BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
From CHILDHOOD EXPLORATION to CONSERVATION LEADERSHIP i

CONTENTS

	 From the DIRECTOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii

	 About the BLM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v

EDUCATION

	 BLM PUBLIC LANDS are truly “LEARNINg LANDSCAPES” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

	 OUTDOOR Classrooms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

	 OTHER BLM Formal Education Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

	 EDUCATOR RESOURCES and Professional Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

	 STUDENT Internships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

	 SERVICE Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

ENGAGEMENT

	 GETTING OUT, Getting Active, GETTING INVOLVED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

 . . SIDEBAR - New BLM mascot “Seymour Antelope” encourages kids to get outside . . . . . . . . . . . 20

	 TAKE IT Outside . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

	 MEANINGFUL Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

 . . SIDEBAR - The “Best of the Best” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

	 HANDLE with Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

	 BUILDING Future Leaders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

	 GIVING BACK to the Public Lands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

EMPLOYMENT

	 NURTURING Conservation Leaders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

	 APPENDIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
ii BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
From CHILDHOOD EXPLORATION to CONSERVATION LEADERSHIP iii

From the

DIRECTOR

Utah to developing 

interpretive exhibits 

for an archaeological 

site in Idaho. In 

addition, thousands 

of children 

and families 

are benefitting 

from outdoor 

opportunities 

provided through 

the BLM’s Take It 

Outside programs.

Many of the initiatives described here attest to the 

important role partners play in these programs. A 

prime example is the BLM’s success in employing 

young people as part of the Secretary’s high-priority 

goal to increase youth employment throughout the 

Department. The BLM hired more than 3,100 youth 

in Fiscal Year 2010, nearly 1,700 of them through 

partner organizations. Working as youth corps crew 

members or as individuals through universities and 

other organizations, young people are participating in 

virtually every BLM resource program. 

I am grateful to the agency staff, volunteers, and 

partners who have helped to make the BLM a 

nationally-respected leader in the fields of education, 

interpretation, and youth involvement. We know that 

the health and productivity of the public lands depend 

on citizens who are informed and willing to assist us 

in protecting and restoring America’s natural and 

cultural legacy. We will continue to work together to 

cultivate that commitment to shared stewardship 

and to bring our programs to ever-expanding, 

increasingly diverse audiences. 

ONBEHALF OF THE STAFF at 

the Bureau of Land Management 

(BLM), I am pleased to present this overview of the 

BLM’s accomplishments in the areas of education, 

interpretation, and youth involvement.

Our BLM public lands are truly “learning landscapes,” 

providing exceptional formal and informal education 

and engagement opportunities for students, “lifetime 

learners,” and the general public. While a report of this 

length can only highlight a small number of the BLM’s 

outstanding programs for youth and adults, I hope it 

will give readers a sense of some of the superb education 

programs offered at BLM Hands on the Land (HOL) 

outdoor classrooms. Textbooks come alive on school 

field trips to Fish Slough, a desert wetland in central 

California, while resource management challenges 

become real to high school students monitoring 

riparian areas along the Agua Fria River near Phoenix. 

Hands-on field experiences are also helping collegeage interns expand their skills and try out possible 

careers—by participating in activities ranging from 

assessing potential impacts of energy development in 

Robert V. Abbey

Director, Bureau of Land Management
iv BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
From CHILDHOOD EXPLORATION to CONSERVATION LEADERSHIP v

About the BLM

THE NATION’S LARGEST LAND

MANAGER

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), one of eight 

agencies within the U.S. Department of the Interior, may 

aptly be described as a small agency with a big mission: 

to sustain the health, productivity, and diversity of 

America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of 

present and future generations. The remnants of the vast, 

Federally-owned tracts that were once known as the 

public domain, BLM public lands comprise about 245 

million acres of the United States—fully one-eighth 

of our nation’s land area, located mostly in 12 western 

states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 

million acres of mineral estate across the country.

MULTIPLE USES AND WORKING

LANDSCAPES

Managed for multiple uses, as mandated by the Federal 

Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, America’s 

resource-rich public lands provide our nation with vital 

commodities as well as scarce open space and critical 

wildlife habitat. Public lands generate nearly $5 billion 

in revenue for the nation each year, while also providing 

Americans with such necessities as coal, oil and gas, 

forest products, livestock forage, and—increasingly—

renewable energy. At the local level, rural western 

communities benefit greatly from the economic fruits 

of such “working landscapes” through employment 

opportunities and tax revenue.

While commodity production and income generation 

are important, the public lands also host some of the 

nation’s most remarkable landscapes, ecosystems, and 

heritage sites. Overall, the public lands are home to 

more than 3,000 species of wildlife and a wide array of 

plants, some of which are threatened or endangered. 

The BLM also manages an estimated 4 million 

archaeological and historic sites, from the dwellings 

of America’s earliest human inhabitants to the historic 

ghost towns of the Old West. And paleontological 

resources abound; in fact, of the 700 dinosaur species 

known to science worldwide, seven were discovered on 

Utah public lands in 2010 alone.

THE BLM’S NATIONAL LANDSCAPE

CONSERVATION SYSTEM

Many public lands are highly prized for their cultural, 

ecological, scientific, educational, wildlife, and aesthetic 

values, and in numerous regions play critical roles in 

habitat and resource conservation efforts. More than 

850 units of such prime conservation lands, trails, and 

waterways are now included in the BLM’s National 

Landscape Conservation System (NLCS). This system, 

created in June 2000, is an organized network of special 

places managed to ensure that their unique resources 

are conserved, protected, and restored for future 

generations. All areas included in the NLCS have been 

designated by Congressional Act or by Presidential 

proclamation.

CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

Some of the most important 21st-century challenges 

facing the BLM are associated with managing public 

lands under the pressures of a fast-growing and everchanging American West, where once-remote places 

are now within a short drive of population centers. 

With new challenges come new opportunities, however. 

Public lands that are “close to home” allow Americans 

to benefit more easily in “non-traditional” ways: as 

visitors forging connections through interpretive 

programs, as teachers and students taking their 

classrooms outside, as families pursuing active lifestyles, 

as volunteers “giving back,” as young people exploring 

resource careers. Public lands really do belong to all 

Americans, and by practicing good stewardship and 

sound conservation today, we can ensure that future 

generations reap those benefits—and maybe even some 

yet to be imagined.
vi BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
EDUCATION 1

BLM PUBLIC LANDS are truly

“LEARNING LANDSCAPES”

In 2010, thousands of students took part in BLM 

education programs nationwide. The following 

highlights represent just a sampling of these programs.

THE245 MILLION ACRES managed 

by the Bureau of Land Management 

offer myriad settings for placed-based education. 

Students from pre-kindergarten to 12th grade and 

beyond can participate in a variety of educational 

experiences, from discovery hikes and hands-on 

exploration to service-learning projects and graduatelevel research. The BLM’s multiple-use mission 

also offers students and teachers opportunities 

to engage in real-life learning about subjects 

ranging from archaeology to zoology. As living 

classrooms, BLM public lands promote a 

multidisciplinary approach to teaching and 

learning and help students develop critical 

thinking and problem-solving skills.

Partnerships with local schools, colleges, and 

universities, as well as with national and 

community organizations, contribute 

significantly to the success of BLM 

education programs. BLM resource 

specialists and other staff members are 

also essential to program effectiveness. 

Whether leading a field trip, mentoring a 

student intern, or participating in a career day 

at a local elementary school, BLM employees 

seize every opportunity to convey their extensive 

knowledge about—and passion for—public lands 

and resources. In doing so, they serve as role models 

for students considering natural or cultural resource 

professions and set the stage for the next generation of 

conservation leaders. 
2 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
EDUCATION 3

HANDS ON THE LAND STUDENTS

PARTICIPATE IN REAL-WORLD

SCIENCE

. . . at Agua Fria National Monument

Approximately 40 miles north of Phoenix, Arizona, the 

BLM’s 71,000-acre Agua Fria National Monument borders 

burgeoning residential communities and busy Interstate-17.

The monument hosts a variety of biotic communities, 

including grasslands, chaparral, and Sonoran desert scrub. 

This diverse area is bisected by the canyon-bound Agua 

Fria River and its tributaries, which have created a green 

belt of precious riparian habitat. Ninety-five species of 

birds alone have been documented within the monument.

Agua Fria also has a long history of human use, as 

evidenced by the pueblos, artwork, and countless artifacts 

left behind over the 1,700 years the area was inhabited 

by various tribes. Even after its designation as a national 

monument, Agua Fria still encompasses portions of ten 

cattle ranches. Grazing and other activities such as offroad vehicle use must be monitored by the BLM in order 

to collect data on which to base management decisions.

Through the Hands on the Land program, Agua 

Fria has partnered with Audubon Arizona and several 

Phoenix high schools to engage students in these crucial 

monitoring efforts. The program allows urban young 

people to experience a natural world they may not have 

encountered before. They typically leave the Agua Fria 

HOL program with a wider understanding of Arizona’s 

diverse ecology, an appreciation for riparian areas, and an 

interest in career opportunities related to BLM resource 

management.

OUTDOOR

Classrooms

HANDS ON THE LAND (HOL)

is a network of outdoor 

classrooms supported by Partners in Resource Education 

(PRE), a coalition of six Federal agencies: the Bureau 

of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 

National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, Natural 

Resources Conservation Service, and National 

Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Having grown every year since its establishment, the 

network now includes approximately 110 sites from coast 

to coast, in effect making it America’s largest outdoor 

classroom. All sites offer programs supporting schoolbased curricula correlated to local standards of learning.

Since the HOL network’s earliest beginnings, the BLM 

has been a leader in the program. In partnership with 

local schools, the BLM’s 38 Hands on the Land sites 

offer the premier formal education programs within 

the agency, reaching more than 11,000 students in 

Fiscal Year 2010 alone. As HOL is a featured component 

of the BLM’s Youth Program, the agency is working 

to increase the number of participating field sites and 

enhance the quality of programming at existing venues.

The HOL program is demonstrating that with 

innovative thinking, an interactive website, and real-life 

experiences in the outdoors, children can reconnect to 

nature and learn in new and exciting ways.

