Since its founding in 2007, Friends of the St. Clair River has been a champion of the waterways throughout Michigan’s Thumb Coast. One of the organization’s most critical areas of work is in education that teaches residents – especially local students – the importance of a healthy watershed. For the team at Friends, breakthrough moments are when a person “realizes they are part of a much bigger picture, one that involves every tree, every bird, and every drop of water around them. That builds the foundation of a culture for conservation.”
Education Manager Melissa Kivel detailed Friends’ approach in designing learning opportunities. “In all our education programs, you’ll find some element of an immersive experience that spans beyond the traditional walls of a classroom. We may take students out on a hike to the nearest woods to search for butterflies, guide people along the river while sampling the berries that nature provides there or take kids and adults out on a boat as we explore the St. Clair River and Lake Huron.”
Specialized programs have been developed through the innovative work Friends does daily. “Sturgeon Science School is our longest running education program,” noted Melissa. “Since 2013, hundreds of local fifth-grade students have learned how humans impact their environment. Sturgeon Science School kicks off with an interactive classroom visit from our juvenile Lake Sturgeon. Students learn about the biology of the fish, how humans nearly wiped out the population in the early 19th century, and how scientists carefully harvest sturgeon eggs from the St. Clair River to restore populations around the Great Lakes.” As a finale to the program, Friends makes a point of placing students directly on the water so they can appreciate the impact of their new knowledge in its most authentic setting.” Each classroom takes a special field trip aboard the Huron Lady II where students “meet up with biologist partners in a boat-to-boat fashion and see first-hand how they conduct sturgeon research efforts in real time,” explained Melissa.
“I have partnered with Friends of the St. Clair River in the past to bring a local stream testing experience to the classroom.” Anna Jamison is an AP Biology, Chemistry, and Human Body Systems teacher at Port Huron Northern High School. “Friends provided samples, testing instruments, and identification guides so that my students could mirror stream testing that is done several times a year in our local waterways. As a volunteer in that program, I see the benefit for students to have relevant activities that highlight the importance of local water quality.” With the support of Friends, Mrs. Jamison feels prepared to teach while addressing real local environmental challenges. “It is always a goal for students to become life-long learners that positively impact their local environment, and they are helping educators with that mission.”
Jim Felgenauer, President of St. Clair-Detroit River Sturgeon for Tomorrow has also partnered with Friends on education efforts. Together, they share similar missions to support and sustain Michigan’s sturgeon population. “Friends’ Sturgeon Science School is one of the most impactful programs we see,” he said. “Sturgeon restoration and conservation is a long-term process. These students are critical to the continuation of these processes far into the future. The sturgeon education cruises provide place-based education and real experience, demonstrating the importance of local community involvement and partnerships. When questioned, students demonstrate a high level of knowledge and understanding.”
Friends of the St. Clair River’s educational impact reaches well beyond the local region, even having international implications. “Every summer, we host Monarch Blitz,” explained Melissa Kivel. “We count monarch butterflies, as well as any caterpillars, eggs and milkweed plants we find. This program is part of a much larger, international effort to track monarch butterfly populations across North America and inventory the one plant they rely on for survival: milkweeds. We also tag monarch butterflies before they make the big migration to Mexico where they spend winters.”
One of the longtime volunteers in the Monarch Blitz program was inspired by the iconic butterfly to expand her personal work to sustain the species. Denise Kivel started growing milkweed in her small city lot in the summer of 2021. Melissa and her team helped Denise with the project. “After weeks of monitoring, we tagged and released a gorgeous monarch butterfly and Denise was hooked. Since then, she has … transformed a small area behind her garage into a native plant garden and certified monarch butterfly habitat.” Friends continues to work with Denise to tag and release monarch butterflies that are ethically and briefly captured from her garden. The group then uses that data as part of a monarch adoption program. This information is also uploaded to the international monarch watch program based out of the University of Kansas to help steer conservation efforts for monarchs across North America.
“We believe conservation begins with education, and by providing opportunities for people to dig in, get their hands wet, and follow curiosity, we can foster a sense of belonging in nature,” Melissa stated. “There’s nothing like watching a kid’s face light up with the wonder of being out on the water, possibly for the first time in their lives, and seeing a six-foot long fish being pulled out of the water. We’ve seen adults shout out expressions of ‘Wow, look at that!’ when we show them the tiny bugs that emerge from rivers in the dead of winter. There’s never a shortage of people who are amazed by the many magnificent creatures living in our rivers and lakes and natural spaces in between.”
