2018 Yosemite Alcoa Scholars are going to Olympic!
Each year, our two groups of Alcoa Scholars explore some of the most beautiful public lands in the U.S. Typically, our Scholars go to Shenandoah National Park and Yosemite National Park, discovering the landscapes of each respective park over the summer.
This year, however, there has been a change of plans for our Yosemite Scholars. Worsening air quality conditions in Yosemite related to the nearby Ferguson Fire have led us to open the doors for our Alcoa Scholars in Olympic National Park.
About Olympic National Park #
Located on the Northwest coast of Washington state, Olympic National Park encompasses nearly one million acres, protects a vast wilderness, thousands of years of human history and several distinct ecosystems, including glacier-capped mountains, old-growth temperate rain forests and over 70 miles of wild coastline.
Our campus is located on the edge of Lake Crescent, a beautiful body of water that is home to a rich history. Students stay in historic cabins, immersed in the hundred-year culture of what was once the Rosemary Inn (which housed prominent figures in its day such as President Franklin D. Roosevelt!).
Students engage in strenuous hikes deep in the forest to Mt. Storm King and go canoeing on the lake, learning more about endemic species as well as the lake’s dark history.
Olympic National Park is also home to the largest watershed restoration project in U.S. history. The Elwha River dams were constructed in the early 1900s, and for over a century disrupted the web of ecological and cultural connections in the Elwha Valley.
In 1992, Congress passed legislation to remove the dams and restore the altered ecosystem. Since removal of the dams in 2014, there has been a revival of a slowly recovering river. The river is now the site of a fascinating story of rebirth and is still in process of growth and improvement.
This week, our Scholars will be able to explore all of these amazing places firsthand. Stay tuned for more from our class of 2018 Olympic Alcoa Scholars!
Stories
An Incredible 10th Anniversary of Evening on the Lake
On October 25, the Amazon Meeting Center in downtown Seattle buzzed with celebratory energy as over 300 NatureBridge guests and supporters gathered for the 10th anniversary of "Evening on the Lake," our signature Pacific Northwest fundraising event for our Olympic campus.
2024 Olympic Student of the Year: Ames Black O'Neal
We are thrilled to announce our 2024 Olympic Student of the Year: eighth grader Ames Black O'Neal.
Ames participated in a NatureBridge program with his seventh grade class from Portland, OR at our Olympic campus in spring 2024. As a self-described "nature nut," Ames was surprised by how much he learned at NatureBridge and how meaningful he found the hands-on, immersive experience to be. As he later reflected, "Learning is so much more impactful when you are surrounded by the subject matter."
In Memoriam: Bill Anders, Visionary Leader and Co-Founder of Yosemite Institute
Earlier this year, we mourned the loss of William “Bill” Anders, a true environmental champion and visionary leader whose impact resonated deeply for NatureBridge and society at large.
As a member of the historic Apollo 8 mission in 1968, Bill captured the iconic “Earthrise” photo—a stunning image of our small, delicate planet rising over the moon’s horizon. Reflecting on this moment, he remarked, “We came all this way to explore the Moon, and the most important thing is that we discovered the Earth.”