Environmental Studies School, September 26&27

This past September, I joined some  ladies from District V and other FGCMD districts at the Cylburn Arboretum’s classroom for two days of lectures plus a walkabout fieldtrip looking at Cylburn’s many varieties of trees.

We were advised to find copies of the textbook, Living in the Environment by G. Tyler Miller, and to read up on the assigned chapters prior to the lectures. The first day’s lectures were given by Sarah Via (UMD professor) and our own Lynn Walter covering Earth’s life support systems and ecosystems, the principles of environmental science and natural resource use, environmental issues and biodiversity.

Day Two lecturers were again Lynn Walter then Erin Reed from Audubon Baltimore and Kirk Brown, an environmental educator. Lynn spoke about  effective networking and outreach, Erin covered backyard wildlife habitat and Kirk spoke on the history of leaders in the environmental movement and principles of sustainability.

Lunch was provided on both days and an “open notes” exam was the conclusion. The book readings broaden knowledge beyond the lectures. There was also the benefit of meeting new people and greeting friends while attending this course. Some of us stayed at the Radisson overnight and had more time to shop, have dinner together and more chat time.

Although I have attended events at Cylburn previously, I never had time or opportunity to walk the grounds. We had a tour guide to discuss the various trees in the arboretum for the outing. The only down side was that any of the group who were at the outer edges of the gathering had a hard time hearing him. Still, just venturing out a ways from the group to look at the trees on our own was a very pleasant way to end the day.

The following are some of the pictures taken on the walking tour. Because quite a few of the trees are ones we do not regularly see in Carroll, their names aren’t listed unless I was sure of my recall ability. If you only come away with the sense that Cylburn is worth a walkabout visit, then these photos will be deemed a success.  (Click first picture for enlarged slideshow)