2024 Olympic Student of the Year: Ames Black O'Neal
At NatureBridge, we celebrate the stewards of today and foster the development of the stewards of tomorrow, working to inspire environmental stewardship in all our participants. Our goal is to motivate our students to be changemakers in their communities and for our planet.
Each year, NatureBridge honors a student who has demonstrated leadership, growth and a commitment to protecting our natural world as a result of their participation in an environmental science program at our Olympic campus. This year’s honoree will be recognized and will speak at the 10th anniversary of Evening on the Lake, which will be held on Friday, October 25 in Seattle.
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."
Ames’ journey with NatureBridge showcases the transformative power of hands-on learning and exploration. From rare wildlife sightings to personal growth, his experience was filled with awe, discovery, and meaningful encounters. We can’t wait to see where Ames’ love for nature will take him next!
Tell us a little about yourself. Why were you excited to attend NatureBridge? #
I live in Portland, Oregon and attend Sunnyside Environmental School. I’m an avid reader who is drawn to books about nature and will watch any documentary narrated by David Attenbourogh in a heartbeat. I was pumped when I learned that my seventh grade class would go on a four-night trip to the NatureBridge location in Olympic National Park, even though to be honest, I didn’t know much about the park or what the week would be like.
What were some of the things you learned while at NatureBridge? #
I attend a school whose curriculum focuses on science, and I am a bit of a nature nut in general. So I was a little surprised by how much I learned at NatureBridge. I knew about oceanic plankton, but I had no idea that plankton resided in lakes! I didn’t know that the reason Lake Crescent has such clear water was because of the lack of nutrients! And I didn’t know how much I would enjoy the hands-on experiments, such as replicating ocean acidification through Alka-Seltzer and listening underwater with a hydrophone. There are things I learned at NatureBridge that I still think about—and tell other people.
What was your biggest takeaway from your NatureBridge experience? #
My experience at NatureBridge was amazing. It was informative and fun—a perfect blend of learning and getting to goof off with my classmates. It was powerful to be in such a beautiful environment and to be immersed in what we were discussing. Learning is so much more impactful when you are surrounded by the subject matter. We could see what we were talking about, and watch it happen in real time. I’m not actually sure I totally understand why it makes such a difference to see a creek flowing into a lake while talking about watersheds, but it does. Or why dropping a rope with a disc into Lake Crescent to see how deep it is versus just being told the number matters, but it does. It just does...
I can’t wait to hear all about this year’s students' adventures and memories as they embark on the same trip that I took. And while they will have their own stories to tell, I know that they will be just as incredible.
Stories
Fall Reflections from NatureBridge Yosemite
As an environmental science educator, I spend a lot of time teaching about nature, but this season I’ve been finding that as it turns out, nature has a lot to teach us, too. Sometimes I can let the trees, the meadow, and the lichen teach for me. They show us how to respect each other’s boundaries, how to celebrate differences, how to work together, and how to lean on each other’s strengths in order to exist in a new place. These lessons felt incredibly relevant to me heading into the first week of November, a notoriously busy time at NatureBridge Yosemite. I wanted to focus on messages of kindness and inclusivity with my students, I wanted them to feel a sense of belonging in this new space, and I also hoped that they would share those messages with others.
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.
"Science became fun" at NatureBridge for Alum Laura Lomeli Russert
Laura Lomeli Russert is a NatureBridge alum who grew up in Groveland, CA and now calls Washington, D.C. home. Laura’s journey with NatureBridge began when she attended the Golden Gate campus as a young student with her class from Tenaya Elementary. Laura credits NatureBridge with shaping not only her love for nature but also her passion for education and science. "Science became fun,” she recalls. “You weren’t learning from a textbook anymore, and it became so much more real." Her hands-on, scientific experiences at NatureBridge laid the foundation for her eventual pursuit of a Ph.D. in psychology. “I feel like I owe a lot to NatureBridge."