CONSERVANCY COMMONS

Chris Lehnertz shared a safety message from the NPS about the potential for unrest. Please remain aware and cautious this week. Look out for your safety and that of your colleagues. Check in with your supervisor if you have concerns. You can also reach out to U.S. Park Police: non-emergency, 415-561-5510 and emergency, 415-561-5656. If something is an emergency wherever you live, work, or play your fastest contact is always to call 911.

Partners were invited to the NPS all-employee meeting last week. The NPS has shared a transcript of the meeting and a PDF of the presentation. The meeting included an update on COVID-19 and vaccines.

In a message last week, Chris Lehnertz shared the five “Touchstones” guiding decision-making in the Parks Conservancy's strategic planning. These Touchstones are the “North Star” to design and implement Conservancy 2.0. 

Learn more about the Parks Conservancy's Strategic Planning on SharePoint. You can read the 2021-2025 Strategy Direction document, access information from the Strategic Sprint, and see the Task Force Teams.

Last week, Chris Lehnertz shared a note of reflection about Martin Luther King, Jr. and his legacy. "In our national parks," she writes. "We tell Dr. King’s story and that of the civil rights movement through national historic parks, historic trails, monuments, and memorials."

To commemorate MLK Day 2021, we shared inspiring quotes from the civil rights leader on our Instagram profile (@parksconservancy).

Read Claremont EAP's latest employee newsletter. This quarterly issue covers "Building and Using a Career Action Plan" and "Things You Can Do While You’re Living Through a Traumatic Experience"

Protecting our planet’s biodiversity is one of our most critical needs for building climate resilience. This past year, Restoration Technicians (ResTechs) from the Conservation Management & Field Operations (CMFO) team have been working closely with NPS Biologist Michael Chassé to enhance the San Francisco lessingia habitat, a daisy native to the Bay Area, at Fort Funston.

Claremont EAP understands that many people are experiencing ongoing stress from recent events. You can contact our employee assistance program, Claremont EAP, at 800-834-3773. They can provide you and your family members with no-cost, confidential counseling services, online support groups, and other types of free assistance, from stress management to crisis intervention.

Please share information about these NPS internship opportunities with your networks. The Mosaics in Science (MIS) Diversity Internship Program provides college students and recent graduates 18-35 years old that are under-represented in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) career fields with on-the-ground, natural resource science-based, work experience in the National Park System. Applications are due by Jan. 24.

Help the DEI Committee reimagine Community Circles in 2021. We have heard from you that Circles have been hard to attend due to work schedules, don't always meet your needs, and that they have also given you a sense of community when you needed it the most. The deadline for feedback is end of day on Mon., 1/25. 

Our next All Staff Meeting will be Thurs., Jan. 21, 10-11:30 am via Zoom. If you haven’t recently registered, please register ahead of time. Contact Nessa at nramos@parksconservancy.org for questions or if you need further assistance.

You can view recordings of past All Staff meetings on SharePoint

Last month, we convened the first part of this series to discuss ways we can create and build stewardship programs that meet our communities’ needs and address issues of justice, equity, diversity and inclusion. Please join us for two more sessions as we dive deeper, and share our stories and challenges we face in our landscapes and communities.

Join us and the Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST), the Dolores Huerta Foundation, Puente, and our partner Latino Outdoors in welcoming American civil rights leader and United Farmworkers cofounder Dolores Huerta for a conversation with founder of El Teatro Campesino and renowned American playwright Luis Valdez. They will reflect on their long history in the Santa Clara Valley, their work in the struggles for social and environmental justice, and perspectives on relationships between history, land and people in California. 

Join members of the NPS DEI Committee for an additional virtual short film screening followed by a guided conversation of "Ashes to Ashes," a film that addresses the history and legacy of racial injustice in America through the art of Winfred Rembert and Dr. Shirley Jackson.

Visit the film's website to learn more

Click here to register via a Google Form 

We hope to see you there! Questions? Email dei@parksconservancy.org

The Banff Mountain Film Festival is going digital this year and will be a year-long event of exciting films and showings! The Banff Centre and REI have designated the Parks Conservancy as one of the local beneficiaries. Use this specific link to purchase tickets, and the Parks Conservancy will receive a portion of the proceeds. Please share the link with your friends, family and networks

• 1/25, 1-2pm Bystander Intervention to Stop Anti-Asian/American Harassment (Public Training) 

• 1/27, 4-5pm How to Respond to Anti-Asian/American Harassment When it Happens to You 

Learn how stress plays a part in your overall health. We will learn how to differentiate between normal and chronic stress. We will also uncover the effects of chronic stress on our hormones (and thus on our body weight). We will look at what nutrients your body needs when you are “stressed out” and, finally, learn some great stress management strategies.

Have a submission for the Conservancy Commons? Send content and images to commons@parksconservancy.org by Friday at 10am to be included in next week's newsletter.

Share your favorite Park Pics on Yammer by logging in with your work email and password.