New England Aquarium

Ever wonder how we make our exhibits? This is your chance to find out! Volunteers will work alongside our design team in the Charlestown studio to help create some new exhibits. **March 2019 Update: We are in the final stages of exhibit construction! Volunteers will be focusing on cleaning and maintaing the shop and chipping plastic away from coral pieces.** Volunteers will help prepare models, chip away excess, and paint foam structures with a protective sealant to prepare them for display. This work is dirty, dusty, and sealant is industrial-grade, so volunteers should wear clothes they don't mind ruining. Gloves and brushes will be provided. Help is needed with a number of tasks which may vary day to day. To get an idea of what to expect and goals of the project, check out this video assembled by Shannon Leary, Fabrication Studio Intern: https://vimeo.com/300446336?ref=em-share After signing up, please check the "Locations Details" link in your Upcoming Opportunities (in the My Account tab) for instructions, including important phone numbers.

Tree Swallows may be one of the more common birds in North America, but the loss of ideal tree habitat makes finding nesting sites difficult. There is an easy fix, however; these birds commonly nest in boxes! The Mystic River Watershed Association (MyRWA) is installing six tree swallow boxes along wetland habitat in Tobert Macdonald Park. Providing these nesting sites will help bolster this bird's population right here in Boston! *Spots are limited! After signing up, you will be asked to confirm your attendance by filling out a form with MyRWA. Please only sign up if you are 100% certain you can attend!

Moraine Farm, a historic, currently productive farm designed by Frederick Law Olmsted in 1880, is a popular site for weddings, visitors, and wildlife alike. The Trustees own several acres of this property currently in planning stages to increase public access for more visitors to enjoy. You can read more about the Farm at: http://www.thetrustees.org/places-to-visit/northeast/moraine-farm.html Volunteers are needed to help clear a length of fence that has been overtaken by invasive plants. Clearing this fence will give native ones a chance, while ensuring this protective barrier isn't completely overtaken. Note that a car is necessary to get to the site. Exact meeting location details will be provided closer to the event date.

Every spring, piping plovers and other shorebirds return to New England beaches to create nests and rear their young. To better protect these vulnerable birds, State and Nonprofit organizations work together to install fencing to limit trampling and disturbance of these sites. We will be working with the MA DCR to install temporary fencing in the spring so that migratory shorebirds have protected beaches for breeding and nesting throughout the summer. Come prepared to spend a day at the beach learning about barrier beach ecology and shorebird management, while helping with important conservation work! On Saturday, March 30th, volunteers will clean and install fencing at Revere Beach in the morning and Winthrop Beach in the afternoon. You can sign up for one or both locations. Expect to spend some time on fencing installation and some on debris cleanup.

Want to know more about the live blue Service Corps? Through this program, we partner with local environmental organizations to provide episodic volunteer opportunities with a smaller commitment that still has an important impact on our mission! This program was built in flexibility; you only sign up for the service events in which you're interested and for which you have the time. To become a live blue Service Corps member, volunteers are first required to attend a one time, hour long orientation at the Aquarium. During this orientation, you'll learn more about the live blue Service Corps, the kinds of projects you'll be doing, and what to expect. It's also a great chance to meet other volunteers! After attending the orientation you'll be able to sign up for any and all live blue Service Corps projects posted on serve.neaq.org/calendar. [Note that if you are interested in a more committed program, namely those in animal care and education, please visit serve.neaq.org/ClassicCorps to read about the application process]

Join us for Stewardship Saturday on the Boston Harbor Islands! We will be working with the National Park Service to conduct clean-ups, remove invasive species, and complete other beautification projects. Each project takes place on a different island and will involve a different set of work. Tools and gloves will be provided, but be prepared with sturdy shoes, long sleeves and pants to protect from thorns and poison ivy, and clothes you don't mind getting dirty. The boat for these projects leaves precisely at 9am. The departure site varies between projects, so keep an eye on your e-mail for details. Here are some pictures of some of our volunteers at past Stewardship Saturdays!!

