Dumpster diving, welcome to my skills. Last Thursday at 2:00pm, the crew leaders kicked off some earth day celebrations by collecting 280 pounds of garbage from the student union dumpster. After loading the trash into our WCC trucks, we took it to the university's physical plant for some sorting. The University of Wyoming student union is blessed with an extensive array sorting bins so that it is crystal clear where to put what refuse. The paper bin even has a narrow slot so that only paper should fit in. Generally, people don't put trash in the recycling, but they certainly feel free to put their recycling in the trash-THIS IS RIDICULOUS! So, after weighing all of our sloppy food covered bags, we tore them open and began to remove recyclables. We pulled our about 40 pounds of 'resonable' recycling. By that I mean that the bottles/plastics/and papers were clean enough to be recycled. If you think about 40 pounds of plastics and papers, that really is quite a quantity. Also in consideration were the heaps and heaps of food in the trash that could have been composted if the union had that available. We were particularly perturbed by the university catering services compostable cups that wound up in the trash instead of the recycling. Additionally, with only a 5% margin for error at the recycling plant, it is critical that people don't put trash in bottles and remove lids, which actually aren't recyclable.
The next day, we made our way to the salvage yard in Laramie. After spending about an hour sifting through scrap metal in the freezing cold, we had gathered enough materials to construct a gigantic sage grouse. For those of you not from the west, the sage grouse is a very strange looking chicken-type creature that is now protected in 'core areas' in Wyoming so that it is not listed on the federal endangered species list. Our goal, is to create the frame of a gigantic sage grouse to put in the center of campus on earth day that students can fill with recyclables that our campus actually recycles. (Hint-you should all google the sage grouse). My real point here is that we can all do a little bit better at being effective recyclers. I know many people who think that recycling really doesn't matter, but is there anyone who can't spare quite literally 10 seconds to make sure their product gets put in the correct bin. Take a little time and make a little change to your routine...Because lots of little changes make one big difference.
Happy Earth Week!
Monday, April 18, 2011
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
The Forest Service
Gifford Pinchot, the first chief of the forest service had an idea that the forest service would be responsible to "provide the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people in the long run". National forests and grasslands encompass 193 million acres of land in the US, and area equivalent to the size of Texas. Although it's managed by the Department of Agriculture, the forest service is budgeted through the Department of the Interior. In addition to managing our nations forests and grasslands, the Forest Service is also the largest forestry research organization in the world. Another mission of the forest service is to achieve an effective workforce that represents the full range of diversity of the american people.
By sustaining the health, diversity, and productivity of the country's forests and grasslands, the forest service is able to meet the needs of current and future generations. One of the main missions of the forest service is to listen to the people and respond to their needs through decision making. Through a multiple use ecological management policy, I'm sure the forest service will continue to effectively manage our grasslands and forests for years to come.
By sustaining the health, diversity, and productivity of the country's forests and grasslands, the forest service is able to meet the needs of current and future generations. One of the main missions of the forest service is to listen to the people and respond to their needs through decision making. Through a multiple use ecological management policy, I'm sure the forest service will continue to effectively manage our grasslands and forests for years to come.
Friday, April 8, 2011
Greetings from...
Colorado fire camp, where I am well on my way to becoming a sawyer. In fact, I've come far enough that I now pronounce the word as it should be SAWyer and not SOYyer. Essentially, I'm learning with 13 other WCC crew leaders and supervisors how to safely operate and maintain a chainsaw for tree felling(simply put, cutting down trees).
We arrived wednesday night in a caravan of pickup trucks and suburbans in Salida, Colorado(population 5,000 and elevation 8,000 feet). Salida is nestled up in the mountains 3 hours southwest from Denver and home to the fire camp where students can eat sleep and saw for two days in the comfort of the Ponderosa Lodge. All day thursday was spent in the classroom learning the jargon and safety information that allows us to pick up a saw in the first place. This morning we spent additional time in the classroom, learning all the parts of the saw and how to perform maintenance daily and weekly. After lunch we ventured outside to the saw shop where we took our saw apart for maintenance and finally, sharpened the chains and fueled up.