“Our work as teachers is to give 

children a sense of place, to invite 

children to braid their identities 

together with the place where they 

live by calling their attention to the 

air, the sky, the cracks in the sidewalk 

where the earth busts out of its 

cement cage.”

Ann Pelo,

American educator and author
4 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

. . . at King Range

National Conservation

Area

The BLM’s King Range National 

Conservation Area in northern 

California has partnered with 

local, State, and national 

organizations on a project to 

monitor marine phytoplankton 

for harmful algal blooms. As a 

Hands on the Land network site, King Range facilitated 

the inception of this program, which engages local rural 

students in an applied scientific research project linked 

to education standards. The effort is a component 

of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric 

Administration’s Phytoplankton Monitoring Network.

Students begin the Phytoplankton Monitoring Program 

with a visit to the Pacific Ocean at King Range. There, 

they learn and practice proper phytoplankton collecting 

protocols, such as use of a phytoplankton net, 

thermometer, and refractometer. Back in the classroom, 

students study phytoplankton’s life cycle, anatomy, and 

importance to the planet’s ecosystem, as well as microscope 

operation and identification techniques for key diatom 

and dinoflagellate species. Each class monitors the King 

Range phytoplankton once or twice a month during the 

school year and is responsible for tallying species 

numbers for submission to national and State databases.

. . . when they “FIRE Up For Summer!”

In the summer of 2010, the Bureau of Land 

Management joined municipal, County, educational, 

and private organizations in Eagle, Idaho, to support 

the Field Inquiry Research Education program, better 

known as “FIRE Up for Summer!” This Hands on 

the Land partnership provides exemplary hands-on 

learning experiences for participating students and 

offers a glimpse into actual work done by natural 

resource professionals and land management agencies. 

The course is managed and taught by three to five 

BLM employees and six certified Idaho 

science, technology, and math 

teachers. 

Last summer, twenty-four 

students conducted valuable 

field research, and educated local 

homeowners about protecting 

their properties from wildfire. 

Student research projects 

contributed baseline data to be 

used in restoring vegetation to 

a burned-over area of the Eagle 

foothills. Student teams surveyed 

130 plots, each 0.001 acre in size, 

mapping and categorizing each 

area by soil type. They marked 

the centers of assigned test plots with monument posts 

to enable easy location of specific sites. At each plot a 

student team surveyed the interior vegetation of five 

one-meter hoops ten meters from the center PVC post. 

Vegetation type, percent cover, and vegetation height 

data was collected. Students then analyzed the data and 

presented their research project results to the BLM, 

participating partners, school district personnel, and 

family members during Student Showcase on the last 

day of the class.

HANDS ON THE LAND STUDENTS

ARE CITIZEN STEWARDS

. . . thanks to the “HIKE”Youth Crew

Six young adults, known 

as the HIKE (Healthy 

Initiative for Kids in 

the Environment) 

Youth Crew, play 

a significant role 

in California’s 

Coachella 

Valley 

“Earth and sky, woods and 

fields, lakes and rivers, the 

mountain and the sea . . . 

teach some of us more 

than we can ever learn 

from books.”

John Lubbock,

British statesman
EDUCATION 5

community through their volunteer work as HIKE 

educators. The Crew presents classroom lessons to local 

schools and conducts field trips in the BLM’s Santa 

Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument. 

The young leaders promote hands-on learning in 

their programs for fourth-grade audiences. Prominent 

partners in the HIKE program are the U.S. Forest 

Service, Natural Science Collaborative, Agua Caliente 

Band of Cahuilla Indians, Friends of the Desert 

Mountains, and Leave No Trace. 

HANDS ON THE LAND STUDENTS

INVESTIGATE NATURE

. . . as HOL Kid Explorers

At the BLM’s Campbell Creek Science Center in 

Anchorage, Alaska, an HOL site, the Kid Explorer 

program encourages elementary-school students to 

discover and enjoy the natural world. The program is 

being implemented in two basic formats: as part of 

local school curricula and as an after-school program. 

In both cases, students are provided with tools to 

explore the outdoors and activities to complete, while 

participating teachers receive supporting materials. In 

addition, after-school students are offered incentives for 

completing outdoor activities on their own.

The Kid Explorer program has been integrated with a 

social studies unit on Lewis and Clark. It also will be 

incorporated into a science module on Alaskan animals 

and additional after-school programs.

. . . on field trips to Fish Slough

Fish Slough is a rare desert wetland located in central 

California between the Mojave Desert and the Great 

Basin, an area that is home to endangered animals, 

endemic plants, and outstanding archaeological 

resources.

In partnership with the non-profit Eastern Sierra 

Institute for Collaborative Education, this HOL 

site has established a place-based and classroom 

program that allows area second- and fourth-graders 

to participate in field trips to Fish Slough. Most local 

kids visit Fish Slough for the first time through this 

program.

Students are introduced to the life cycle of the 

endangered Owens pupfish in order to illustrate 

ecosystem interactions that affect the survival of 

endemic species. Students in the field observe, measure, 

and investigate various aspects of the “mystery of 

the missing pupfish,” and through guided criticalthinking exercises, analyze how each factor might have 

contributed to the species’ decline.

While learning about plant communities, students are 

introduced to the impact of off-road vehicles on the 

fragile desert environment. Hands-on botany activities 

include identifying desert adaptations in leaves, taking 

soil temperatures, and comparing soils in desert scrub 

with those in alkali meadow plant communities. Older 

students learn about the formation 

and evolution of the area’s 

outstanding landforms. 

Using visual aids and 

student-centered 

demonstrations, 

instructors explain 

the natural processes 

that shaped Fish 

Slough in the 

context of geologic 

time.
6 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

HANDS ON THE LAND STUDENTS

EMBRACE THEIR HERITAGE

. . . at Utah’s Black Ledges

Archaeology Camp

Students from Cedar City’s Enoch and Three Peaks 

Elementary Schools participated in an archaeology 

camp located at the Black Ledges, an uplift of 

volcanic rock overlooking the Great Basin valley. 

Staff from the Dixie National Forest, Three Peaks 

Elementary, and the BLM taught students about 

Native American cultures and worked with them 

to document and restore two rockshelters 

that had been looted. Students 

excavated looted backfill from 

the rockshelters to record and 

collect any remaining artifacts. 

The backfill was then moved back 

into the rockshelters to restore the 

surface to its former state.

Activities consisted of artifact identification, 

archaeological methods, American Indian crafts, site 

recording, and photography.

. . . on a “Journey Through the Monument”

This educational program for seventh-grade students 

focuses on sites along Montana’s Wild and Scenic 

Upper Missouri River within the Upper Missouri River 

Breaks National Monument. The 21⁄2-day river float 

trip features an interdisciplinary curriculum and 

enables students and professionals from the BLM 

and other agencies to interact on public lands.

At planned stops along the river, students, teachers, 

resource specialists, and volunteer chaperones hike 

to and learn about unique geological formations, 

Native American tipi rings, homesteads, and 

Lewis and Clark historic sites. They also engage in 

journaling, art, aquatic ecology, invertebrate biology, 

and botany/plant identification, and learn relevant 

local history throughout their trip. Leave No Trace 

principles, canoe safety, and proper camping protocols 

are discussed and employed throughout the outing. 

Trip participants experience a sense of connection to 

their surroundings, the excitement of exploration, and a 

renewed joy in learning.
EDUCATION 7

OTHER BLM

Formal Education

Programs touch on real-life land management issues and 

strategies. BLM personnel conduct similar programs in 

the field for visiting classes.

Teachers use the lessons, often tied to standards of 

learning, to enhance their mandatory course curricula. 

For many students, a classroom program by a BLM 

employee is their first exposure to the breadth and 

variety of natural and cultural resources as well as the 

possibilities for careers in those fields.

FOURTH-GRADERS VISIT PIEDRAS

BLANCAS LIGHT STATION FOR

HANDS-ON ACTIVITIES

Fourth-grade students visiting California’s Piedras 

Blancas Outstanding Natural Area participated in a 

series of curriculum-based, hands-on activities on 

the cultural and natural history of this unique site. 

Prior to the students’ visit, volunteers dressed in 

period U.S. Lighthouse Service uniforms delivered 

teaching chests of lighthouse-related items to the 

classrooms. The volunteers also briefed the students 

about what they could expect to see and do on their 

visit to Piedras Blancas.

“Come forth into the light of things, 

let nature be your teacher.” 

William Wordsworth,

English poet

NUMEROUS BLM FIELD 

SITES

outside the Hands on the 

Land network also 

sponsor a variety 

of programs in 

conjunction 

with local 

schools. 

Frequently, 

such efforts 

take the form 

of classroom 

presentations by 

BLM resource 

specialists, who 

consider community 

outreach a key 

component of the agency’s 

mission. Presentations range 

from living history reenactments 

and live raptor demonstrations to fossil excavation 

simulations and water quality studies. Many topics 
8 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

On-site activities were conducted in several of the site’s 

historic light station buildings and along its interpretive 

trail. In 2010, eleven fourth-grade classes from six 

regional elementary schools participated in the program.

IDAHO STUDENTS GEAR UP FOR A

CAVE TOUR

Accompanied by their teacher, fourth-grade students 

from a Shoshone-area elementary school learned about 

lava-tube caves, cave life, cave conservation, and cave 

safety on a BLM-escorted field trip to the Tee-Maze 

cave system. Wearing caving gear, 

including hardhats and 

miner’s lights, the class 

hiked through 

multilevel cave 

passages, squeezed along narrow tunnels, and helped 

one another negotiate challenging ledges.

LAND OF THE YANKEE FORK

INTERPRETIVE CENTER HOSTS

ARCHAEOLOGY STUDY STATIONS

In honor of Idaho Archaeology and Historic 

Preservation Month, the BLM’s Land of the Yankee 

Fork Interpretive Center in Challis hosted 85 elementary 

school students from the Challis, Mackay, Stanley, and 

Salmon school systems for a day of learning and handson activities. The event was co-sponsored by the BLM 

and the Idaho Department of Parks and 

Recreation.

With the Challis Bison Kill Site as 

a backdrop, each of the third- and 

fourth-graders worked through 

five activity stations dealing with 

various aspects of archaeology. 

