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The Balcones Invaders Satellite is a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens on a mission to change the landscape of Texas.
Cheryl Hamilton, Lonnie Shockley and Judith Shockley presented a lively and inspiring message at the recent Texas Invasive Plant and Pest Council Conference in Aransas Pass. Titled “Stop the Spread, Spread the Word, Just Do It,” their presentation described a three-pronged program of outreach, education and eradication. They are members of our San Antonio and Boerne chapters.
Part of the Invaders of Texas program, the Balcones Invaders have held 16 workshops, trained 86 citizen scientists and written 50 articles while cutting down forests of nandina (Nandina domestica), giant reed (Arundo donax), and chinaberry (Melia azedarach) trees. They cover the area northwest of San Antonio, taking advantage of their work days to do outreach and publicity by bringing along a sign whenever they work in the field.
Camaraderie, honesty and inspiration are three of their cornerstone values for recruiting and retaining volunteers. Add to this a consistent schedule (two hours every Tuesday), division of labor, clear communications, flexibility, autonomy and in the field training (no prior experience required) and they have a self-sustaining group consisting of Master Naturalists, Native Plant Society members and newly trained citizen scientists, as well as college students recruited by their professors.
Outreach efforts include presentations to garden clubs, homeowner and neighborhood associations, Master Naturalists, Master Gardeners and Native Plant Society chapters, as well as articles in the newsletters for the Alamo Area Master Naturalists and Native Plant Society chapters. The Balcones Invaders get the word out through an email list and through the Master Naturalists website and the San Antonio and Boerne chapter websites.
The three ended their presentation with this observation from Margaret Mead: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
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**ARCHIVED POST AUTHOR: rkamper
