Jacqui Verloren - Interpretive Naturalist & Conservation Artist

09/01/2026

https://youtu.be/p4pWafuvdrY?si=3Lre3Ew0X9a7WWHh

Dive into the science of ocean currents (including the Global Conve...

09/01/2026

From the Carbon Almanac Network:

"George Elliot Secondary in Lake Country, British Columbia, Canada, is one of only six schools across the country to offer a pilot program called Advanced Placement Nature Education. George Elliot teacher Maggie Birkenhead’s classroom is largely taught outside in “a repurposed racquetball court that was once part of a golf course’s clubhouse. The high-ceilinged space has tables and chairs, but a lot of floorspace is claimed by a cozy ring of La-Z-Boy-style recliners — enough for every member of the class.”

Birkenhead, who has been teaching for 30 years, “says that taking students out into natural spaces works especially well for those who don’t do well in a traditional classroom environment. ‘When you take them outside, something magical happens, and they start to notice it in themselves.’ They feel peaceful and calm, and can think more deeply without getting lost in all the distractions in their lives, namely their phones.”

Students have helped design the space and will also work in the upcoming months to bring to reality “a bright new vegetable garden, blooming Indigenous medicine garden, a bird zone (with birdbaths, feeders and nesting materials to fill the birdhouses), an outdoor learning space and smaller spaces for students to connect and reflect. And just beyond all these soon-to-be new things, a protected, salmon-bearing creek wends its way through the cottonwood and willow trees, much as it always has.”

Though many of the students working on this outdoor space will graduate before it is fully realized, they are hopeful for their younger siblings who will get to enjoy it. And hopefully as more students and educators get to be in such spaces the practice, as well as the Advanced Placement Nature Education course, will be available in more schools."

08/26/2026

https://youtu.be/mk1gYmPjdyY?si=sombkpOEzAMO4eCm

Hawai'i—possibly the most remote island chain on the planet—was dis...

08/26/2026

https://youtu.be/m8bDCaPhOek?si=cJIIn7aHZfnn-nRc

Learn more about TED-Ed Student Talks here: https://ed.ted.com/stud...

08/24/2026

From the Carbon Almanac Network:

"The Royal Mail delivers the mail in the UK and the company is working towards being net-zero by 2040.

Converting the delivery fleet to EVs began in 2017 with the first order of 100 electric vans.

Now just under 10 years later, the electric fleet has grown to 9,000 vans and the company has added close to 100 MEVs (micro electric vehicles) for urban routes. In addition, it has started to electrify its larger fleet vehicles. According to the company’s sustainability report, close to one third of its delivery routes are zero-emission as they are serviced by EVs."

02/05/2026

Executive director Scott Black shares why Xerces Society doesn't accept funding from companies whose products are harming invertebrates.

01/29/2026

With 12,260 overwintering butterflies, 2025 is the third lowest year on record.

Hundreds of volunteers and partners surveyed monarchs at 249 sites across California’s coast, as part of this year’s . The numbers are clear: western monarchs are in serious trouble, and desperately need our help right now.

The three lowest counts in the program’s history have all occurred in recent years: 1,901 individual monarchs in 2020, 9,119 in 2024, and 12,260 in 2025. For comparison, western monarchs regularly numbered in the low millions in the 1980s.

So, how do we turn things around?
🌲 Protect overwintering sites! In the last year, at least 3 active sites were damaged by construction. But communities have also rallied together to stop construction projects, or find solutions that keep monarchs safe alongside the new buildings.

🚫 Avoid pesticides as much as possible! They do way more than just hurt “pests”; insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides can all harm and kill monarchs and other wildlife.

🌻 Create and maintain habitat with native milkweeds and other flowers! Once monarchs leave their overwintering sites, they need native flowers for food, and milkweed to lay eggs on.

🐛 And avoid breeding monarchs in captivity to release. We very much understand why it feels like a good idea: more monarchs can’t be bad, right? One or two for education is totally fine (if your local laws allow it; California does not). But releasing lots of captive-bred butterflies is not actually solving any of the problems they’ll face in the wild. It’s just putting even more animals into a bad situation, where there already isn’t enough food and habitat, and exposing wild monarchs to more diseases.

Monarchs need us to work together and bring them back from the brink. Learn more and get started at https://xerces.org/press/western-monarch-numbers-remain-at-historic-low 🦋

01/29/2026

Global shark and ray populations have declined sharply. A Review in Nature Reviews Biodiversity assesses global status, highlights drivers of decline, and outlines the regulatory, market-based and conservation actions needed to reduce mortality and reverse shark and ray biodiversity loss.

Link to the Review in the comments.

01/14/2026

01/14/2026

What do seals and bananas have in common? Relaxed seals often strike this “banana pose” while they are resting on the beach. Seals are very well-insulated by a thick layer of blubber, except for their head and rear flippers. By lifting them up, these areas stay nice and dry, thus helping seals to regulate their body temperature. This yoga-like position is also a great sign of the seal’s health and well-being, so much so that researchers often refer to this as the “happy seal position”!