Each station was staffed by 

resource specialists to assist 

with activities and answer 

questions.

Among other topics, students 

learned how bison were 

used by American Indians 

and investigated techniques 

for fashioning spears and 

arrowheads. Participants also 

had an opportunity to throw 

an atlatl, a prehistoric spear 

launcher that was used to 

extend the range of a thrown 

spear by increasing its speed. 
EDUCATION 9

EDUCATOR

RESOURCES

and Professional

Development

website, these include printed materials; distance 

learning programs, including satellite broadcasts 

and interactive e-fieldtrips; and web-based reference 

materials. BLM professional development opportunities 

and teaching materials provide educators with the 

training and information they need to incorporate 

natural and cultural resource education into their 

classrooms and curricula.

AWARD-WINNING

HERITAGE

EDUCATION

PROGRAM BRINGS

ARCHAEOLOGY INTO

CLASSROOMS

In 2010, Project Archaeology, 

a joint program of the BLM 

and Montana State University, 

distributed heritage stewardship education materials and 

provided professional development programs to more 

than 800 educators nationwide.

In Nevada, for example, BLM teamed up with the 

Nevada State Museum to offer archaeology education 

to 60 museum docents and educators from across the 

state. Through a Challenge Cost Share grant, Project 

Archaeology trained a cadre of 18 master teachers from 

12 states to provide professional development for their 

peers. In partnership with the Utah Museum of Natural 

History, Project Archaeology conducted two national 

online courses for teachers. And at the 2010 National 

Council for Social Studies conference, the BLM 

joined the Florida Public Archaeology Network to 

distribute teacher resources and conduct educator 

workshops on using archaeology to integrate social 

studies and science.

In 2010, the Society for American Archaeology (SAA), 

the nation’s leading professional archaeological and 

heritage education organization, presented Project 

Archaeology with an “Excellence in Public 

Education” Award for the curriculum entitled 

Project Archaeology: Investigating Shelter. This 

creative and unique national curriculum uses 

archaeology to teach scientific inquiry, citizenship, 

personal ethics, and cultural understanding.

BLMPROVIDES A VARIETY of 

professional development opportunities 

for teachers across the nation. Workshops help 

educators connect natural and cultural resource topics 

to curriculum standards. Participation in hands-on field 

programs often gives teachers the confidence to offer 

similar experiences to their own students. BLM offers 

and supports teacher programs at both the national 

and local levels, frequently working in partnership with 

other Federal agencies, educational institutions, and 

private organizations.

Teachers can learn from natural and cultural resource 

experts at intensive field sessions or through workshops 

offered at regional and national teacher conferences. 

Educators may also take advantage of a wide range 

of educational 

resources developed 

by the BLM. Available 

through BLM’s 

“Learning 

Landscapes” 
10 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

RIPARIAN EDUCATION MODULE

INTRODUCES EDUCATORS TO THE

“GREEN ZONE”

A wide range of partnerships is enabling young people 

and teachers to connect with riparian areas in their 

communities. With the BLM and other Federal agency 

partners, the Izaak Walton League of America (IWLA) 

is training teachers and youth program leaders in the 

use of BLM’s riparian education module, “Holding 

onto the GREEN ZONE.”

In 2010, the League also engaged hundreds 

of young people and adults in hands-on 

learning about stream ecology. Teenage 

youth program leaders proved to be 

particularly effective teachers of 

younger students. As part of this 

comprehensive education and service 

program, IWLA is developing an 

interactive “Creek Freaks” website, 

which will feature information and 

resources for program leaders, creek 

tours, and opportunities for students to share data 

collected during their stream explorations.

GREAT BASIN TEACHERS HEAD TO

SUMMER ARCHAEOLOGY“CAMP”

For 25 years, the BLM has worked with other Federal 

agencies and partner organizations to provide K-12 

teachers in the Great Basin region with an intensive 

40-hour summer workshop at Camp Success, a former 

Scout camp in Nevada’s Schell Creek Mountains. 

Workshop themes rotate yearly among the topics of 

biology, archaeology, and geology of the Great Basin. 

Teachers develop observational skills, learn how to 

teach the scientific method and conduct scientific 

investigations, study sampling techniques, and pursue 

wildflower walks and native plant studies. The workshop 

also teaches the basics of biology, land use ethics, 

contemporary management issues, and the importance 

of preserving biological resources on public lands. 

Thirty-seven teachers from 26 schools participated in 

the 2010 workshop, whose theme was archaeology. 

Working in small groups, workshop participants 

completed lessons from the new Project Archaeology: 

Investigating Shelter curriculum guide in order to

familiarize themselves with the way their students 

would learn the material. The workshop also offered 

teachers the opportunity to use archaeological data to 

map the Dirty Shame Rockshelter, an important BLMadministered 

archaeological 

site in Oregon.

“It was 

great to connect 

learning with Navajo 

culture using place-based 

activities.” 

 2010

Bioregional Outdoor Education

 Project participant
EDUCATION 11

“Working 

with the birds . . . 

helped me to understand 

the excitement that a student 

would feel in this situation. It 

clearly enunciated the power of 

getting actual wildlife 

into the classroom 

as a teaching 

tool.”

“Visiting 

the Birds of Prey 

area made me realize 

the importance of protecting 

this special habitat for our 

raptor friends . . . Our natural 

laboratory to observe and learn 

couldn’t have been any better.”

2010 WILD About Raptors 

workshop participants

UTAH WORKSHOPS TEACH

PLACE-BASED EDUCATION

TECHNIQUES

In 2010, the BLM partnered with the Four 

Corners Environmental Education School 

to present a series of outdoor education 

workshops for K-8 teachers in San Juan 

County. Participants learned techniques 

to teach core curriculum using a hands-on, 

place-based approach. The workshop was offered 

twice a month over a period of nine months, with 

consistently positive feedback.

IDAHO EDUCATORS GO “WILD”AT

ANNUAL RAPTOR WORKSHOP

Idaho teachers participated in the eighth annual WILD 

About Raptors workshop, facilitated by The Peregrine 

Fund (World Center for Birds of Prey), Idaho Fish 

& Game, and the BLM Morley Nelson Snake River 

Birds of Prey National Conservation Area (NCA). Live 

birds and field specialists participated in the two-day 

workshop. 

Over the course of the workshop, teachers 

learned about the adaptations of Idaho 

raptors and practiced activities to integrate 

into their classroom curricula. On the 

second day of the workshop, the teachers 

toured the Birds of Prey NCA in 

search of raptors. Among their finds 

were a great horned owl, redtailed hawks, northern harriers, 

burrowing owls, a rough-legged 

hawk, bald eagles, prairie falcons, 

ferruginous hawks, and a nesting 

golden eagle.
12 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
EDUCATION 13

STUDENT

Internships

Through focused work with student interns, the BLM is 

helping to ensure that young people are prepared to take 

the reins as the next generation of conservation leaders.

ALASKA STUDENTS MANAGE WILD

AND SCENIC RIVER RECREATION

In Alaska, three interns hired through the Student 

Conservation Association gained educational and 

hands-on river management experience along the Delta 

and Gulkana Wild and Scenic Rivers. The river ranger 

interns participated in the day-to-day management of 

the recreational river program and gained experience in 

resource inventory and river monitoring.

The interns’ responsibilities included using watercraft to 

access and maintain trails and river facilities, communicating river rules and Leave No Trace information 

to visitors, and preparation and analysis of visitor 

use data. The interns also used 

Global Positioning Systems 

in describing trail 

conditions, documented 

river features using 

digital photography, 

compiled field notes, 

and developed maps 

and related river files.

“A mind that is stretched by a new experience 

can never go back to its old dimensions.”

Oliver Wendell Holmes, American jurist

SECRETARY OF THE 

INTERIOR

Ken Salazar has committed Department of the Interior 

agencies to work with young people to build a highly 

skilled 21st-century workforce that reflects the diversity 

of our nation. BLM public lands offer the perfect training 

venue for such an effort, and strong partnerships with 

diverse organizations are helping to ensure its success.

The 245 million acres of public lands managed by the 

BLM provide high school, college, and post-graduate 

students with countless opportunities to expand their 

skill bases and enhance their knowledge with hands-on 

field experiences. Budding conservationists working 

with the BLM can even take those first steps down 

a career pathway in natural or cultural resources. 

Students can pursue their passions—or test out a 

possible career—through BLM seasonal employment, 

third-party internships, field schools, university research 

grants, volunteer work, or museum-sponsored projects, 

to cite just a few options.

Partners play a critical role in ensuring that BLM 

educational internship opportunities are available 

to students from diverse backgrounds. Partner 

organizations often furnish crew leaders and mentors, 

provide supplies and housing, offer a wide range of 

support services, and even match funds.
14 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

NEW DINOSAUR SPECIES NAMED

FOR TWIN GEOLOGY STUDENTS

In 2010, almost seven years after discovering unusual 

dinosaur remains on BLM lands near Green River, 

Utah, two former Temple University geology 

students—who also happen to be twin sisters—had the 

distinction of having a new species named for them. At 

the time of their discovery, they were pursuing graduate 

work on depositional environments on Utah public 

lands.

Geminiraptor suarezarum, literally “Twin Predatory 

Thief of the Suarezes,” is a raptor thought to have lived 

about 125 million years ago. The area of the students’ 

discovery, the Crystal Geyser Dinosaur Quarry, is now 

known as the “Suarez Sisters’ Quarry” in their honor.

ARIZONA NATIVE AMERICANS

STUDY HISTORIC PRESERVATION

TECHNIQUES

A partnership between the BLM and the National 

Park Service allowed youth from Native American 

communities around the BLM’s Grand CanyonParashant National Monument to connect with their 

heritage and explore career possibilities in historic 

preservation.

Building on skills that they had learned in high school 

shop classes and in construction jobs, interns studied 

preservation techniques and put them into practice by 

stabilizing historic structures within the monument. 

