Western Reserve Land Conservancy is committed to nurturing a lifelong love for our natural world by providing nature-based programming year-round for people of all ages. The goal of our educational opportunities is to help current and future generations develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for our natural world, ultimately leading to its protection. Choose from a variety of programs, with in-person and virtual options, to engage.
Nature Quests are fun, free-form outdoor experiences for kids and a parent or guardian. Each focuses on a seasonal nature happening, such as Monarch tagging in late summer or nest building in the spring. Even though we theme our adventures, you never know what we’ll see in nature. Come ready to explore!
Vibrant Places hikes are a series of naturalist-guided walks through a wide variety of natural landscapes, family farms, and urban green spaces on properties that have been protected by the Land Conservancy. Vibrant Places hikes can be blueberry picking on a family farm protected by a conservation easement, exploring pristine natural areas owned and protected by the Land Conservancy, and much more.
Field Explorations take a deeper dive into a particular nature subject. We enlist experts to host these unique field trips that focus on an array of topics such as mushrooms, moths, owl migration, and Odonata—to name a few. These experiences take us all over the region to different sites, broadening our understanding of nature.
Virtual programs covering a variety of nature-related topics are offered year-round. Our popular Zoom into Nature series has featured topics such as Chimney Swift conservation, basic tree identification, and orchids of Ohio. In addition, our Conservation Awareness series strives to raise awareness on topics that affect our environment and the communities where we live, allowing us to be better stewards in protecting and preserving our natural resources.
Last winter, we presented Inviting Biodiversity into Your Garden—a series of talks that focused on the ecosystem benefits of landscaping with native plants. Delivered in partnership with the Cleveland Pollinator and Native Plant Symposium and Naturespark, we hosted national and regional experts who inspired us to create habitats in our yards that are not only pleasing to the eye, but support pollinators and native wildlife species.
Western Reserve Land Conservancy and a group of stakeholders are working in partnership with the Children & Nature Network and the National League of Cities to implement the Nature Everywhere Communities initiative in northeast Ohio. The goal of the initiative is to create equitable access to nature for children living in urban areas.
