NYSOEA

✨Conference Committee Spotlight: Round 3✨

🌳We’re excited to continue highlighting the amazing individuals helping make this year’s conference possible!

💡Did you know? Our conference committee includes multiple subcommittees focused on different aspects of planning and coordination — giving members opportunities to contribute their unique skills, collaborate with others, and get involved in a variety of ways throughout the planning process.

✨This week, we’re showing appreciation for Emilee and Ashawna for their hard work, creativity, and continued dedication behind the scenes. From website design, to EAI advocacy, to planning exciting programs, both of these volunteers have played an important role in shaping the conference experience from the very beginning, and we’re grateful for all they bring to the team. As part of our spotlight series, we’re asking committee members a new icebreaker question each week so you can get to know the personalities behind the planning!

This week’s question:

🦹”Which fictional villian do you *kind of* understand and why?” 🦹

Emilee Nelson, Environmental Educator- Open to Work

“A fictional villain I kind of understand is Dr. Doofenshmirtz from Phineas and Ferb. He’s a passionate inventor and scientist who just so happens to have a lot of bad luck. He’s made to be the villain of the story, but I always loved how he’s so goofy and, at his heart, a good person.”

Ashawna Abbott, Mohonk Preserve ()

“Poison Ivy wants to protect the environment, okay!”

Thank you to Emilee and Ashawna! For opportunities to volunteer and support this year’s conference, please email [email protected].

🌳There’s still time to get involved in this year’s conference!

💡Have a workshop idea, innovative strategy, or experience to share? Be sure to submit your workshop proposal form by June 8.

🧩Help us shape engaging learning opportunities for attendees. We are seeking more requests for all conference strands, but request more submissions in the following categories: Eco-STEM: Science for People and Place, Mud and Movement: Adventure Learning and Wild Play, Outdoors is for All: Equity, Access, and Inclusion.

🌎We’re also inviting exhibitors to be part of this year’s event! This is a great opportunity to showcase your organization, programs, services, or resources while connecting directly with educators, professionals, and conference attendees from across the region. Exhibiting offers valuable visibility, meaningful networking opportunities, and the chance to engage with participants throughout the conference experience.

✨Don’t miss the opportunity to present, connect, and contribute. We can’t wait to see your submissions!

✨Conference Committee Spotlight: Round 2✨

🌳We’re back with another round of conference committee member spotlights! Each week, we’re introducing the incredible people helping bring this year’s conference to life. From educators and students to environmental professionals and leaders in recreation, our committee is made up of passionate individuals working together to create an engaging, inspiring, and memorable experience for all.

💎This week, we’re highlighting Melissa, Christina, and Jon for their creativity, dedication, and enthusiasm in helping organize the conference from the ground up.

✨As part of our spotlight series, we’re asking committee members a new icebreaker question each week so you can get to know the personalities behind the planning!

💭 This week’s question: “What song would play when you walk in a room and why?” 💭

Melissa Papalcure, Jones Beach Energy and Nature Center ()

“’Gymnopédie No. 1’ by Erik Satie, because I love listening to music that is atmospheric, inspiring, and full of mystery. This song always brings a lightness to my heart and makes me want to dance around the room dramatically!”

Christina Tobitsch, Center for the Urban River at Beczak ()

“My anthem is definitely ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’ by Whitney Houston! But if I’m entering a room of environmental educators, I’d come in singing along to my Hudson River favorite “River that Flows Both Ways” by Pete Seeger. Both are upbeat and portray my personality!”

Jon Anderson, NYS Parks: Allegany Region ()

“’Hips Don’t Lie’ by Shakira because it always gets the people going. Also, she moved to the United States with no knowledge of English at age 19 to pursue her music career. I find it inspiring that she taught herself English to break into the American music market.”

🎉Thank you to Melissa, Christina, and Jon for bringing liveliness to the team! For opportunities to volunteer and support this year’s conference, please email [email protected].

📍Nov. 5 to Nov. 8, 2026, Silver Bay, NY.

🌳Join educators, outdoor leaders, and changemakers from across New York State for the 58th Annual New York State Outdoor Education Association Conference, Nov. 5-8 in Silver Bay, near Lake George!

🍎As classrooms continue to evolve, educators are finding creative ways to support both academic achievement and student wellbeing.

🌱Outdoor and nature-based education offers powerful opportunities to increase engagement, improve focus, strengthen social-emotional learning, and create memorable experiences that extend far beyond classroom walls.

At this year’s conference, educators will have the opportunity to:
📝 Participate in workshops and keynote sessions focused on pedagogy, curriculum, and experiential learning
🤝 Connect with a statewide network of teachers, outdoor educators, administrators, and community organizations
🔍 Explore ways to integrate outdoor learning into science, literacy, art, physical education, and more
🌳 Discover local resources, partnerships, and nature-based spaces that can support your teaching goals
🔋Recharge your enthusiasm, creativity, and passion for education alongside like-minded educators

🐣🦅Whether you’re new to outdoor education or already incorporating nature into your classroom, this conference offers inspiration, practical tools, and a supportive community ready to help your ideas grow.