Not only did this project create local jobs in a region 

significantly affected by the economic recession, but it 

also helped to preserve deteriorating relics and resolve 

related public safety concerns.
EDUCATION 15

ECOLOGY STUDENTS MONITOR

STREAM CHANNELS IN THE

HEADWATERS FOREST RESERVE

In 2010, students from California’s Humboldt 

State University (HSU) studied stream channel 

characteristics in the South Fork Elk River as part of 

a Restoration Ecology class. The BLM integrated the 

students’ data into the long-term monitoring effort 

required under the Headwaters Resource Management 

Plan, and the students used the data in their class 

project. HSU Geography students also contributed to 

BLM management objectives by collecting data on the 

area’s decommissioned roads and vegetation succession.

UNIVERSITY STUDENT INTERPRETS

IDAHO CULTURAL RESOURCES

Archaeologists have been conducting excavations at the 

Cooper’s Ferry site along the Lower Salmon River for 

several decades. In 2010, 

the BLM hired an 

Oregon State 

University 

student to 

follow through on public interpretation plans for 

the site.

Not only did the student develop an on-site 

interpretation program, she also documented the site 

excavation process through photography and videos 

and even established a blog to track both the excavation 

and backfilling at the end of the season.

The student benefited from learning on-site interpretation 

techniques and gained skills in photography, 

videography, web design, and website management.

BLM ARCHAEOLOGISTS ENGAGE

CULTURAL RESOURCES INTERNS IN

UTAH WORK PROJECTS

The BLM and partner Western Washington University 

recruited archaeology students nationwide to perform 

fieldwork as part of BLM-Utah’s Cultural Resources 

Internship Program. The program engages university 

students in cultural resource management and exposes 

them to Federal career opportunities in that discipline.

BLM archaeologists trained and mentored the students 

as they participated in compliance surveys, inventory, 

“The 

interns that we were 

able to hire have been a great 

benefit to us. Not only were we 

able to provide them with realworld archaeological experience, 

but they were able to help us get 

work completed on some crucial 

projects.”

Dale Earl, Salt Lake Field Office 

Archaeologist
16 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

monitoring, site recording, and other activities. The 

internships, which averaged 8-10 weeks each, garnered 

positive feedback from all participants. Besides relieving 

the BLM State cultural resources program lead’s 

workload, the program also provided a financial benefit 

to the BLM: the students effectively completed several 

important projects that typically would have required 

the use of contractors.

“CONSERVATION AND LAND

MANAGEMENT” INTERNS ASSIST

WITH FIELD OFFICE RESOURCE

PROGRAMS

In cooperation with the Chicago Botanic Gardens, 

the BLM hired 

more than 137 

Conservation 

and Land 

Management 

(CLM) interns 

to assist with 

programs 

around the 

nation. In 

Buffalo, Wyoming, 

for example, three 

interns supported 

range, wildlife, and 

recreation program objectives. They assisted BLM 

field specialists with a variety of tasks, including data 

recordation and allotment inspections. The interns also 

provided environmental education and outreach to 

community groups.

In California, CLM interns assisted several field offices 

with natural resource projects ranging from wildlife 

monitoring to Seeds of Success, a nationwide 

native seed collection program. In Vernal, 

Utah, an intern worked 

in both sagebrush and 

riparian habitats, 

assessing 

potential 

impacts 

of energy 

development 

and monitoring

invasive species.

“The 

work I have been 

able to do so far has 

provided the data for my 

[BLM] co-workers to make 

informed decisions . . .”

CLM Intern,

Vernal, UT
EDUCATION 17

SERVICE

Learning

Ocean Day is an annual celebration and call to action 

for the protection of the world’s oceans. Students 

assisted with dune restoration by pulling European 

beachgrass (Ammophila arenaria) and collecting garbage 

they found on the dunes and wave slope. 

After restoration efforts were completed, students 

were seated on the beach in an aerial art pattern that 

represented a sea turtle. In collaboration with the 

Malibu Foundation for Environmental Education, 

California Coastal Commission, and Spectral Q Aerial 

Art, students up and down the Pacific Coast were 

assembled in the same formation. 

NATIONAL OUTDOOR LEADERSHIP

SCHOOL STUDENTS MONITOR

WILDERNESS STUDY AREAS

Lander, Wyoming, students enrolled in a semesterlong program of the National Outdoor Leadership 

School (NOLS) conducted Wilderness Study Area 

(WSA) monitoring at the Split Rock and Miller 

Springs Wilderness Study Areas. Traveling in small 

groups, students hiked the WSAs to monitor and 

document the characteristics of the areas. 

The participants’ photos and reports 

will be used as the basis for long-term 

monitoring efforts. Students in 

a second NOLS program 

assisted in rehabilitating 

several campsites 

located near a 

historic cabin in the 

Split Rock WSA.

The student 

groups also 

learned about 

the functions and 

responsibilities of 

the BLM Recreation 

Program and how 

citizens can get involved 

in the management of their 

public lands. 

MONITORING

THE HEALTH of Wilderness Study Areas, creating 

interpretive materials for their local communities, and 

assisting with dune restoration on the Pacific coast: 

these are just a few of the ways youth participated in 

service projects benefiting the BLM’s National System 

of Public Lands.

The BLM is actively working to promote the 

integration of service projects with classroom learning 

as a way to involve youth in the management and 

stewardship of public lands. Service learning can 

involve a single student or group of students, a 

classroom or an entire school. Participation allows 

young people to build character as they work with 

members of their school and community.

PARTNERSHIP LAUNCHES A NEW

PLACE-BASED PROGRAM ABOUT

THE IDITAROD TRAIL

In 2010, Alaska’s Campbell Creek Science Center joined 

forces with several partners to launch Iditarod Trail to 

Every Classroom, a new place-based, service learning 

and education initiative. The program is designed to 

teach Alaska’s students about the National Historic 

Iditarod Trail, engage them in learning about where 

they live, and get them involved in service projects to 

benefit their communities. Eighteen teachers from eight 

communities from Seward to Nome gathered in early 

August 2010 to formally launch the program.

EIGHT HUNDRED FOURTH-GRADERS

RESTORE DUNES ON OCEAN DAY

In Arcata, California, the non-profit Friends of the Dunes 

and BLM staff hosted over 800 fourth-graders at the 

Mike Thompson Wildlife Area/South Spit Humboldt 

Bay Cooperative Management Area for Ocean Day. 
18 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

STUDENTS

PRODUCE

INTERPRETIVE

MATERIALS IN

FARMINGTON

Students on staff-escorted 

field trips to the BLM’s Angel 

Peak Scenic Area and Simon Canyon 

Recreation Area investigated the plants, animals, 

and geology of public lands near Farmington, New 

Mexico. They collected and pressed plant samples; 

photographed plants, animals, and animal habitat; and 

documented the area’s geologic and paleontological 

features.

After returning to their schools, the students continued 

working with BLM specialists to create interpretive 

materials from their samples and photographs. The 

items were mounted in Plexiglass “flip” panels the 

size of standard office paper. The finished panels will 

also include student-produced text about each plant 

specimen and photograph. The interpretive displays 

will ultimately be used to educate visitors to local BLM 

recreation areas.

COLORADO PARTNERS COORDINATE

“ALTERNATIVE SPRING BREAK”

SERVICE LEARNING PROJECTS

For nine students from the University of Missouri, 

Spring Break 2010 involved a week of service and 

stewardship in and around southwest Colorado’s 

remote Disappointment Valley. For the ninth year, 

the San Juan Mountains Association (SJMA), a longtime BLM partner organization, coordinated a service 

learning project for college students in conjunction 

with the Dolores Public Lands Office.

Several projects were undertaken, including cleanup 

and repair work in the BLM’s Spring Creek Wild Horse 

Area and trail work within Canyons of the Ancients 

National Monument. Students also participated in the 

documentation and preservation of a historic cabin 

built by a local trapper and prospector in the late 1800s.

Working with BLM and SJMA archaeologists, students 

created photos and drawings of the cabin to record 

and document the site. They also built a brush fence 

to protect the cabin and surrounding artifacts. Finally, 

they created a fence to protect the original cabin 

owner’s grave and grave stone.
ENGAGEMENT 19

GETTING OUT, Getting Active,

GETTING INVOLVED

EDUCATIONAL

PROGRAMS AND MATERIALS are effective 

means of reaching selected segments of the population, 

schoolchildren in particular. The BLM also pursues 

myriad other approaches to involve diverse audiences 

in engaging with their public lands through visitor 

programs, volunteer work, and recreation.

From “fireside chats” to Junior Explorer guides, bird 

walks to Kids’ Fishing Days, BLM public lands offer 

engaging activities for almost any visitor. Even those 

who can’t get out there in person can take advantage 

of “virtual” visits and tours featured on the “Learning 

Landscapes” website at http://www.blm.gov/education

as well as social media sites. And the BLM is pursuing 

new approaches for enhancing visitor experiences as 

technological applications become available.
20 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

New BLM mascot

“Seymour Antelope”

encourages kids to get outside

In May 2010, costumed character “Seymour Antelope” was 

announced as BLM’s new National Youth Program mascot, 

“his” primary purpose being to encourage children and their 

families to “See More. Do More. Explore Your Public Lands.”

Introduced originally in New Mexico, Seymour has 

now made 

numerous 

appearances 

at State fairs, 

parades, 

conferences, 

and various 

outdoor 

events 

throughout the 

West. Seymour has 

been instrumental in 

bringing attention to 

the BLM in a light-hearted 

way, drawing public 

interest, and creating 

opportunities to engage 

communities about the BLM and its 

programs. Seymour has quickly become 

an all-around agency ambassador, and a 

favorite among children and adults alike.
ENGAGEMENT 21

TAKE IT

Outside

THE BLM TAKE IT OUTSIDE (TIO)

program promotes and provides 

outdoor physical activities and experiences on the 

public lands. The program strives to improve the health 

of our nation’s children, families, and communities, 

while at the same time developing the next generation 

of public lands stewards.

Since 2008, nearly 300 TIO projects have provided 

outdoor activities and experiences to thousands of kids 

and their families. The TIO umbrella program is now 

an integral component of the BLM Youth Program.

The BLM continues to strengthen connections between 

Take It Outside and Let’s Move Outside, the outdoor 

piece of the First Lady’s Let’s Move! initiative to end 

childhood obesity. Take It Outside events focus on 

getting children outdoors and increasing connections 

with the natural world, in support of the four pillars of 

Let’s Move Outside: health, family, fun, and stewardship.

