Pirates & Fish Guts
Wild Diversity's BIPOC Youth Learn in Unique Ways
It was the last night of our adventure course and I was asking all the youth about their favorite parts of the week. We had been in the wilderness for 4 days now. Our Youth Adventure Course included camping, backpacking, and kayak camping. During the flow of the week the youth had to learn so much. They set up their own tents; learned how to pack and maneuver their kayaks; they even helped chef it up on the camp stoves and made meals for the whole group.
It was my turn to host activities for the group. I wanted the youth to stargaze and catch the glimpses of the meteor shower. Our stargazing required the youth to lay on the ground in the forest in the dark and in silence. We saw absolutely no shooting stars. I was worried that in a world full of tech, instant gratification and a lot of stimulation that this would be challenging. But when I asked the youth what their favorite moments of the weekend were, a few of them said that night. It warmed my heart to know that a night of darkness and quiet could resonate with them so well.
On our way to not-viewing shooting stars we also worked on our night vision. While most people think that pirates only have one eye; the story goes that they are just protecting their night vision. Pirates are only trying to avoid that blinding sensation when one transitions from a bright sunny day to the bowels of an unlit room. The eye patch flips up in the dark room and has no adjustment period and it flips down on deck to protect the building of their night vision. While I had no answer to the pirate one leg, hook hand thing. The youth trusted in the process and followed me through the woods in the dark to our stargazing location.
Wild Diversity strives to shift the intersection of youth and conservation away from labor. It happens more often than not by many well meeting conservation organizations. Our philosophy is different.
We believe that a sense of place, connection to space; and joyful experiences have better outcomes in cultivating youth into future stewards.
This year our summer camps included a Field Science Week. Our youth got to work alongside BIPOC Biologists at Portland Audubon and US Fish & Wildlife. They got to connect with spaces and work where they saw people in their communities doing that work. Representation matters. And they got to take part in learning, experiments and care.
Attending a hatchery, they investigated with fish biologists to determine why young fish weren't surviving. They dissected and learned the anatomy of the fish to identify irregularities. They got to work with bird biologists and learned about caring and rehabilitation for our feathery friends. Yes, one day they will be future stewards. And this summer we gave them an opportunity to be a steward of today.
We hope to continue unique growth and learning opportunities for youth at Wild Diversity. It is more than just passing the time away. It is providing them with an experience that they can grow from; experiences that are investing in their own futures. In 2024, Wild Diversity is adding a Zoology Week to our youth summer camp docket. We are still working out the details and hope it will include animal care and medicine from domestic, to farm, birds and horses. It will provide youth knowledge on creating habitats and healthy spaces for animals. Of course, we will continue exciting field science and our adventure course weeks in 2024.
So what was my favorite part of the Youth Adventure Course? It was our first day camping together. We were just getting through the get to know you phase as we were settling in at camp. We laughed till our tummies hurt while playing Taco, Cat, Goat, Cheese, Pizza and then decided to take a walk to the lake. There was so much joy, laughter and great conversation on the way to the lake. We explored paths through the mud, counted all the mini frogs we saw, and one of the youth was doing one of the best impressions of an Australian accent as we went. The lake was beautiful in the late afternoon with the trees framing it in the background. This was the moment that they let their guard down and connected with each other. Naturally we played more games and there was more laughter before we headed back.