My first attempt at firing up was definitely rough. Donning all of our PPE(personal protective equipment) including saw chaps, hard hats, glasses, and ear plugs, I failed to hear the engine fire on choke, thus I instantly concluded I was a bad sawyer. But, after a few tries and some assistance I got er' started and gave the throttle a nice squeeze. Now, a fully fueled and oiled saw is no light object. It is cumbersome and awkward for a beginner, and only experience makes those imperfections fade away. Watching our instructor Mark hold the saw in class on day one, I assumed that the saw was light and as long as I studied, this would all be simple. Wrong. You could read saw books all day but when the saw is in your hands, your newly acquired knowledge flies out the window. But, such is the way of learning and being a student.
Tomorrow, we head into the field to fell some real trees. I'm optimistic about the forecast for scatted thunderstorms and 30mph winds tomorrow. I mean really, anything worse than that would be like felling trees in a hurricane. No biggie. Maybe I'll switch paths and become a lumberjack(or Jill). Maybe I'll get my red card and fight wildland fires for the big bucks. Or maybe I'll just be a really good tree feller for the WCC. Either way, my point is that it's nice to be a student again. There's so much to learn!
We arrived wednesday night in a caravan of pickup trucks and suburbans in Salida, Colorado(population 5,000 and elevation 8,000 feet). Salida is nestled up in the mountains 3 hours southwest from Denver and home to the fire camp where students can eat sleep and saw for two days in the comfort of the Ponderosa Lodge. All day thursday was spent in the classroom learning the jargon and safety information that allows us to pick up a saw in the first place. This morning we spent additional time in the classroom, learning all the parts of the saw and how to perform maintenance daily and weekly. After lunch we ventured outside to the saw shop where we took our saw apart for maintenance and finally, sharpened the chains and fueled up.
My first attempt at firing up was definitely rough. Donning all of our PPE(personal protective equipment) including saw chaps, hard hats, glasses, and ear plugs, I failed to hear the engine fire on choke, thus I instantly concluded I was a bad sawyer. But, after a few tries and some assistance I got er' started and gave the throttle a nice squeeze. Now, a fully fueled and oiled saw is no light object. It is cumbersome and awkward for a beginner, and only experience makes those imperfections fade away. Watching our instructor Mark hold the saw in class on day one, I assumed that the saw was light and as long as I studied, this would all be simple. Wrong. You could read saw books all day but when the saw is in your hands, your newly acquired knowledge flies out the window. But, such is the way of learning and being a student.
Tomorrow, we head into the field to fell some real trees. I'm optimistic about the forecast for scatted thunderstorms and 30mph winds tomorrow. I mean really, anything worse than that would be like felling trees in a hurricane. No biggie. Maybe I'll switch paths and become a lumberjack(or Jill). Maybe I'll get my red card and fight wildland fires for the big bucks. Or maybe I'll just be a really good tree feller for the WCC. Either way, my point is that it's nice to be a student again. There's so much to learn!
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Negotiation
Past negotiation experiences have left me not so satisfied. As a sometimes 'glass half empty' person, I think that if I have to negotiate then I'm already at a disadvantage. In order to gain something, then I must lose something else. With a modestly reasonable other party, you can actually leave a negotiation having gained something of value. The magic of negotiation, as I learned from Dr. Steve Smutko is that in negotiation, value can be created by assigning points to the desired outcomes of each party. Dr. Smutko is University of Wyoming's Chair of Collaborative Practice and an economics proffesor. He has facilitated numerous public policy decisions in the mountain west as well as the southeastern U.S., and teaches negotiation analysis to UW students. Like a good economist, Dr. Smutko conveyed his points about negotiation to our class by assigning half the class one role, and the other half another role. For example, I was assigned to be the agent of Sally Soprano, a fictional opera singer looking to get back into the industry. The other party was the Lyric opera house, looking for a performer for their upcoming show. With the addition of many other factors, we had to work with the opera house to agree on a salary for Sally Soprano. Ultimately, our negotiations were what I would call collaborative. We understood that both parties had desired outcomes and we worked together to achieve them.
