Yosemite

At the end of 1996, weeks of cold rain in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains gave way to warm, tropical rainfall. Unusual for that time of year, the warm, heavy rains melted the snowpacks, which began to run down the mountain into the valleys below, including Yosemite Valley. In early January 1997, with NatureBridge educators living at the park and students scheduled to arrive soon, National Park Service (NPS) officials did not close the park out of an abundance of caution; they closed Yosemite because one million gallons of water was pouring into the valley. Every five seconds.

“You know, there's the dream, and then there's reality,” says Kristina. “To take that dream and that concept, and then have to go and really fulfill it — that’s a whole other challenge. An amazing challenge that Matt would pump his fist about.”

To all who knew him, Matt Baxter was a passionate, kind, gentle, funny and ravenously adventurous person. The former NatureBridge educator, who died in a climbing accident in Yosemite in April 1996, inspired children and adults alike throughout his life. It is no surprise that he continues to inspire people after his death.

As a science teacher, Paula Bush has long been an advocate for hands-on, out-of-the-classroom opportunities. For high school students, testing can be a huge obstacle. At NatureBridge, Paula was always thrilled that students were granted the opportunity to be curious without being tested. “We’ve killed curiosity in kids!” she said. “NatureBridge is important because it’s not about book knowledge: It’s experiential. You walk on a trail and all of a sudden learning is much more alive.” Most important was the continuity Paula found at NatureBridge: Tangible lessons that she could reinforce back in the students’ community about nature, being outdoors, caring for the earth and empowering leadership.

NatureBridge is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Five years from now, The United States will be commemorating its 250th. One of the lead people responsible for planning the 250th Anniversary Commemoration is Tom Medema, Acting Associate Director of Interpretation, Education and Volunteers at the National Park Service (NPS), former Chief of Interpretation and Education at Yosemite National Park and a longtime supporter of NatureBridge. We sat down over a video call to discuss how NatureBridge and the United States have made it to these milestone anniversaries, the expansion of historically excluded stories and the resilience required to build the future.

Before Ty Cobb shepherded Yosemite National Institutes (now NatureBridge) through a series of potentially devastating events as its President and CEO, he served under President Ronald Reagan as National Security Affairs Special Advisor. The position required adaptability, flexibility and high-level ingenuity each day. “The crisis of the day dominates your time, and in the White House, we were in constant crisis mode.” Little did he know, after he was hired, it didn’t take long for Ty and the organization to be tested.

NatureBridge created a fire ecology curriculum to educate, inform and transform student perception of fire so that future generations of scientists and stewards would contribute to this vital field. Part of the fire ecology curriculum is to balance people’s lived experience with the complex nature of fire. Though the increase in fires due to climate change-related factors is alarming, fires in and of themselves are part of a healthy forest ecosystem. For the students who learn fire ecology through NatureBridge, reframing their mindset to think about living with fire can be one of the most profound impacts of the program.