Archive for May 2024

By Alison Mitchell, Co-Executive Director In the movie Field of Dreams, a struggling Iowa farmer hears a voice whispering, “If you build it, he will come.” Acting on a vision, he turns a cornfield into a baseball diamond. The ghosts of old baseball players visit, as well as the farmer’s late father. But the film…

By Jay Watson, Co-Executive Director James Still always wanted to become a doctor, but as a Black child in the 1800s, never had the opportunity to go to medical school. Undeterred, he learned to make botanical extracts from native plants, and studied books on anatomy, physiology, botany and medicine. Still became a skilled healer with…

By Alison Mitchell, Co-Executive Director Interested in saving money on home energy bills? How about helping to fight climate change by reducing your carbon footprint? Or ensuring that the New Jersey communities most affected by environmental pollution get justice and help? If so, the federal Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022 may have something to…

By Jay Watson, Co-Executive Director “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step,” according to a Chinese proverb. But in the avian world, journeys can last well over a thousand miles – and begin with a flap rather than a step! Each spring, birds known as “neotropical migrants” make incredible long-distance journeys…

By Alison Mitchell, Co-Executive Director If you’re near a pond, stream, or marsh on a warm day, you may notice quick-flying insects skimming across the water or swooping and darting through the air. When they alight, you may be dazzled by their brightly-colored bodies and double sets of lacy wings. They’re dragonflies and damselflies, fierce…