I'm hoping that this summer the negotiations will be much more simple. I've made up an image in my mind of two crew members who both want the last pancake at breakfast. Sam and I, trusty crew leaders, will sweep in with our super-people capes and and alternating lines say "hey guys, how bout one of you breaks it in half and then the other gets to pick which half they get!". Obviously, we're familiar with this age old trick, which ensures that the splitter will do what they can to ensure the pancake is actually evenly split. After all, the other party will pick which half they get.
Negotiation is a two way street, but if both parties can approach the proceedings from the 'glass half full' perspective, they have everything to gain and nothing to lose.
I'm hoping that this summer the negotiations will be much more simple. I've made up an image in my mind of two crew members who both want the last pancake at breakfast. Sam and I, trusty crew leaders, will sweep in with our super-people capes and and alternating lines say "hey guys, how bout one of you breaks it in half and then the other gets to pick which half they get!". Obviously, we're familiar with this age old trick, which ensures that the splitter will do what they can to ensure the pancake is actually evenly split. After all, the other party will pick which half they get.
Negotiation is a two way street, but if both parties can approach the proceedings from the 'glass half full' perspective, they have everything to gain and nothing to lose.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Lately
I am officially a blog neglecter...ugh! I guess all I can do is tell lots of good stories about why I haven't written. Considering that I haven't posted in a month, this could be a long one. Since my last post, I've made my biggest purchase in several years. I am now the proud owner of an entire ski set up. Skis, bindings, boots, poles, a helmet goggles, the whole deal. Additionally each of the days I've taken them out in the past week have been fresh powder days. PERFECT!
From March 11th-20th, I was down in Gunnison Colorado re-taking a Wilderness First Responder Course with a fellow crew leader, Josh. Because it was my second time taking the course, I felt I was able to absorb much more information and hone in on good patient assessment and care. While in Gunnison, we stayed at an awesome hostel called Wanderlust run by two great gals, Amy and Melissa. If anyone is ever looking for a place to stay in Gunnison, you should check it out. Additionally, for the second time in a month, I got to see my best friend Alli in Montrose, CO. Although I drove a total of 3 hours to see Alli for 2 hours, it was wonderful to see her and I'm so glad I made the trip. Driving home from Gunnison in daylight made for a beautiful drive and I was ecstatic to get home to someone special. Thus I will introduce to the world, on my blog, Kory Cook, my boyfriend. Kory and I met while working at the ski area and have been pretty much inseparable since our first date at the Banff mountain film festival world tour in Laramie.
After a much needed night of rest, I departed again for Denver to pick up Adam Pettee and Courtney Smith from the airport. These two were kind enough to spend there spring break with me for some much needed fun. Upon picking them up it was close to 70 degrees and sunny in Denver. Although the weather was beautiful, I was really hoping for some snow so they could ski on fresh powder. Sure enough, both Wednesday and Friday(the two days I was working) we had a few inches of snow and on friday, enough people showed up to work that I got the day off and skied for just about every minute of it. Friday night, we all shared a new experience that really made me feel like a local, shooting guns on BLM land. After much discussion on the ride there about everything not to do, we were all nervous, but excited to try it. As it turns out, Adam is quite the marksman, and Courtney and I are not. We were much better at throwing the clays and even that was not so easy. On Saturday, we drove through some nasty weather on I-80 to get Courtney and Adam back to the airport. After a teary farewell, I sent them on their way and made the 2.5 hour drive to Laramie one last time.
For now, I'm enjoying my last week at the ski area and then I'm off to Salida, CO for 4 days of chainsaw training with the other crew leaders at Colorado Fire Camp. Hopefully, I'll post sooner rather than later!
