term impacts on high school students’ future achievements.  Read More

Conservation Corps’ Solar Day, held March 21, showcased a solar furnace installed in a transitional home for low-income families in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The demonstration project, funded by the Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service, is intended to show how renewable energy systems can be incorporated into heating assistance programs. Read More

On April 1, Conservation Corps Minnesota was honored by the City of Rochester with an award for its work to improve the city’s urban forest. The Corps has collaborated for the last four years with RNeighborWoods of Rochester to manage thousands of volunteers who plant trees in the city each April. Read More

We are excited to introduce six bloggers who will share their Corps journeys through the year with stories, photos and video. This year our bloggers represent our Iowa REEAL Individual Placement, a Youth Outdoors crew and young adult field crews, including Three Rivers, Saint Paul Roving, Rochester Cedars and Tower. Check out their bios and follow them through their 2014 term. Read More

As the year-long celebration of the 20th anniversary of AmeriCorps continues, the Corporation for National and Community Service has designated April as Environmental Stewardship Month. Whether improving parks and public lands, restoring waterways, increasing energy efficiency or teaching conservation, AmeriCorps makes a positive and lasting impact on our environment. Here is what Conservation Corps is doing this month and some opportunities to volunteer. Read More

If I was able to run wild like a feline, I believe I would not hesitate one second in doing so. There are just so much places I want to see, smell and touch. A close friend once asked me about why I move so often. To that I replied with my own version of the greatest traveling quote I've ever encountered - so that I can come back home at some point and so that I can see where I come from with new eyes and extra colors. And you might see me different consequently of that. Coming back to where it all started is not the same as never leaving. By the way, the original quote is by author, Terry Pratchett. Read More