SOUTHERN PAIUTE YOUTHS

COMMUNE WITH ANCESTRAL LANDS

The third annual Yevingkarere Camp was held 

in September 2010 on traditional Paiute lands 

within Arizona’s Grand Canyon-Parashant National 

“As you sit on the hillside, or lie prone under the trees of 

the forest or sprawl wet-legged by a mountain stream, 

the great door, that does not look like a door, opens.”

Stephen Graham, English nature writer

Monument. Paiute youth were immersed in activities 

centering on Mount Trumbull, an area of great 

significance to Southern Paiute people.

The three-day, two-night field excursion offered interactive programs to teach participants about their ancestral 

ties to the area as well as their responsibility to be good 

stewards. Tribal elders conducted lessons on methods 

for recording petroglyphs, preservation of rock art sites, 

appropriate behavior at heritage sites, and the cultural 

impacts of petroglyph vandalism near Mt. Trumbull.

On local BLM lands where collecting is permitted, elders 

demonstrated techniques for selecting plant materials 

for baskets, building snares, gathering traditional food 

items, and identifying and cultivating sacred tobacco.

MEADOWOOD CAMPOUTS OPEN A

NEW WORLD FOR URBAN KIDS

As part of the Take It Outside program, the BLM 

has partnered with a diverse group of organizations, 

including the Washington, D.C., Mayor’s Office on 

Latino Affairs, to bring urban Latino youth to the 

Virginia outdoors. In 2010, participants enjoyed a 

series of outings and overnight 

camping trips at the BLM’s 

Meadowood Recreation Area and 

on segments of the Appalachian 

Trail.

The outdoor experiences are 

intended to teach urban young 

people about the recreational 

and cultural values of public 

lands and the importance 

of pursuing active, healthy 

lifestyles. In addition, this 

effort benefits the students by 

providing them with realworld examples of science 
22 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

concepts they 

are learning 

in school and 

demonstrating the 

importance of higher 

education. These experiences 

also help to cultivate stewardship ethics, 

with benefits for families, communities, and the local 

environment.

“SALMON SURFERS” EXPLORE THEIR

BACKYARD

One continuing TIO project, the Salmon Surfers, 

was founded in 2008 as a kids’ outdoor adventure 

club with an emphasis on exploring Idaho’s Salmon 

River Corridor. Participants are introduced to Leave 

No Trace ethics and opportunities to discover the vast 

public lands and waterways in their own 

backyard. The club is open to children 

aged 12-18 in Idaho County, which 

features one of the largest percentages of public land in 

the state, including a significant portion of the Lower 

Salmon River corridor.

For the 2010 season, the Salmon Surfers partnered 

with the McCall Outdoor Science School (MOSS) and 

the Wild Science Explorers (WSE) for an extended 

wilderness experience. The MOSS summer program 

was underwritten by a National Science Foundation 

grant to support hands-on, inquiry-based science for 

middle and high school students from populations 

typically underrepresented in the sciences.

Students engaged in authentic research centered 

on the theme of “Water Resources in a Changing 

Climate.” Students met with scientists who are actively 

investigating this topic and planned and conducted 

their own scientific investigations based on the work of 

the researchers.

After a week of instruction at the MOSS campus, 

the Salmon Surfers embarked on a five-day journey 

down the Lower Salmon River with the Wild Science 

Explorers, which specializes in overnight river trips. 

This unique learning/wilderness experience allowed 

participants to use the scientific skills they’d acquired at 

MOSS in a real-world setting. 
ENGAGEMENT 23

MEANINGFUL

Connections

FICI members meet quarterly to advance the field 

of interpretation within the Federal government and 

to discuss topics such as best practices for friends 

groups, visitor facility construction, standardization 

of government interpretive job descriptions, and 

recognition of professional excellence.

KING RANGE “JUNIOR

INTERPRETERS”GET TO KNOW THE

LOST COAST

At California’s King Range National Conservation 

Area (NCA), the Lost Coast Education Center hosts 

a summer Junior Interpreter Program to teach juniorhigh students about the natural and cultural resources 

of the NCA. The program is coordinated by the King 

Range NCA Interpretive Specialist and conducted by 

a college Interpretation 

major hired through 

the BLM’s Student 

Educational 

Employment 

Program (SEEP).

“Train-the-trainer” 

instruction by BLM 

staff and other local 

resource professionals 

will ultimately enable 

student employees 

to teach interpretive 

approaches to other 

students from outside 

the vicinity, e.g., the San 

Francisco Bay area.

INTERPRETIVE

PROGRAMS offer opportunities for enlightenment 

and inspiration, allowing public lands visitors—

whether in-person or “virtual”— to forge unique 

relationships with natural and cultural resources. In 

providing professional, high-quality outreach, resource 

information, and site orientation through face-toface programs and other interpretive mechanisms, the 

BLM helps to facilitate enjoyable and safe recreational 

experiences, increase visitor knowledge of resources and 

management issues, and encourage responsible outdoor 

behavior.

In 2010, the BLM Interpretive Program reached more 

than 3 million people through youth engagement 

activities, visitor center facilities and materials, 

interpretive structures, and printed and interpretive 

materials posted at kiosks and waysides and on BLM 

websites.

The BLM is a member of the Federal Interagency 

Committee on Interpretation (FICI). The group 

is comprised of interpretive program leads from 

seven Federal land management agencies as well 

as representatives from two non-profit partner 

organizations: the National 

Association for 

Interpretation and 

the Association 

of Partners 

for Public 

Lands. 

“Take time to listen and talk about 

the voices of the earth and what they 

mean—the majestic voice of thunder, 

the winds, the sound of surf or flowing 

streams.”

Rachel Carson,

American biologist and environmentalist 
24 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

BUDDING RANGERS MEET THE

“NEIGHBORS”AT ARKANSAS

HEADWATERS

The Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area’s 2010 BLM 

Junior Ranger Program focused on children between 

the ages of 4 and 8. Led each week by a Colorado 

State Park interpreter, kids identified animal tracks 

in the “Who Am I?” segment, learned about local 

birds in “Come Fly With Me,” investigated the area’s 

geology in “Rock Hounding,” and got acquainted with 

snakes and other slithery friends in “Creepy Crawlers.” 

“Graduates” each received a Junior Ranger badge. 

INTERPRETERS GUIDE SIXTHGRADERS THROUGH A“RANGER

STATION TAILGATE SESSION”

Near Grants, New Mexico, a “Ranger Station Tailgate 

Session” brought out the entire sixth-grade class of 

Los Alamitos Middle School for a day-long outdoor 

learning experience. 

Interpreters stationed 

along a 11⁄2-milelong BLM nature 

trail represented various 

government agencies and 

professions and discussed subjects 

from volcanoes and fossils to alternative 

energy and water erosion. 

IDAHO KIDS CREATE WILDLIFE

INTERPRETATION MATERIALS

In Coeur d’Alene, the Wildlife Education Center 

provided a two-phase, hands-on program for Idaho 

youth to learn interpretive techniques. In the first 

phase, the kids worked with written materials, trail 

guides, interpretive signage, and taxidermy displays, 

and even edited a guide to the BLM’s nearby Mineral 

Ridge Scenic Area. They then worked with BLM staff 

to plan and write text for five interpretive signs. In 

the second phase of the project, six of the participants 

designed, constructed, and installed a wetlands habitat 

exhibit for the Wildlife Education Center.

“The purpose of learning is growth, and 

our minds, unlike our bodies, can continue 

growing as long as we live.”

Mortimer Adler,

American educator and philosopher
ENGAGEMENT 25

BLM STAFF PREPARE FOR THE GILA

BOX“JUNIOR RANGER” CREW

BLM staff at Arizona’s Gila Box Riparian National 

Conservation Area (RNCA) developed a Gila Box 

Junior Ranger Booklet and accompanying Junior 

Ranger Badge for use with young people at on-site 

programs. The booklet contains interactive and 

interpretive activities to engage children, individually 

or in groups, in understanding, appreciating, and 

caring for the resources of the Gila Box RNCA. 

“Successful” Rangers will earn a badge in recognition 

of their newfound knowledge. The program will be 

implemented on the ground in 2011.

UTAH FOSSILS HIT THE

ROAD

In cooperation with the Grand 

Staircase-Escalante Partners 

(GSEP), the BLM’s Grand 

Staircase-Escalante National 

Monument in southern Utah added three new fossil 

reproductions to its array of traveling exhibits: casts of 

Gryposaurus monumentensis and Diabloceratops eatoni

dinosaur skulls, and a replica skull of Deinosuchus 

hatcheri, a newly discovered species of ancient 

crocodile. For most of the summer and fall, the 

Gryposaurus replica was on display at Ruby’s Inn, a 

hotel near Bryce Canyon National Park, to the delight 

of area residents and travelers alike.

CHILDREN’S MUSEUM EXHIBIT

STRESSES RESPECT FOR ROCK ART

The BLM partnered with Salt Lake City’s Discovery 

Gateway Children’s Museum to present “Utah’s Rock 

Art,” an exhibit that focused on archaeology, rock art 

and artifact protection and preservation, and BLM 

careers in archaeology. A special feature was a traveling 

photographic display entitled, “Sacred Images: A Vision 

of Native American Rock Art.” The exhibit’s interactive 

components included a full-size replica of an Anasazi 

granary and a reproduction of an archaeological dig pit, 

complete with “artifacts.”
26 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

A MODEL VISITOR

CENTER OPENS AT RED

ROCK CANYON

In 2010, Nevada’s Red Rock 

Canyon National Conservation 

Area opened the doors of a new 

state-of-the-art visitor center, 

certified by the U.S. Green Building 

Council as a “Leadership for Energy 

and Environmental Design” (LEED) building. A 

unique outdoor exhibit area, landscaped with native 

The “Best of the Best”

BLM programs succeed because of the superb 

contributions and support provided by “the best 

of the best” employees, volunteers, and partner 

organizations. The BLM strives to acknowledge 

excellence in all three categories.

The BLM administers several agency-wide award 

programs, and regularly solicits and organizes agency 

nominations for Department of the Interior and outside 

award programs. The BLM’s 2010 winners in two such 

award competitions are described below.