From March 11th-20th, I was down in Gunnison Colorado re-taking a Wilderness First Responder Course with a fellow crew leader, Josh. Because it was my second time taking the course, I felt I was able to absorb much more information and hone in on good patient assessment and care. While in Gunnison, we stayed at an awesome hostel called Wanderlust run by two great gals, Amy and Melissa. If anyone is ever looking for a place to stay in Gunnison, you should check it out. Additionally, for the second time in a month, I got to see my best friend Alli in Montrose, CO. Although I drove a total of 3 hours to see Alli for 2 hours, it was wonderful to see her and I'm so glad I made the trip. Driving home from Gunnison in daylight made for a beautiful drive and I was ecstatic to get home to someone special. Thus I will introduce to the world, on my blog, Kory Cook, my boyfriend. Kory and I met while working at the ski area and have been pretty much inseparable since our first date at the Banff mountain film festival world tour in Laramie.
After a much needed night of rest, I departed again for Denver to pick up Adam Pettee and Courtney Smith from the airport. These two were kind enough to spend there spring break with me for some much needed fun. Upon picking them up it was close to 70 degrees and sunny in Denver. Although the weather was beautiful, I was really hoping for some snow so they could ski on fresh powder. Sure enough, both Wednesday and Friday(the two days I was working) we had a few inches of snow and on friday, enough people showed up to work that I got the day off and skied for just about every minute of it. Friday night, we all shared a new experience that really made me feel like a local, shooting guns on BLM land. After much discussion on the ride there about everything not to do, we were all nervous, but excited to try it. As it turns out, Adam is quite the marksman, and Courtney and I are not. We were much better at throwing the clays and even that was not so easy. On Saturday, we drove through some nasty weather on I-80 to get Courtney and Adam back to the airport. After a teary farewell, I sent them on their way and made the 2.5 hour drive to Laramie one last time.
For now, I'm enjoying my last week at the ski area and then I'm off to Salida, CO for 4 days of chainsaw training with the other crew leaders at Colorado Fire Camp. Hopefully, I'll post sooner rather than later!
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Risk Management Journal
Assignment: Reflect on why risk management is important and steps you can take to make sure risk is limited.
Risk; exposure to the chance of injury or loss. You could say that only a pessimist would see risk around every corner, but by taking actions that have real consequences(risks), we open so many doors to learn and grow.
Early on in college, I was fortunate enough to learn the famous venn diagram risk equation from Mr. Bill Schnirel in Outdoor Education class. On one side of the diagram is human factors, and on the other is environmental factors. Naturally, the middle is the cross-over space where human and environmental factors interact and result in incidents, or worse yet, accidents.
So, what can we do to as leaders to mitigate risk for ourselves and our groups. BE PREPARED of course. Most incidents and accidents are the result of human error, so the best thing we can do is be educated. Know where you are, what resources are there, and how to get out quickly if the event arises. Know what you're doing, how your equipment works, and that you should stop if you are concerned about safety. Lastly, know your group and their skill level so that you know who and what to look out for. If you're always a step ahead, you'll always have the space you need to fix things before they even become a problem.
Risk; exposure to the chance of injury or loss. You could say that only a pessimist would see risk around every corner, but by taking actions that have real consequences(risks), we open so many doors to learn and grow.
Early on in college, I was fortunate enough to learn the famous venn diagram risk equation from Mr. Bill Schnirel in Outdoor Education class. On one side of the diagram is human factors, and on the other is environmental factors. Naturally, the middle is the cross-over space where human and environmental factors interact and result in incidents, or worse yet, accidents.
