What Connects You to the Wild?

What connects you to the wild? That was the question keynote speaker Dave Conrads posed to the audience at Bur Oak Land Trust’s 36^th annual Prairie Preview. While many attendees indicated a lifelong connection, others claimed a conversion experience. Conrads related his own conversion experience while he was a student at Central College in Pella preparing for his next step, medical school. He realized he had little enthusiasm for his career path, and then he took a course with John Bowls, the author of The Distribution and Biogeography of Mammals of Iowa. The course was Vertebrate Natural History. The class went on a birding excursion at Red Rock. With that exposure to the natural world, Conrads’ career path was immediately redirected.

Now the Associate Director of Outdoor Recreation and Education at University of Iowa Recreational Services, Conrads and his staff organize and direct programs and activities that encompass wildlife research projects and educational activities and camps for school children and youth. Of those activities, the UI School of the Wild and Wildlife Camps are the most prominent. Thanks to grants and well-chosen partnerships, those programs have experienced continued growth and popularity.

Conrads and his staff work out of the Macbride Recreation Area, leasing 500 acres from the Corps of Engineers. They began the Wildlife Camps in 1991 to introduce kids to wildlife by developing themes and activities that create awareness and foster appreciation of natural surroundings. Now the camps are conducted in 14 state parks as well as the Macbride Recreation Area.

Realizing that the Wildlife Camps did not truly reflect the diversity of the school populations in Johnson County, Conrads set the goal of removing barriers to participation to bring in more diverse groups of students. Through a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency and a REAP grant from the state of Iowa, Conrads was able to achieve this goal. The result was the School of the Wild, which began in 1999. Over the years, participation in the program reached a yearly average of 1200 school children. Last year, 1700 students participated.

Another Rec Services program, the Iowa Raptor Project, is a joint effort of Rec Services and Kirkwood Community College. In December they launched a three-month study of raptor populations in Johnson County to fill in gaps in knowledge about the birds’ wintering habits and to learn more about how the populations are distributed across urban and rural areas. Other partnerships include those with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the United States Department of Agriculture, and county conservation boards and staffs.

It’s fair to say there was a sense of community again this year at Prairie Preview. The 2019 event saw a good turnout at the Clarion Hotel, 2525 North Dodge in Iowa City with an estimated attendance of 275.

Nearly 50 exhibitors were on hand early in the evening to interact with guests and share information about their organizations. Their missions ranged from city and county government entities using sustainable practices to a range of independent organizations dedicated to conservation of natural resources, food security, and outdoor experiences for kids to name just a few.  Ten new exhibitors took part in Prairie Preview for the first time. Bur Oak Land Trust also had a silent auction and drawing for door prizes. Everyone definitely enjoyed the Four Seasons Garden Club, who again provided refreshments for attendees.

You never know when or in what form a conversion experience might come, or to whom. Conrads told the story of a young participant in the School of the Wild who brought a newt to show the staff. It turned out to be a Central Newt, the first one found in Johnson County and a discovery that excited even seasoned wildlife biologists. It just goes to show the value of outdoor experiences for everyone, and certainly for the next generation. It also reinforces the importance of supporting organizations that protect and preserve natural areas where all species can thrive.

View Bruce Drummond’s photo album of Prairie Preview here!