2010 BLM“EXCELLENCE IN INTERPRETATION OR

EDUCATION”AWARD WINNERS

BLM hosted three “Excellence” award winners at the 

Federal Agency Awards ceremony in conjunction with 

the National Association for Interpretation’s 2010 

National Workshop in Las Vegas. The awards recognize 

accomplishments and contributions of BLM employees 

in the fields of interpretation or education. The 2010 

winners were:

• Rachel Sowards-Thompson, Outdoor Recreation 

Planner with the BLM’s King Range National 

Conservation Area in California. Rachel developed a 

remarkable variety of education and outdoor ethics 

programs that engaged audiences ranging from 

student groups to families.

• Matthew “Matt” Christenson, a Public Affairs Specialist 

with the BLM Oregon State Office. Matt was the 

driving force behind Northwest Passage, a quarterly 

magazine about BLM Oregon/Washington resources, 

programs, policies, and activities.

• Joyce “Joya” Szalwinski, Park Ranger in El Centro, 

California. Joya created a 25-card activity set for 

families to use at Imperial Sand Dunes to learn about 

safe off-highway vehicle riding.

2010 BLM“PUBLIC LANDS PARTNERSHIP

EXCELLENCE”AWARD WINNER

At the annual convention of the Association for 

Partners of Public Lands (APPL), the primary umbrella 

organization for interpretive associations and friends 

groups, the BLM presented its “Public Lands Partnership 

Excellence” award to recognize exceptional support 

for the BLM’s interpretive, educational, and/or public 

outreach programs.

The 2010 award recipient was Alaska’s Friends of the 

Campbell Creek Science Center, a group founded in 2005 

to support the BLM’s Campbell Creek Science Center as a 

regional resource for science and environmental education. 

The friends group has involved local businesses, 

organizations, and citizens in the cause; raised nearly 

$150,000 for program support; offered scholarships 

to economically-disadvantaged youth; and 

established an endowment to address the longterm financial sustainability of the Center.

plants, hosts interpretation 

and orientation programs 

on the area’s recreational 

opportunities, wildlife, 

wild horses and burros, 

vegetation, geology, and 

cultural resources. More 

than one million people 

visit Red Rock Canyon each 

year to hike, bike, and explore 

the site’s many cultural and 

natural resources.
ENGAGEMENT 27

PARTNERS BRING A PIONEER

TRAIL TO LIFE

A successful partnership among the BLM, 

the Southern Nevada Conservancy, and 

other organizations was responsible for 

the completion and opening of the new 

California National Historic Trail Center 

near Elko, Nevada. The facility complements 

other BLM historic trail centers, which focus 

on diverse facets of westward migration and 

migrants in 19th-century America. The center 

has already hosted special exhibits as well as 

screenings of films related to the 2010 National 

Cowboy Poetry Gathering.

The Southern Nevada Conservancy continues to 

assist BLM with development of exhibits, delivery of 

interpretive programs, and management of the center’s 

gift shop.

YOUNG PEOPLE

DEVELOP

TRAIL-RELATED

PROGRAMMING

IN OREGON

At the National Historic 

Oregon Trail Interpretive Center 

near Baker City, student 

interns helped to develop 

new materials and 

programming for 

families, and assisted 

with fabrication of new 

interpretive signs. In 

addition to historical interpretation programs, the 

center offered daily activities and guided hikes focusing 

on local wildlife ecology, geology, and botany. Materials 

for self-guided geology hikes were also developed, and 

informative “Pioneer Packs” enabled families to explore 

historic trail segments on their own.

ROCK SPRINGS WELCOMES

VISUALLY-IMPAIRED VISITORS

Wyoming’s Rock Springs Field Office aims to be 

a leader in offering visitor services to underserved 

populations. A recently issued field office policy calls 

for all new interpretive sites within the jurisdiction to 

have Braille panels installed along with standard signs. 

Two such sites were constructed in 2010.
28 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

THE BLM NATIONAL LANDSCAPE

CONSERVATION SYSTEM

CELEBRATES “A DECADE OF

DISCOVERY”

A standout among a crowded calendar of 

events celebrating the 10th anniversary of the 

NLCS was a five-day science symposium held 

in Albuquerque, New Mexico. More than 130 

presenters highlighted significant research that had 

occurred on NLCS lands over the previous ten 

years. Scientists addressed diverse topics that included 

the Colorado Plateau as an analogue to the landscape 

of Mars, dinosaur track site discoveries, restoration of 

native plant communities, and involvement of citizens 

in science on the public lands.

Participants attended 

oral presentations, 

poster sessions, and 

field trips to local 

NLCS units, including 

BLM national 

monuments, national 

conservation areas, and 

wilderness study areas. 

“Interpretation and 

Education” was one 

of fifteen categories of 

science addressed by symposium presenters. Abstracts 

are available online at http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/

blm_special_areas/NLCS/science.html, as are feature 

stories about scientific activities at selected NLCS sites.

“If we want children 

to flourish, to become 

truly empowered, 

then let us allow them 

to love the earth 

before we ask them to 

save it.”

David Sobel,

Education philosopher and writer
ENGAGEMENT 29

HANDLE

with Care

“LEAVE NO TRACE”AND

“TREAD LIGHTLY!” ENCOURAGE

RESPONSIBLE OUTDOOR BEHAVIOR

The BLM supports a variety of programs that teach 

outdoor ethics to youth and adults. In 2010, BLM 

Master Trainers taught thousands of Boy Scouts and 

Girl Scouts, school groups, underserved youth, and 

adults the principles of Leave No Trace and Tread 

Lightly!, which address non-motorized and motorized 

activities, respectively.

Trainers emphasize the importance of being good stewards 

of the public lands. In 2010, more than 5,000 children, 

teens, and adults learned about safety and ethics 

through classroom lessons and activities at BLM sites.

THE BLM IS DEDICATED to promoting 

and supporting land stewardship and 

outdoor education. In collaboration with numerous 

partner organizations, BLM Stewardship and Outdoor 

Ethics Program staff strive to educate the public about 

responsible outdoor recreation. Volunteer events 

and activities designed to improve and enhance the 

public lands—“stewardship in action”—are important 

components of such outreach.

Whether recreation takes the form of hiking in the 

backcountry or riding off-highway vehicles, the BLM 

encourages all visitors to take the time to learn the 

outdoor ethics associated 

with their favorite activities. 

Informed citizen stewards 

help the BLM to care 

for the public lands and 

resources, keeping them in 

good condition for current 

and future generations. 
30 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

Additionally, the BLM works in partnership with the 

nonprofit Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics 

and Tread Lightly!, Inc., to develop and support new 

programs to teach public land users the elements of 

responsible behavior on the public lands. Many of 

these programs are tailored to specific activities such as 

hunting, camping, and off-highway vehicle riding. 

THE ARTHUR CARHART NATIONAL

WILDERNESS TRAINING CENTER

MEETS WILDERNESS MANAGEMENT

CHALLENGES

Established in 1993 and housed on the University 

of Montana campus, the Arthur Carhart National 

Wilderness Training Center addresses issues in 

wilderness management, training, and education as 

identified by wilderness managers from across the 

nation. Center staff develop comprehensive interagency 

solutions to wilderness challenges by working with 

experts at all levels of the four Federal wildernessmanagement agencies: the BLM, U.S. Forest Service, 

National Park Service, and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

The Center’s recent focus has been increasing online 

course offerings, capitalizing on technology and young 

talent to improve networking and communication, and 

initiating external outreach and education activities. A 

Student Conservation Association intern assisted 

in launching an electronic newsletter and 

developing print and video materials to 

promote training opportunities and 

distribute information.

In 2010, nearly 1,000 wilderness 

managers benefited from classroom 

and online courses and workshops, 

as well as a PowerPoint training 

presentation called “Wilderness 

Character Monitoring,” one of the newest 

additions to the Center’s “Wilderness 

Character Toolbox.”
ENGAGEMENT 31

BUILDING

Future Leaders

YOUTHORGANIZATIONS

such as the YMCA, 4-H, 

Girl Scouts of the USA, and Boy Scouts of America 

help the BLM engage large numbers of young people 

in informal educational and interpretive programs as 

well as volunteer projects. Youth group members have 

been involved in almost all BLM resource programs, 

from rangelands to wildlife, from minerals to cultural 

resources.

THE BLM WORKS WITH SCOUTS,

AND VICE VERSA

The Boy Scouts of America (BSA), currently 2.7 

million strong, have rendered volunteer service to 

the BLM since the agency’s creation in 1946. Over 

the years, the BLM has benefited from thousands of 

Scout conservation projects in virtually every BLM 

field office. These projects have ranged from individual 

and troop endeavors to complex Eagle 

Scout advancement projects. 

The BLM is also participating in a youth outreach 

program in cooperation with BSA and the Philmont 

Scout Ranch high-adventure base in New Mexico. 

BLM resource specialists and volunteers conduct 

activities in environmental education, discuss BLM 

careers, and provide Leave No Trace outdoor ethics 

training during the summer camping season. 
32 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) serves an estimated 

2.3 million girls and young women nationwide. The 

BLM participates in the annual National Council 

Session & Convention, at which BLM staff highlight 

agency youth programs; offer information on 

opportunities to engage, educate, and employ Girl 

Scouts; and emphasize the importance and relevance of 

initiatives such as America’s Great Outdoors and Let’s 

Move Outside.

THE 2010 NATIONAL SCOUT

JAMBOREE: BOY SCOUTS “TOURED”

BLM PUBLIC LANDS

Over a period of ten summer days in 2010, the BLM 

reached more than 6,500 Scouts at the National Scout 

Jamboree at Ft. A.P. Hill, Virginia, with two interactive 

exhibits along the Jamboree’s “Conservation Trail.”

Set in the context of the 10th anniversary of the BLM’s 

National Landscape Conservation System (NLCS), 

the one-acre main BLM exhibit offered hands-on 

educational activities highlighting cultural resources, 

paleontology, caves, and the role of fire in ecosystems 

on the public lands. For example, Scouts had the 

opportunity to construct a replica of a Native American 

dwelling from the ground up, using only local materials 

such as tree branches and mud.

