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Photo by Andrew Pirrung

How To Be A Good Environmental Steward

By Jackie Rath

As we consider our roles as individuals and community members, there is a special sense of place that The Ridges Sanctuary and the wider Door County landscape carries. Visitors come from across the country and the world to experience its beauty. It is our responsibility to continue to provide education on why we preserve sensitive habitats and how we promote exploring these natural spaces. Through environmental education and community collaboration, our goal is to foster environmental stewardship: an appreciation of and connection with the natural world that inspires the conservation of nature.  

As conservation efforts on the peninsula continue to grow, practicing environmental stewardship is crucial to the work being done for future generations to experience and appreciate. Carrying practices of environmental stewardship holds true when interacting with natural spaces outside the peninsula. Anyone can practice environmental stewardship where they are by exploring responsibly and through actions we can take to protect and care for the places we love.  

We need to do our part in understanding threats, opportunities and challenges in our communities. Although being a steward may seem daunting, you can start with small practices to incorporate into your daily life. 

Stewardship Practices

  • Develop a Sense of Place: Pay attention to your natural surroundings. Spend time outside to get to know the natural patterns of an area and start noting cyclical patterns or fascinations in your outings.  
  • Go on a Naturalist-Guided Hike: Get outside and learn about the plants, animals, and ecosystems around you from members in our community. Develop a knowledge of local ecology or gain insight from the perspectives of those who have explored these spaces and know the innerworkings of sensitive habitats. Our naturalist-guided hikes are the best way to experience the magic of The Ridges and to share the ongoing environmental stewardship at the Sanctuary.  
  • Care for Door County Leave No Trace Initiative: The Door County Leave No Trace Seven Principles provide a framework of minimum impact practices for spending time in Door County’s outdoors and beyond. Head to www.doorcounty.com/care-for-door-county/leave-no-trace and read about the Leave No Trace 7 Principles. Each principle covers a specific target area and provides detailed information for minimizing impact to the peninsula’s unique landscape, water resources, and outdoor experiences. These frameworks are actions to start implementing in your daily life to care for the land you love.  
    • Door County Leave No Trace 7 Principles 
      • Know Before You Go 
      • Stick to the Trails 
      • Trash Your Trash 
      • Leave It As You Found It 
      • Be Careful With Fire 
      • Keep Wildlife Wild 
      • Share Our Trails, Roads and Natural Resources 
  • Support and donate: There are countless not-for-profit organizations that work to protect and maintain our natural treasures for generations to come. Please consider contributing to organizations and partners so that they can continue to do the work of environmental stewardship.  
  • Community collaboration and investment: Being part of a community of people dedicated to the preservation, education, and research of this unique place is highly rewarding. Learn about local community action and initiatives, show support and get involved. Shop locally, protect, and care for local spaces, and volunteer! It is important to be mindful of the impact from individual actions, and community collaboration is a great way to share resources and ask questions or simply a place to get started. One of many great examples of community collaboration and partnership action is The Door County Big Plant powered by the Climate Change Coalition of Door County. Hundreds of Door County individuals, families, businesses, churches, and non-profit ecological partners rally together to plant thousands of trees every year. To learn more, head to www.climatechangedoorcounty.com/door-county-big-plant and explore and learn about the partners at play. 
  • Citizen Science: As stewards of The Ridges Sanctuary, understanding the critical habitats found within the Sanctuary is vital to establishing proper management, protection of rare and endangered species, and understanding the impacts climate change will have on the boreal forest. There are many opportunities for volunteers of all ages and abilities to get involved at The Ridges Sanctuary, one of them being citizen science. Citizen science is the collection and analysis of data relating to the natural world by members of the general public, typically as part of a collaborative project with professional scientists. The Ridges currently hosts or facilitates several citizen science programs that utilize volunteers to collect important data for a variety of uses. 
  • Share what you care about: Encourage others to get outside with you or volunteer to get more people involved. Share your fascinations and curiosities when out in nature, you never know who you might inspire! We can achieve much more as a collective when passionate individuals work towards a common goal. 

Want to learn more about our current stewardship practices at The Ridges? Visit our Preservation, Research, or Education pages to learn more about our work.