Volunteer Onboarding

Welcome to Camp Monarch! 

Thank you for joining our mission to restore habitats and nurture biodiversity.  Every individual has the power to make a meaningful difference.  Together, we can achieve lasting change.  We'll work to help Monarch populations rebound and stabilize, enrich our natural landscapes with diverse species, and foster a renewed connection with nature that inspires communities to care for the earth.

Understand Our Mission

Understanding the motivation behind our mission is crucial for every volunteer.  By reviewing The Issue and Biodiversity Basics pages you’ll learn about the challenges we face, from declining Monarch populations and habitat loss to dwindling biodiversity. This insight not only equips you to explain our cause to others with clarity and passion, but will hopefully help you feel pride in the meaningful work you do. 

Know Where We're Headed

Knowing where we’re headed is essential to our mission.  We have well-defined short-term actions designed to make a real difference today, but we know there will be challenges and fully expect that we will need to make adjustments along the way.  Our long-term vision guides us through these inevitable challenges and helps make sure we stay on track and  are all moving in the same direction toward a more resilient, biodiverse future.   Learn about Our Vision.

Prepare to Help

Whether you are preparing your own wildlife sanctuary or you are helping educate others, it's important that you understand the steps needed to get there.  We've detailed some of the essential activities in our Learning Center.  In the Growing Guide we have two collections of pages, How To guides with general gardening knowledge and a Wildflowers section with specific information about the plants we are currently focused on to help support Monarch Migration through their primary migration corridor from Mexico to Canada.  Please familiarize yourself with this information.

Ready for Action

Now that you have reviewed this information, you're ready for action!  Depending on your role, your specific next steps may vary, but there are two things everybody can do to help that you can start thinking about.  

One, talk about it.  Maybe the biggest problem we face is that most people do not realize the significance of the issue, the urgency required to address it, or that they can be part of the solution.  Use the information you've learned here to help spread the word.  We are ready to help support anyone that wants to help make a difference.

Two, restore habitat.  A butterfly garden as small as 10' x 10' can provide Monarchs with a much needed oasis and waypoint on their journey.  Every little bit helps.  You will also be more convincing if you practice what you preach.  If you can find a space, start working on your butterfly garden.  Let me know if you have questions or want to discuss your plans.

Thank you!

Thank you for joining us on this journey. Your efforts bring hope, inspire action, and pave the way for a healthier, more vibrant world. 

Homework

If you're able, I highly encourage you to read, or listen to, the book "Nature's Best Hope" and watch the documentary "A Life on Our Planet".  Both of these helped inspire me to take action and eventually found Camp Monarch.  I know you'll find inspiration and motivation in them as well.  They're also great ways to help start the conversation with others.