Issues: Community Sustainability
SCS originally formed because Sitka residents were outraged at the large scale clearcutting occurring around their home. They were also very concerned about pollution emitted from the Sitka pulp mill. As SCS has grown, our primary focus has remained on Wilderness and public land protection. However, as residents of Sitka we are obviously very concerned about community issues. In fact, our Community Outreach Coordinator and Community Sustainability Organizer positions were added to help us work in our community, SCS sponsors a Backwoods Lecture Series to help Sitkans learn more about the wildlife and resources of the Tongass. See Our Events Calendar at the bottom of the page for a schedule of SCS events.
Climate Change and Energy
Just because Sitka is a small town, the Sitka Conservation Society does not believe that means it can’t be a national leader in taking on climate change. The idea is that if little Sitka can take progressive steps, why can’t any other community? To help address climate change in Sitka, SCS has advocated for increasing the city’s hydroelectric capacity and organized energy conservation programs to help individuals improve the energy efficiency of their homes.
Local Foods
At the Sitka Conservation Society we are working towards creating a more resilient food system by supporting local efforts to protect the habitat of wild foods, support traditional harvest/subsistence lifestyles, increase local food production, create access to wild seafood, reform the school lunch program to include local foods, and increase awareness of local fishing culture.
Environmental Education
The Sitka Conservation Society provides diverse environmental education programs, which reach hundreds of people from preschool age through retirement age every year. Some of these programs are actually done in the classrooms of local schools, while other programs include public lectures and boat trips for the community at large.
Recent Posts:
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Wild Foods, A New Relationship
Arguably, to know a place is to know the plants. It’s one thing to appreciate the aesthetics of a certain habit but another to really know a plants within it. To really know a plant creates a relationship. One that’s based on an understanding and appreciation of seasons, habitat, and life cycle. It’s a give [...]
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Leave No Trace Trainer Course: June 8 and 9
Saturday, June 8th and Sunday June 9th (we will be camping overnight at Starrigavan Campground, Sitka) Description: This course will allow participants to learn, practice, and teach the principles of Leave-No-Trace outdoor ethics and will certify participants as LNT Trainers. The Leave-No-Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics is a national organization dedicated to teaching people how [...]
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SCS & JVC Northwest: Rooted in the Same Values
The Jesuit Volunteer Corps (JVC) Northwest has placed volunteers in various organizations all over Sitka for nearly two decades, focusing on issues of social and ecological justice. This year, I joined the Sitka Conservation Society team as their first Jesuit Volunteer (JV). Many of the core values of the JVC Northwest program align closely with [...]
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Sitka: A Tongass Salmon Town
In 2011, SCS began the Sitka Salmon Tours program. The goal of the tours was to give visitors a salmon’s eye view from the forests where the salmon are born, to the ocean, the fisher and processor, and finally to our plates. We’ve discontinued the Salmon Tours for 2013. Instead, we have distilled all of [...]
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SCS Summer Boat Tours Start June 1st
The first of six boat tours to take place throughout the summer. Mark your calendars! June 1st, Saturday 10am June 11th, Tuesday 5:30pm June 27th, Thursday 5:30pm July 23rd, Tuesday 5:30pm August 13th, Tuesday 5:30pm August 29th, Thursday 5:30pm Check back soon for more information on tour topics and speakers. See you on the boat! [...]
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Spring Wild Edibles Course – FULL (sign up for wait list)
THIS CLASS IS FULL. To sign up for the waiting list, send your name, email and phone number to tracy@sitkawild.org.. SCS is organizing a spring edibles course with the Kayaani Commission and instructors Scott Brylinsky and Kitty LaBounty. Students will learn how to identify, harvest, and prepare wild edibles from three distinct habitats in the [...]
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Backwoods Lecture: 300 Years of Wilderness
Ever wonder where the idea of wilderness came from? Follow the first explorers of Alaska, like Georg Steller, the German naturalist aboard the S/V Gabriel with Vitus Bering upon the first “discovery” of Alaska’s coast or the Episcopal priest Hudson Struck who made the first ascent of Denali, as they struggle to frame their experiences [...]
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Running the Country! Sitkans Plan to Take GMO Message Across the United States
SITKA CONSERVATION SOCIETY PARTNERS WITH RUNNING FAMILY! Brett, Kris, David, and Olivia Wilcox are pleased to announce that the Sitka Conservation Society is now partnering with them as they run across America in their efforts to raise awareness about genetically modified organisms that can pose a danger to health and the environment. The Sitka [...]
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Jig Saws and Jack Planes and Clamps, Oh My!
“You’re going to want to burn two and then mark it 13.5,” Judi says to her workshop buddy Linda. Linda carefully measures across a piece of hemlock harvested from Starrigavan Valley and marks it with a pencil. She pulls out the tape measure and goes over it again (measure twice and cut once!) as Judi [...]
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Summer Boat Tours – Back by Popular Demand
See new places, new perspectives and learn more about this wild place we live in! Whether you are a born and bred Sitkan, or a recent transplant to the Tongass, the SCS Summer Boat Tour series offers an excellent opportunity to get out to explore and learn more about Sitka Sound and the Tongass. There will be [...]
