Registration is now open for the Student Stewardship Team of the Barrington Land Conservation Trust. Students aged 14-18 earn community service hours for their time and take an active role in preserving Barrington’s natural environment.

The Student Stewardship Team contributes hundreds of hours of volunteer time in each year. Projects have included:

  • Maintaining and improving nature trails in Barrington’s public preserves
  • Planting native trees and plants
  • Removing invasive plants
  • Assisting in management of cleanups
  • Building protective screens for the Terrapin Conservation Project
  • Photography and filmmaking
  • Website design and updates
  • Managing registration for the Land Trust Learning Series
  • Research and writing
  • Administrative work

“I’ve been so impressed by the skills and work ethic demonstrated by our Student Stewardship Team,” says Cindy Elder, Executive Director of the Barrington Land Conservation Trust and coordinator of the team. “They’ve tackled some really tough jobs, and they’ve done a lot of real-time problem solving, working in partnership with their peers.”

Go to our Student Stewardship Team page to download the registration form or email cindyelder@blct.org for more information. All high school students are welcome to participate, regardless of where they attend school.

The Land Trust provides experienced adult supervision. Stewardship events during the school year are typically held every other Sunday afternoon, with additional after-school events when there’s enough daylight. The summer schedule provides a variety of opportunities to accommodate different schedules.

“We don’t expect students to attend every stewardship event,” says Elder. “We understand that high school students are very busy, juggling a lot of different responsibilities. Students can choose the events that work for them. We ask that they contribute at least 10 hours per year.”

For those who are unable to attend stewardship events but would still like to contribute, there are opportunities to engage in research and special projects.

For example, two Barrington High School students, Abby Goblick and Sid Gupta, led a complete redesign of the property pages on the Land Trust’s website. “The goal was to make them more user-friendly and consistent, with information people need to know before they visit. I’ve been thrilled with their work. Next, they’re going to tackle building a new Education page for us.” You can see the Land Trust’s new property pages at www.blct.org/protected-lands/public-access.

The Barrington Land Conservation Trust, a nonprofit organization founded in 1979, has preserved more than 300 acres of open space in Barrington. Land Trust volunteers care for these properties and assist the Town in caring for town-owned conservation land, including Osamequin Nature Preserve, Doug Rayner Wildlife Refuge, and St. Andrews Farm