Archive for November 2022
How Native Americans created ‘a vast food network’
By Alison Mitchell, Co-Executive Director In stories of the first Thanksgiving more than 400 years ago, Native Americans are often portrayed as skilled hunter-gatherers who also grew crops like corn and squash. Native plant expert Jared Rosenbaum believes this view doesn’t recognize the sophistication of Indigenous people’s land management. Recent archaeological studies, he said, suggest…
Read MoreAcorn booms and busts – a nutty tale
By Alison Mitchell, Co-Executive Director If you’re out this fall enjoying your yard, strolling through neighborhood streets or city parks, or hiking along wooded trails, you may have spotted lots of acorns, hickory nuts or beech nuts on the ground. Or maybe you noticed the opposite – a lack of acorns and other nuts in…
Read MoreInspiring a sense of wonder in the universe
By Jay Watson, Co-Executive Director You don’t have to be a space geek or even a casual Star Trek fan to be mesmerized by the images recently released by NASA. The stunning images of star clusters and other celestial phenomena were made possible by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), which launched on Christmas Day…
Read MoreAccessible trails make nature available to all
By Tom Gilbert, Co-Executive Director Before being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2009, Karen Richards was an athlete. She could hike for miles on rugged mountain trails, and she regularly swam distance laps in a pool. Having multiple sclerosis changed all that for Karen, New Jersey Conservation Foundation’s director of finance and administration. She now…
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