So, what can we do to as leaders to mitigate risk for ourselves and our groups. BE PREPARED of course. Most incidents and accidents are the result of human error, so the best thing we can do is be educated. Know where you are, what resources are there, and how to get out quickly if the event arises. Know what you're doing, how your equipment works, and that you should stop if you are concerned about safety. Lastly, know your group and their skill level so that you know who and what to look out for. If you're always a step ahead, you'll always have the space you need to fix things before they even become a problem.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Project Management Plan
Vision: Provide recreation opportunities in state parks lands for mountain bike users
Critical Success Factors: Develop 4 miles of single track trails that will be complete and available to users at the conclusion of the 10 day hitch. Crew learns the fundamentals of single track trail building.
Work Breakdown Schedule: Work will proceed in a bell curve type fashion where the bulk of the work will be done mid hitch followed by a day off and then a final push to complete the project. Day 1(Travel, frontload and assimilate to work site). Day 2-3(Develop first mile of trail). Day 4-6(Develop 2 miles of trail). Day 7(Half day or day off depending on progress). Day 8-9(Last mile of trail and finishing touches). Day 10(Clean up and travel home).
Resources: WCC equipment will be used in conjunction with agency equipment
Financial Plan: Yeah Tim and Kendall!
Project Team Roles and Responsibilities: Crew leaders main role is to provide guidance to team members to complete projects as planned and act as a team liason to agencies to ensure projects are accomplished as envisioned. Crew members will serve to support this mission and provide the labor necessary to comlete tasks
Document Distribution: Documents will be distributed during travel time and discussed twice daily in group ups
Quality Control Plan:Check in daily with agency partner to determine if project is being completed to standards disucessed in scope
Communication Plan: The foundation will be excellent co leader communication, followed by group communication and then communication with the agency partner. Twice daily group meetings will ensure that issues are dealt with and goals and expectations can be achieved or met.
Change Management Plan: Schedule accomodates time for changes in the scope of work or adjustments to the critical path. This will be minimized by maininting excellent communication among leaders, members, and agencies.
Risk Management Plan: Critical parts will include the first day of site assimilation and project familiarization. Risk can be minimized by checking in with group members and ensuring they are physically and emotionally able to work in a safe environment.
Client Care Plan: Maintaining good contact with the agency will be critical to the success of the project. We will check in with the agency daily to ensure that goals are being met and everyone is getting most they can from the experience.
Critical Success Factors: Develop 4 miles of single track trails that will be complete and available to users at the conclusion of the 10 day hitch. Crew learns the fundamentals of single track trail building.
Work Breakdown Schedule: Work will proceed in a bell curve type fashion where the bulk of the work will be done mid hitch followed by a day off and then a final push to complete the project. Day 1(Travel, frontload and assimilate to work site). Day 2-3(Develop first mile of trail). Day 4-6(Develop 2 miles of trail). Day 7(Half day or day off depending on progress). Day 8-9(Last mile of trail and finishing touches). Day 10(Clean up and travel home).
Resources: WCC equipment will be used in conjunction with agency equipment
Financial Plan: Yeah Tim and Kendall!
Project Team Roles and Responsibilities: Crew leaders main role is to provide guidance to team members to complete projects as planned and act as a team liason to agencies to ensure projects are accomplished as envisioned. Crew members will serve to support this mission and provide the labor necessary to comlete tasks
Document Distribution: Documents will be distributed during travel time and discussed twice daily in group ups
Quality Control Plan:Check in daily with agency partner to determine if project is being completed to standards disucessed in scope
Communication Plan: The foundation will be excellent co leader communication, followed by group communication and then communication with the agency partner. Twice daily group meetings will ensure that issues are dealt with and goals and expectations can be achieved or met.
Change Management Plan: Schedule accomodates time for changes in the scope of work or adjustments to the critical path. This will be minimized by maininting excellent communication among leaders, members, and agencies.
Risk Management Plan: Critical parts will include the first day of site assimilation and project familiarization. Risk can be minimized by checking in with group members and ensuring they are physically and emotionally able to work in a safe environment.
Client Care Plan: Maintaining good contact with the agency will be critical to the success of the project. We will check in with the agency daily to ensure that goals are being met and everyone is getting most they can from the experience.
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