NorthWoods Stewardship Center

08/12/2026

Youth Crew Season 2026 was officially a wrap as of July 31! Thank you crew members for your hard work outside on the trails and in the woods this summer! This year we expanded the scope at our celebrated annual Conservation Olympics- with our adult crews and interns joining the youth crews for a day of fun games- including the addition of a new wader challenge! happy summer y’all.

08/11/2026

Mission: installing a set of infiltration steps on a lakeshore property to help manage stormwater.

Day One: IN THE BOOKS! I snuck a few photos of dragons & damsels, but this crew from NorthWoods Stewardship Center are work-horses! I helped with the pressure-treated lumber and potted up some of the small groundcover plants that we're going to replant after we're done digging and building - the other crew-members were cutting, hatcheting, drilling, digging, clipping, drilling, and pounding...this is a challenging site and the landowners are putting in a ton of work and money on their own top manage stormwater, from putting in gutters to creating dry wells and French drains and rain gardens all around the property.

Thanks to a block grant from the State of Vermont (administered through the Mount Ascutney Regional Commission - MARC), we are able to pay for the work crew's time and labor. The landowners are paying for all the materials and are putting the crew up in their lovely home for the duration of the project.

08/07/2026

Tomorrow! Join us rain or shine in Sheffield at the Pfalzerwald Tree Farm for a free forest thinning workshop! If you are a forest owner or steward who hasn't visited Al Robertson's amazing property, you're missing out!

Participants will get hands on, learning best practices for thinning spruce-fir and mixed hardwood-softwood stands, with Al and our very own Forestry Program Coordinator Jenny Newland.

Learn more on our website and sign up!

07/22/2026

07/17/2026

Do you have spruce-fir stands or mixed softwood and hardwood stands that need thinning? Is it something you think you could do yourself if you knew how? NorthWoods Stewardship Center along with VWA can help!

Join NorthWoods Director of Forest Stewardship Jenny Newland and landowner Al Robertson for a forest thinning workshop.

Location: Pfälzerwald Tree Farm, 1619 Berry Hill Road, Sheffield, Vermont
Date: Saturday, August 8th , 9 AM—3PM

The workshop will include educational training, demonstrations, and hands-on work in the forest.

Come prepared to work in the woods in the hot summer: tough hiking shoes or boots, light outdoor work clothing, bug dope, gloves, and a water bottle- we provide everything else! This is a field event (rain or shine) so dress accordingly. Mild to moderate hiking on rough trails is required.

There is no charge for this workshop, but registration is requested so we know you’re coming - you can sign up on our website: northwoodscenter.org.

Workshop sponsored by NorthWoods Stewardship Center and Vermont Woodlands Association.

07/17/2026

Grab a plate and pull up a patio chair or put on your dancing shoes—we're gathering for an evening of good food, good drink, and good company, with some folk and country tunes from Aden Marcotte & Remi Lamothe on guitar, fiddle and vocals.

We'll toast to long sunny days and celebrate our dear friend and colleague, outgoing Conservation Science Director Meg Carter as she heads off to new adventures in the southern hemisphere.

Bring a potluck dish if you're able—but come regardless, we'll have refreshments to share!

07/08/2026

Let’s go look for butterflies!

Scientists want to know what kind of butterflies live near you. Come join a team from the Vermont Center for Ecostudies and the NorthWoods Stewardship Center for a day of butterflying near Brunswick, VT. This is a great opportunity to meet other nature lovers and learn about butterflies in the field with the experts. No experience necessary—just an interest in butterflies! All ages welcome, but minors must be accompanied by an adult.

We will meet at the NorthWoods Stewardship Center at 10 am to select teams and travel in groups to various sites in the Brunswick and Ferdinand area to conduct butterfly surveys for the Second Vermont Butterfly Atlas. We will have options for low intensity (roadside surveys, minimal walking) or medium intensity (1 – 3 miles of walking).

Grab a friend or come alone and join us for all or part of the day.

07/08/2026

🌱 Ever wonder where the native trees used in restoration projects come from?

Many of them begin as seed that are collected from natural areas across the state! The Riparian Lands Native Seed Partnership (RLNSP) brings organizations in the Northeast together to build a regional supply of locally adapted native seeds. Through this partnership, the Intervale Center and NorthWoods Stewardship Center work together to identify and collect native seeds for future restoration projects.

Collaborative crews spend the season traveling across the region scouting, identifying, and mapping native trees and shrubs before returning to collect seed when the timing is right. Using these local seeds to grow trees for restoration work helps ensure plantings are well-suited to regional growing conditions – allowing them to thrive, support healthy forests and waterways, and create a strong foundation for our food system.

These photos offer a glimpse into the work behind the seeds – and the seeds behind future forests. 🌿

To learn more about the Riparian Lands Native Seed Partnership, read the latest newsletter - https://www.intervale.org/stories

The work of the collaborative crews of the Riparian Lands Native Seed Partnership (RLNSP) is made possible through support from the Lake Champlain Basin Program, One Hive Foundation, Great Lakes Fishery Commission, Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department, and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

06/23/2026

Position Now Available! Forget to apply to a summer job? Build trails with us this summer! We have an opening NOW for our Youth Conservation Corps, available for 14-18 year olds. Get paid $14-17 per hour to build trails, build muscles, build skills, and build friendships outdoors in the Northeast Kingdom!

We are hiring ASAP! Visit our website for the full description, and email Maria Young, mailto:[email protected] to learn more and apply!