Below is a letter written to staff at the UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden from a former Learning by Leading™ program participant, Levy Hernandez, who was inspired to share more about the impact the program had on his choice of career and his desire to improve the environment around his home town.
Wrangling invasive species, searching for seeds, and maneuvering chainsaws, it’s just another day on the job for the Arboretum and Public Garden’s Learning by Leading™ S.E.E. Putah Creek team. This quarter has been a busy one for the team dedicated to restoring and managing the UC Davis Putah Riparian Reserve.
Kendal Hicks joined the Learning by Leading™ program in 2017 and served as the co-coordinator of the new Waterway Stewardship Internship. Along with her mentor, Nina Suzuki, and fellow co-coordinator Tiffani To, Kendal developed the internship from scratch, creating curriculum, hiring interns and naming the internship!
From outside Bainer Hall to the Social Sciences Building (aka Death Star) courtyard, the Arboretum and Public Garden’s Learning by Leading™ Sustainable Horticulture interns have been hard at work weeding, mulching, pruning, deadheading and adding new plants in landscapes all over campus throughout fall quarter. As part of this internship students leave lasting changes as they shape campus by creating and maintaining sustainable landscapes.
The Learning by Leading™ SmartLawn team, together with CCUH, is helping aid drought and water conservation efforts by testing different types of turf and irrigation methods to determine which combination is most efficient for California homeowners. Their test plots can be seen around the Western Center for Agricultural Equipment.
Pinkerton Prize winner Amber Medina ’19 compares the award to a seed that grows into a tree and bears fruit— a fitting description for an annual honor given to three exceptional UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden interns.
Learning by Leading™ Museum Education create a new self-guided walking tour of Peter J. Shields Oak Grove that highlight twelve trees trees of international origin from this unique collection.
