2024 Signs of the Seasons Trainings

NOTE: We are still scheduling trainings for this season, so please check back for updates as we add more dates to the calendar!

In-Person Training:

Recorded Training Series: Three-Part Webinar Series

Friday, June 7, 2024: In-Person Training, Topsham, Maine
Cathance River Education Alliance Ecology Center 

10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
Co-hosted with the Brunswick Topsham Land Trust 

Do you enjoy noticing seasonal changes in your backyard– date the first dandelion blooms? First robin or butterfly sighting of the year? Become a trained observer and put your nature observations to use as part of a national data collection program!  This in-person volunteer training session for the Signs of the Seasons program will take place June 7, from 10-12, at the CREA Ecology Center.  Led by Maine Sea Grant, participants are trained to observe and record the phenology (seasonal changes) of common plants and animals living in their own communities. Begin indoors with an introduction to how the program works, and then head outside to practice on the plants and animals on-site near the Ecology Center. You will leave with the tools and knowledge needed to set up your own site to record seasonal changes wherever you live. 
 
Training Location: Cathance River Education Alliance (CREA) Ecology Center, parking located at Heath Loop Hiker Parking 219 Evergreen Cir, Topsham, ME 04086 (Directions: Google Maps)

Questions about this opportunity may be directed to Beth Bisson, at beth.bisson@maine.edu or Keri Kaczor, at keri.kaczor@maine.edu.

Registration is required for this free educational program.

Register Online

Monday, June 17, 2024: In-Person Training, Belfast, Maine
Penobscot Shores

2:00-4:00 p.m.
Co-hosted with Maine Health

Maine Sea Grant will offer in-person volunteer training for the Signs of the Seasons program at Penobscot Shores, Belfast, Maine, co-hosted by Maine Health. Participants will learn about the goals of the program, learn how to make scientific observations of phenology (the study of cyclic and seasonal changes of plants and animals), practice making phenology observations on the grounds of Penobscot Shores, and leave with the tools and knowledge needed to set up their own site to observe and record changes in phenology in their own yard or community.

Training Location: Penobscot Shores 10 Shoreland Dr. Belfast, ME. 04915 (Directions: Google Maps)

Questions about this opportunity may be directed to Keri Kaczor, at keri.kaczor@maine.edu or Judy Landry, at Judy.Landry@mainehealth.org

Registration is required for this free educational program.

Register Online

To Learn Virtually or Refresh Your Skills: Watch our Recorded Training Series Online!

This 3-part webinar series provides the information typically provided in our in-person or virtual training workshops, including the importance of studying phenology in a changing climate, the relevance of indicator species to New England, and instructions for how to set up a site and start observing. Each session is less than one hour, and the three sessions build upon one another, so we recommend watching all three in order.

View the recordings

If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact Beth Bisson at 207.832.0343 or beth.bisson@maine.edu.

Recorded Trainings

Session 1

Session 2

Session 3

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