As Boston's second largest unfragmented woodland, Allandale Woods is a crucial component of the city's natural areas inventory. Composed primarily of oaks, maples, and pines, Allandale Woods is one of the few relatively pristine secondary growth oak-hickory forests in the city of Boston. Trails run throughout the site leading to various areas of interest including scenic Rock Pond, an extensive Depression-era stone boundary wall, a cattail marsh, intertwining streams that form the Bussey Brook headwaters, underground springs, an historic spring house, and a certified vernal pool. Woodlands like this are in need of constant care to combat invasive species, maintain trails, and restore impacted native habitats. The Service Corps will be involved in a number of projects, including: -Maintenance on trails, including removal of downed limbs and debris -Invasive species removal -Trail-side pruning -Watering new restoration plants Come prepared for some heavy-duty gardening and trail work!

Member Appreciation Night (formerly Dive-In) is a quarter-annual event where NEAq members are invited to attend the Aquarium after hours. At this event, LBSC volunteers will staff a table to sign folks in and help with general set-up, provide directions, and event support as needed. You can also take some time yourself to walk around the Aquarium afterwards. Sunday, April 14th is a Member Preview Event for the new Indo-Pacific Reef exhibit! Volunteers will be helping with registration and crowd control. Stop by the new exhibit while you are here!

Eastern Point in Gloucester is a hotspot for fishing hobbyists. Located at the mouth of Gloucester Harbor, the site is a sanctuary to fish and terrestrial animals alike. Because of the popularity of the site and rip currents, however, the region often collects marine debris, including pounds of derelict fishing gear. If you're looking to spend some more time outside this Earth Day then we have just the event for you! We will be assisting Mass Audbubon's Eastern Point Wildlife Sanctuary in a cleanup of the Gloucester jetty and surrounding area. This will help get this popular fishing spot clean for wildlife and prep it for the upcoming season. Have a look at the volunteers from one of our past Eastern Point Cleanups!

DCR’s Annual Park Serve Day is coming Saturday April 27, 2019! This year, LBSC is joining Friends of Myles Standish to help spruce up the park's facilities, clean and maintain trails, plant flowers, and more! Myles Standish is one of the largest State Forests in eastern Massachusetts, and is home to diverse plants, wildlife, and people. Our cleanup efforts here will improve the area for all! Friends of Myles Standish will be hosting a barbecue after the cleanup, so stick around to enjoy some food and make new friends!

Alewife Reservation, once a part of the Great Swamp that spanned the area from Cambridge to the Mystic River, is one of the most polluted waterways in the Greater Boston Area. Volunteer efforts are vitally important for protecting this green space and working to improve water quality. For this event, we will be removing debris from bike paths, streams, and surrounding woods to prevent plastics and other trash from flowing downstream into the Mystic River. Gloves will be provided, but dress in clothes you don't mind getting wet or dirty. *Note that due to potential water quality concerns, volunteers will not pull debris from the water without proper protection and in ideal weather conditions*

Park Serve Day is an annual state-wide cleanup event that began in 2006. Since its inception, tens of thousands of Massachusetts residents have helped prepare parks and beaches for the summer recreation season. The Neponset River is one of the major waterways that drains into Boston Harbor. Given its proximity to both urban and rural communities, trash and debris of all sorts can find its way into the river and thus into the harbor. In addition, storms and tides often bring derelict fishing gear, construction debris, and even loose floating docks onto shore! Join the live blue Service Corps, the Neponset River Watershed Association, and our partners as we cleanup various sites along the river. Are you a new volunteer or part of a group? You can sign up as a team for this project! An orientation will take place on-site to induct you into the Service Corps. Attendance will allow you to continue volunteering at future events. Please be in touch with Ryan at volunteer@neaq.org if you have a group or guests you would like to bring.