🎓NYSOEA also offers CTLE opportunities and conference scholarships to further support classroom educators in expanding access to outdoor learning experiences.

✨Let’s reimagine education to be rooted in curiosity, connection, and the natural world...together!

✨ Conference Committee Spotlight ✨

🌳Each week, we’re excited to highlight the incredible individuals behind our conference’s success. Our committee represents a diverse mix of backgrounds, regions, and career stages all coming together with one shared goal: creating an engaging, memorable, and fun experience for everyone involved! This week, we’re celebrating Pammi and Mauro for their dedication to helping organize this event from the ground up.

✨Get to know our committee members through a new icebreaker question each week, and follow along as we celebrate the people bringing this conference to life.

🐉“What mythical creature do you wish you could meet and why?”

Pammi Price, Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission ()
“I wish I could meet a Forest Sprite, I feel they are like me and we would be fast friends. I’m small, I’m a guardian of plants, animals, soil, water, and air. And most importantly, I LOVE to PLAY in NATURE!”

Mauro Gonzalez Camacho, student at SUNY Oswego ()
“If I could meet any mythical creature, it would have to be the Chupacabra. I’d be interested in seeing what an animal like that would actually look like given the various accounts of its appearance, and wanting to be the first one to tell the real story about this elusive creature.”

For opportunities to volunteer and support this year’s conference, please email [email protected].

🎤We are delighted to share our second keynote speaker for the conference this November, Michale Glennon.

📈✨Michale is transforming data into powerful works of art that inspire insight and imagination.

🏔️Michale Glennon is a wildlife ecologist, fiber artist, and director of Wool and Water, a project of the Adirondack Watershed Institute at Paul Smith’s College. Wool and Water is a collaborative project that blends fiber art with scientific information to create visual representations of changing water quality conditions in the Adirondacks and beyond.

🌧️Knitting, crochet, weaving and other fiber arts are used to illustrate concepts and trends related to our waterways, and to provide inspiration for their protection.

🔬As the Director of Research at the Adirondack Watershed Institute, Michale helps provide leadership to AWI’s scientific research program, support high quality research opportunities for students, and advocate for science in support of the management and stewardship of the natural resources of the Adirondack Park.

👀Conference info in bio!

🎤We are happy to introduce our keynote speaker, Bert Weber, who is championing an environmentally friendly and inclusive business model that is driving meaningful change.

🍺Weber is the Vice President and Co-owner of Common Roots Brewing Company, based in South Glens Falls and Albany, NY.

🫡Founded in 2014 by Bert and his son Christian, the brewery now distributes to six states across the Northeast.

🌎In 2020, the family established the Common Roots Foundation to assist the community during times of crisis and to support social justice, environmental sustainability initiatives, and healthy living projects.

✨To date, the Foundation has donated over $280,000 in grants to more than 100 organizations. Bert holds a BS in Plant and Soil Sciences and MS in Administration, and taught Horticulture and Landscape Design at WSWHE BOCES for 30 years.

🏔️An avid outdoorsman, Bert enjoys fly fishing, bicycling, and hiking. He expects to complete his 46er achievement by the time of the conference and has hiked 40 of the lower 48 state high points.

👀More conference details in bio!

🌱Pitch your workshop proposals! Help us build something amazing...“From the Ground Up!”

🔗 form.jotform.com/260966617196066

🧠We’re looking for that activity, that behavior management technique, that partnership that you’d love to see catch on at other ee facilities across the state. Show us at a conference workshop.

🐣🦅You’ll be adding your hard-earned expertise to a generational tradition in outdoor education. This is NYSOEA’s 58th annual conference!

⏳Workshop proposals open April 30 and close June 8.

✨Selected workshop presenters will receive a $30 registration discount and NYSOEA’s gratitude for supporting the organization in sharing knowledge, techniques, and resources in outdoor education.

⏰Stay tuned and submit your proposal today!

🎊Introducing Our Conference Strands!

🧶We’re excited to share the core strands that will shape this year’s conference experience. Each strand is designed to spark ideas, inspire meaningful conversations, and build new connections to peers in the field.

🌲Outdoors Is for All: Equity, Access, and Inclusion
🔬Eco-STEM: Science for People and Place
🪾Creative Roots: Nature-based Art Practices
💧Mud and Movement: Adventure Learning and Wild Play
🧠Nurturing Minds: Sharing Stories and Practices

🌱No matter if you are a classroom teacher, college professor, environmental educator, youth leader, or outdoor recreation specialist, there is a path for you to explore at NYSOEA’s 58th Annual Conference.

📣Follow to catch early bird registration, going live this summer. Comment below the strand you are most excited for!

🌳IT’S OFFICIAL! Date and venue are locked in.

📍Silver Bay, NY YMCA. Nov. 5 to Nov. 8, 2026.

🐣Early bird registration opens in July. Watch this account for the link drop!

🍂 This is the northwestern shore of Lake George, the narrow, famously high quality water at the edge of the Adirondacks.

🌱This will be our venue for professional development workshops, keynote speakers, networking, and festivities for all.