Camp Meets Conservation: Heritage Conservancy Partners with No Longer Bound
This summer, Heritage Conservancy partnered with No Longer Bound summer camp for five weeks of hands-on environmental education at the Martha Miller Community Center. Every Tuesday, campers explored a new themed program with Heritage Conservancy staff, building their connection to the natural world one week at a time. Our team members Mia, Mara, and Zac led most of the sessions, with support from part-time educators when the three weren’t available.
No Longer Bound is a community-based prevention services organization based in Levittown, PA that has served the community since 1985. Among its programs are youth initiatives designed to build skills and support healthy development, helping young people develop self-esteem, life skills, and positive motivation. Heritage Conservancy’s environmental education and community programming with No Longer Bound campers is one part of that broader effort to support youth in the community.
Week one kicked things off with a look at pollinators. Campers took part in a Pollinator Relay and made chromatography butterflies, using the science of pigment separation to create colorful butterfly wings of their own.
Week two dove into aquatic wonders, exploring life in and around the water. Campers examined macroinvertebrates at a stream table while learning about their connection to water quality and tried their hand at gyotaku, the traditional art of fish printing.
Week three brought campers back to the basics with a session on nature exploration, including a nature scavenger hunt and a take-home nature box for continued discovery outside of camp.
Week four was a highlight of the series with a field trip to Heritage Conservancy’s Croydon Woods Nature Preserve. Campers learned about the native mammals of Bucks County through a game of Predator Prey Tag and made a mammal-themed craft. While there, they joined Penn State Master Gardeners for a plant scavenger hunt, getting out on the trails to experience the preserve firsthand.
The program wrapped up in week five with a session all about birds, including a Bird Migration Obstacle Course and a bird walk, closing out a summer full of discovery.
Programs like this one are at the heart of Heritage Conservancy’s mission to connect our communities with the natural spaces around them. A big thank you to No Longer Bound for five great weeks, and to everyone who helped make this summer of environmental education possible.