BLM natural and cultural resource specialists from 

around the nation helped to plan, design, and construct 

exhibit components, and were on hand to answer 

questions, assist Scouts with activities, and demonstrate 

professional techniques.

A second BLM outpost on the trail taught Scouts 

the principles of Leave No Trace and Tread Lightly! 

outdoor ethics.
ENGAGEMENT 33

GIVING BACK

to the Public

Lands

NATIONAL PUBLIC LANDS DAY

BLENDS VOLUNTEER SERVICE WITH

“TEACHABLE MOMENTS”

On Saturday, September 25, 2010, thousands of BLM 

volunteers participated in more than 120 National 

Public Lands Day (NPLD) projects in 16 states 

from Alaska to Florida. For such service-minded 

individuals and groups, the annual celebration of 

NPLD—the nation’s premier workday on behalf 

of our nation’s public lands—offered an 

opportunity to support America by 

enhancing its natural and cultural 

resources. The BLM hosted an 

extraordinary variety of work 

and educational activities, 

ranging from petroglyph 

inventory to cave cleaning 

to mangrove potting.

Several of the BLM’s 

NPLD events were 

officially connected with 

the First Lady’s Let’s Move 

Outside initiative. Projects 

and programs at those sites 

combined service work 

with activities designed 

to be both educational and 

physically energizing.

THE BLM’S THRIVING VOLUNTEER 

PROGRAM offers unique and varied 

opportunities for people to get outdoors and connect 

with the public lands. Each year, more than 30,000 

BLM volunteers restore and improve natural and 

cultural resources, act as goodwill ambassadors to local 

communities, educate and engage the public, and 

supplement the BLM workforce with human power 

and enormous talent.

Volunteers work as individuals, families, groups, and 

partners on both short-term projects and those that 

require longer, sustained efforts. BLM volunteers reap 

the benefits of on-the-job learning, physical exercise, 

and a sense of stewardship, accomplishment, and 

belonging. 

The BLM recognizes exceptional volunteers, volunteer 

groups, and BLM volunteer leaders via its “Making a 

Difference” National Volunteer Awards program, now 

in its 16th year. Eight individuals and couples and one 

BLM employee were honored in 2010.

“I encourage all Americans to give 

their time and energy to care for— 

and to go out and enjoy— our public 

lands. Together, we can build upon 

our history of stewardship so our 

unique landscapes are preserved for 

countless generations to come.”

President Barack Obama

National Public Lands Day 2010 proclamation
34 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
EMPLOYMENT 35

NURTURING

Conservation

Leaders

and approximately 60 returning SCEP students. As 

in previous fiscal years, the funding incentive was 

intended for the hiring of students from typically 

under-represented groups.

These and other national and State initiatives helped to 

involve youth from diverse backgrounds in the complex 

work associated with BLM’s multiple-use mission. The 

examples described here represent only a sample of the 

many ways in which youth were employed by the BLM.

YOUNG ALASKA VOCATIONAL

STUDENTS CONSTRUCT TRAIL

SHELTERS

Across Alaska, vocational employment programs 

provided opportunities for almost 200 young adults 

to learn resource management skills as interns and 

employees for the BLM’s Hydrology, Cultural 

Resources, Recreation, Range, and Weed Management 

Programs, as well as others.

INLAUNCHING THE OFFICE OF YOUTH

in the Great Outdoors, Secretary of the 

Interior Ken Salazar pledged to create a 21st-Century 

Youth Conservation Corps, providing opportunities for 

youth from all backgrounds to contribute to the work 

of the Department.

Increasing youth employment was established as one 

of the Department’s five high-priority goals for 2010. 

The Secretary challenged the BLM to increase youth 

employment by 35 percent over 2009 levels; the BLM 

rose to the challenge at both the national and State levels.

Systems for tracking the work of youth corps members 

and other partner-supported hires were established, 

agreement templates were developed, and weekly 

youth employment reports were provided to the BLM 

Executive Leadership Team, the top management in the 

agency. Several BLM States developed new, comprehensive 

assistance agreements with youth corps organizations, 

combining funds provided by the BLM Youth Program 

with those furnished by BLM resource programs.

The BLM not only met but exceeded its 2010 goal, 

hiring more than 3,100 young people through 

partner organizations and BLM Student Educational 

Employment Programs. In addition, the BLM’s 

National Centralized Recruitment Program was 

adopted as a model by the Department’s Office of 

Youth in the Great Outdoors as part of a Departmentwide effort to provide career pathways for young 

people from diverse backgrounds. The BLM Branch of 

Recruitment and Retention coordinated hiring events 

at several conferences, including that of the League 

of United Latin American Citizens, and participated 

in numerous other recruitment events at Historically 

Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving 

Institutions, and Tribal Colleges and Universities. 

BLM Headquarters provided funding for salary 

expenses, orientation, tuition, and travel for 26 new 

Student Career Experience Program (SCEP) students 
36 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

Funding from 

the American 

Recovery and 

Reinvestment 

Act (ARRA) 

was used to 

construct four 

safety shelter cabins 

along the Iditarod 

National Historic Trail. 

The project created temporary 

jobs in rural communities along the trail and provided 

hands-on training for rural Alaskan youth from villages 

in the region. The BLM worked with several partners, 

including the non-profit Alaska Youth Restoration 

Corps, the Alaska Job Corps, and the Iditarod Historic 

Trail Alliance, as well as the State of Alaska and several 

local communities.

In addition to constructing actual shelters along the 

trail, a group of 27 students and two instructors from 

the Alaska Job Corps Center’s carpentry and electrical 

trade programs constructed an exact replica of an 

Iditarod Trail safety shelter cabin and transported it to 

the Alaska State Fairgrounds. The structure served as 

the BLM public information and exhibit site for the 

2010 State Fair, providing thousands of fair-goers the 

opportunity to learn about the Iditarod Trail and try 

out an actual safety shelter.

INTERNS TACKLE TRASH IN

TUCSON AREA

Interns from the Student Conservation Association 

(SCA) assisted with resource protection in the BLM’s 

Ironwood Forest National Monument and San Pedro 

Riparian National Conservation Area by removing 

vast amounts of trash that had been dumped illegally. 

The interns were also heavily involved in road 

and vegetation rehabilitation projects to eliminate 

unauthorized all-terrain-vehicle trails and prevent other 

illegal activities.

Most recently, the SCA interns were key players 

in one of the BLM’s priority initiatives in Arizona, 

“Reclaiming Our American Monuments.” The effort 

relies on SCA interns to record information on 

sites negatively impacted by illegal immigrant travel 

and drug smuggling, and in turn to take action to 

rehabilitate these areas.

“NICK’S INTERNS” CARRY ON THE

WORK OF A YOUNG CALIFORNIA

CONSERVATIONIST

The parents of Nick Raphael founded “Nick’s Interns” 

in memory of their late son, who worked with the 

BLM King Range National Conservation Area 

(NCA) trail crew and local conservation organizations 

throughout his high school and college years.

The organization exposes southern Humboldt County 

youth to environmental careers and positive adult role 

models—very important in a rural, economically-

“Every one of the 

students enjoyed it . . .

They got to feel a real sense 

of ownership.”

Cleve Robinson, 

Construction Industry

Supervisor for Iditarod 

Trail Project 

“We cannot always build the future 

for our youth, but we can build our 

youth for the future.”

President Franklin D. Roosevelt
EMPLOYMENT 37

depressed area that presents few 

career opportunities apart from 

those offered by the “underground 

economy.” 

Nick’s parents raise money each 

year to hire high school interns 

and fund a college intern to work 

as the assistant crew leader. Since 

its inception in 2004, the Nick’s 

Interns program has employed 

over 100 youths.

In 2010, a college intern hired through the Student 

Temporary Employment Program (STEP) provided dayto-day leadership for 20 interns. Nick’s Interns members 

worked alongside professional natural resource specialists 

from the BLM and four non-profit conservation 

organizations to accomplish a variety of projects in the 

NCA. Work areas included watershed restoration, 

stream flow monitoring, reforestation, steelhead surveys, 

invasive weed removal, recreation site maintenance, 

trail construction, and interpretive programs.

VETERANS

CONTINUE THEIR

PUBLIC SERVICE IN

COLORADO

Members of the Veterans Green 

Corps were hired and trained 

by the Southwest Conservation 

Corps to assist with the BLM’s 

Fire Program in Colorado. The 

Green Corps members, all of whom had served in 

the military in Iraq or Afghanistan, were trained in 

fuels reduction and other aspects of the Fire Program 

to prepare them to work as part of a sustainable 

forestry team. Several of the veterans have since been 

hired as firefighters on the San Juan Public Lands of 

southwestern Colorado.

“Let’s tell young people 

the best books are yet to 

written; the best painting, 

the best government the 

best of everything is yet 

to be done by them.”

John Erskine, American author

STUDENT EMPLOYEES CONDUCT

RIVER ISLAND STUDIES

Wisconsin youth employed through the BLM’s Student 

Temporary Employment Program conducted island 

studies and led outreach programs on BLM-managed 

islands on the Chippewa, Flambeau, and Wisconsin 

Rivers. The student employees assessed the recreation 

potential of islands in several stretches of those rivers, 

conducted biological inventories of ephemeral ponds 

and other island habitats, and helped with invasive 

plant species control by removing buckthorn shrubs. 
38 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

During a very busy summer, the student employees also 

conducted educational activities for groups of young 

people affiliated with local youth 

organizations.

BLM SAYS

“YEP”TO

IDAHO YOUTH

CREWS

The Youth 

Employment Program, 

Inc. (YEP), a non-profit 

corporation established in 

1994, promotes educational 

development and provides 

employment opportunities for 

Lemhi and Custer county youth from 14-25 years 

old. In 2010, the BLM’s Salmon and Challis Field 

Offices employed YEP crews to complete a wide range 

of projects, including improving sage grouse habitat; 

assisting with rangeland monitoring; eradicating and 

controlling noxious weeds; and thinning hazardous 

fuels to reduce the danger of wildfire. The group also 

constructed an off-highway vehicle training area and a 

bighorn sheep viewing station.

In addition to helping youth establish connections with 

the outdoors and with natural resources, YEP helps the 

BLM foster stronger relationships with youth and local 

communities. Director Bob Abbey recognized YEP’s 

contributions to the BLM with the 2010 Director’s 

Excellence Through Leadership Award.

