DATE: April 03, 2009

CONTACT: Karen Hall, 864-656-4859
carlson@clemson.edu

WRITER: Susan Benson, 864-650-4615
benson2@clemson.edu

South Carolina Master Naturalist volunteers gather at Clemson for conference and training

CLEMSON — Master Naturalist volunteers from more than 20 South Carolina counties gathered in Clemson for a recent weekend of fun, learning, fellowship and outdoor experiences.

The 96 participants are graduates of a 12-week science outreach program to create a corps of citizen volunteers well trained in the fundamentals of natural history and natural resource management.  

The conference was largely field-trip based, with participants visiting Jocassee Gorges, Devil’s Fork State Park, the South Carolina Botanical Garden, the Bob Campbell Geology Museum and listening to lectures on the use of global position systems, nature interpretation and water-quality monitoring.

Kevin Hughes, Upstate Master Naturalist graduate, said the conference was an opportunity to “see nature in different environments.” For him, the conference drove home the value of the Master Naturalist program. He sees the value of the conference as helping to pull together “a cadre of citizen scientists” from all backgrounds - some with science and engineering experience - to make a difference in the state.

“As populations have come and gone in the state, all have had a relationship with and an effect on the natural world that is evidenced in its natural communities,” said program director Karen Hall said. “Our agrarian past assured a connection to nature.  Through the Master Naturalist program, the tradition of passing knowledge about the natural world from one generation to the next can continue.”

The South Carolina Master Naturalist program was founded in 2000 in Beaufort County and went statewide in 2007. With more than 430 graduates, South Carolina now has an army of volunteers to work in their communities to provide education, outreach and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas throughout the state.

The South Carolina Master Naturalist program is a Clemson Cooperative Extension Service program administered through the university’s forestry and natural resources department. The Master Naturalist program offers training in six regions in the state. They are partnerships between Clemson extension, S.C. State Parks, the state Department of Natural Resources, non-profit conservation organizations and county parks.

For more information about upcoming training, visit www.clemson.edu/masternaturalist or call the Master Naturalist office at 864-656-4859.

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