We would like to introduce our newest incoming volunteer, Chauncey! He will be heading off to Madagascar in January to join our reforestation team. Prior to joining, Chauncey worked in Renton, Washington with the King Conservation District as the Restoration Projects Coordinator while planning and implementing various ecological restoration projects throughout King County. We are excited for Chauncey to utilize his knowledge and experience at our field site and anticipate his arrival. Check out his intro blog below!

My name is Chauncey and I am thrilled to be joining the reforestation team in efforts of helping replant Madagascar’s forest.

Over the past 7 months I have been working with the King Conservation District as an AmeriCorps intern. My position as Habitat Restoration Project Coordinator is responsible for supporting the King Conservation District Habitat Restoration Program. The parameters of my job is to improve at least 11 acres of public land while working with at least 300 volunteers. So far I have lead over 30 volunteer events, have improved 14 acres of land and, worked with more than 340 volunteers. My position ends mid-August 2016. We mostly work in urban forest and wetlands to restore native habitat.

One of the reasons I applied for the 10.5 month AmeriCorps position was to learn more about forest ecology. In order for me to learn and to grow into the best person I can be I have to continue to strive to work outside of my comfort zone. Before this position, I never worked at a project management level. My goal was and always is to expose my weaknesses in order to improve them while finding my strengths and growing more confidence in my capabilities. I have learned so much about myself and about the field of conservation biology that I am now ready to take new steps forward. Working with the King Conservation District has allowed me to reach out to the community and spread awareness about environmental stewardship.

I am also an avid volunteer. Aside from my 2 years volunteering with AmeriCorps, I have worked with organic urban farms in Seattle in addition to the Voluntary Conservation Act in Limpopo, South Africa earning national recognition in the form of the Gold President’s Volunteer Service Award in 2015.

I have had a several experiences that allow me to think positively and interact with different cultures in a transformative way. For example, I studied abroad in India for 34 days and was exposed to a culture where the people who live in poverty are rich in wisdom and serenity rather than materialistic necessities. Although the millions of people I was around barely had running water and electricity, I found myself surrounded by some of the happiest people I’ve ever met. During this experience I learned to appreciate the little things in life, opportunities we have as citizens of a developed nation, and to spread optimism.