BOOTSTRAPS PROGRAM IMPARTS

WORKPLACE SKILLS TO NEVADA ATRISK YOUTH

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding 

was used in Nevada to support several projects that 

employed youth from the Bootstraps Program. This 

program, developed by the University of Nevada 

Cooperative Extension, helps unemployed, at-risk 

youth to develop good work ethics, obtain General 

Equivalency Diplomas, and write resumes, and 

teaches them what is expected in the work 

“I 

wanted to get 

kids involved so they 

would develop a sense 

of stewardship and 

respect for our natural 

resources.”

YEP Founder

Steve Adams
EMPLOYMENT 39

environment. Bootstraps youth worked on BLM 

projects to fence more than 50 acres of sage grouse 

riparian habitat in Lander and Eureka Counties and 

to thin piñon and juniper trees on 1,500 additional 

acres of sage grouse habitat. BLM supplemental 

funding enabled youth from the Bootstraps Program 

to complete several jobs for the Tonopah Field Office 

as well, including weed 

inventory, treatment, 

and monitoring 

projects.

constructing 61⁄2 

miles of trail over 

the course of the 

summer.

Connecting the 

village with more 

than 20 miles 

of gorge rim and 

river trails within 

the Recreation Area, 

the trail will provide nonmotorized recreation opportunities 

for residents and visitors, as well as economic 

development opportunities for the village itself.

YOUTH CORPS MEMBERS STOCK

NATIVE SEEDS FOR OREGON

ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION

The Tillamook Resource Area continued 

its partnership-based Riparian 

Restoration Project to promote 

healthy forest and riparian 

ecosystems. Participants collect 

and grow native plant seeds 

and cuttings to develop 

large stocks for restoration 

on BLM- and partnermanaged lands.

The Columbia River Youth 

Corps, based in the small, 

resource-dependent 

community of St. 

Helens, Oregon, is an 

integral part of the 

project’s success. 

Enrollees benefit 

from meaningful 

employment, 

career mentoring, 

and educational 

experiences. 

“We 

have been 

working on trails at 

Wild Rivers and have 

really made a big impact 

on the trail and the safety 

of the visitors.”

RMYC crew member “In 

Bootstraps, the 

answer is simple: there 

is work to be done, and 

these young adults NEED 

work. And not just a paycheck 

. . . Bootstraps gives them the 

confidence and work ethic skills 

needed to move forward in the 

workplace.”

Rodney Davis,

Lander County Extension

Educator

ROCKY

MOUNTAIN

YOUTH CORPS MEMBERS PUT

QUESTA, NEW MEXICO, “ON

THE MAP”

In 2010, the Las Vistas de Questa Trail was 

constructed under a partnership among the 

Village of Questa, Chevron Mining, Inc., 

and the Rocky Mountain Youth Corps 

(RMYC). Citizens of Questa are seeking 

to make their village the gateway to the 

BLM’s Wild Rivers Recreation Area near 

Taos. Several RMYC crews were involved in 
40 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

The BLM also worked with other youth corps in 

Oregon and Washington, including the Northwest 

Youth Corps, Americorps, Jefferson County 

Conservation Corps, Central Oregon Interagency 

Council, Josephine County Conservation Corps, Heart 

of Oregon Youth Corps, and Lopez Island Youth Corps.

APPRENTICE PARK RANGERS ASSIST

WITH SIGNAGE, FENCING, AND

TRAIL WORK IN MOAB

In 2010, a member of the Utah Conservation Corps 

served as an apprentice park ranger with the BLM, 

assisting with signage, fencing, vegetative restoration 

projects, and tracking of travel plan accomplishments 

in the Moab area.

At the Sand Flats Recreation Area, apprentices 

hired from the local Moab community helped 

make improvements to trailheads, trails, 

and campgrounds. They also participated 

in educational training on a wide range of 

topics, including archaeology, history, geology, global 

positioning systems, search and rescue, and first aid.

“SEEDS OF SUCCESS” PARTICIPANTS

COLLECT WYOMING NATIVE SEEDS

Three Wyoming Conservation Corps (WCC) crews 

each spent ten days in the field collecting native seeds 

for the national “Seeds of Success (SOS)” program. 

SOS is a national wildland seed collection network 

of 39 organizations that have created over 9,000 

collections representing more than 3,000 species of 

wildland native seeds. The crews worked closely with 

BLM staff and Conservation and Land Management 

interns hired under an agreement with the Chicago 

Botanic Gardens. 

WCC crew members also assisted the BLM with 

numerous other projects related to 

energy, wildlife, recreation, 

forest management, 

historic restoration, 

and water resources 

management.

“The minute you begin to do what you really 

want to do, it’s really a different kind of life.”

Buckminster Fuller, Engineer, Author,

Designer, Inventor, and Futurist
APPENDIX 41

APPENDIX

The Education Program chart and graphs in this report are 

based only on data submitted in December 2010 by BLM State 

and Field Offices on FY 2010 projects and programs that 

engaged or educated youth up to age 25. They do not 

reflect the entire scope of education and interpretation 

activities in which BLM offices are engaged.
42 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

FY 2010 BLM Education Program Statistics, by State

State

Number 

of 

programs

Number 

of youth 

participants

Number of 

adult 

participants

Number 

of 

partner 

groups

Dollar value 

of partner 

contributions

Total BLM 

funding

Total 

program 

costs

Program 

subset 

reaching 

underserved 

youth

Alaska 24 2,381 839 90 $177,827 $334,331 $505,258 14

Arizona 17 176 66 20 $261,335 $749,400 $1,041,234 6

California 47 24,403 1,804 144 $1,322,561 $420,409 $1,732,970 11

Colorado 39 8,555 760 92 $215,090 $335,669 $521,040 12

Eastern States 14 3,322 114 30 $19,750 $85,000 $102,750 7

Idaho 26 10,726 4,049 40 $163,490 $401,405 $5644,195 5

Montana/

Dakotas

13 4,817 418 33 $79,800 $79,828 $159,628 1

Nevada 22 19,238 2,075 33 $171,726 $510,400 $723,627 4

New Mexico 20 5,494 844 29 $359,985 $138,542 $498,527 7

Oregon/

Washington*

36 5,000

Utah 20 18,932 689 58 $250,475 $268,828 $451,180 4

Wyoming 41 42,791 10,903 56 $303,023 $670,650 $967,883 6

TOTALS 319 145,835 22,561 625 $3,325,062 $3,994,462 $7,268,292 77

*Incomplete data
APPENDIX 43

Agua Fria National Monument (AZ) Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument Student Explorations (UT)

Alder Creek Children’s Forest (OR) Green River Bonanza Bridge (UT)

Atwell Island (CA) Headwaters Forest Reserve (CA)

Black Ledges Archaeology Camp (UT) Jupiter Inlet Natural Area (FL)

Buffalo Field Office (WY) King Range National Conservation Area (CA)

Big Morongo Canyon Preserve (CA) Mallo Recreation Area (WY)

California Coastal National Monument 

Trinidad Gateway (CA)

McGregor Park (OR)

Campbell Creek Science Center (AK) Meadowood Special Recreation Management Area (VA)

Carson City District Office (NV) Metro Tech’s Fire Science Program (AZ)

Challis Outdoor Classroom (ID) National Historic Trails Interpretive Center (WY)

Coeur d’Alene Field Office (ID) Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area (NV)

Desert Discovery Center (CA) Roseburg District (OR) 

Don’t Trash Nevada (NV) San Joaquin River Gorge (CA)

El Malpais National Conservation Area (NM) Sand Canyon Environmental Education Program (CA)

Empire Ranch (AZ) Table Rocks (OR)

FIRE Up for Summer (ID) Trinity County Resource Conservation District (CA)

Fish Slough (CA) Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument Interpretive Center (MT)

Garden Park Fossil Area (CO) West Eugene Wetlands Education Center (OR) 

Glennallen Field Office (AK) Wildwood Recreation Site (OR) 

BLM Hands on the Land Sites
44 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
APPENDIX 45

BLM “LEARNING LANDSCAPES”

WEBSITE, www.blm.gov/education

In addition to teacher workshops and other 

opportunities for professional development, the BLM 

also offers a wealth of educational resources on its 

Learning Landscapes website. These include numerous 

articles and classroom activities authored by BLM 

resource specialists and published in Science & Children

magazine, a journal of the National Science Teachers 

Association.

The website also features highlights from BLMdeveloped distance learning programs, including 

satellite broadcasts and interactive electronic field 

trips, as well as educator guides developed for these 

programs. Not intended to replace traditional textbooks 

and curricula, these teacher resources typically focus 

on topics of particular interest to BLM land managers. 

Available distance learning programs, for example, 

focus on: excavation of dinosaur fossils in Utah; the 

ecology of wildland fire and fire-related issues in the 

wildland-urban interface; tracking habitat change; and 

renewable energy. Teachers can also use the Learning 

Landscapes website as a portal to BLM State programs 

close to home.

From festivals to field trips to service learning 

opportunities, teachers can find details on a wide range 

of educational opportunities connected with America’s 

public lands.

OTHER WEBSITES OF INTEREST

BLM Volunteer Program – www.blm.gov/volunteer.

This site provides information on BLM Volunteer 

Program activities, news, and projects.

Hands on the Land – www.handsontheland.org. 

Teachers can find Hands on the Land educational 

resources, view site profiles, and take virtual tours.

Volunteer.gov – www.volunteer.gov/gov. Interested 

citizens can search volunteer job opportunities offered by 

several land management agencies, including the BLM.

The mention of company names, trade names, or commercial products does not constitute 

endorsement or recommendation for use by the Federal Government.

This publication was produced by the BLM Division of Education, 

Interpretation, and Partnerships. Additional copies may be obtained by 

calling (202) 912-7457 or by writing to: BLM Division of Education, 

Interpretation, and Partnerships, 1849 C Street, N.W., 2134LM, 

Washington, D.C. 20240.

The BLM Division of Education, Interpretation, and Partnerships 

would like to thank the many BLM employees from BLM field offices, 

headquarters, and the National Operations Center for their invaluable 

contributions to this update.