Participants in the Washington State Naturalist program will complete volunteer hours with one of the following partner organizations across the state. WANAT volunteers should expect to complete volunteering primarily doing education, stewardship, or participatory science. Some administrative volunteering can count toward the 20 required volunteer hours, but the focus should be on naturalist-related activities.
Each partner organization has a different schedule of events. Before applying for this program, please review the volunteer opportunities and calendar for the closest organization to you.
If you are a part of an environmental organization that might be the right fit as WANAT partner, please fill out the partner organization application below.
WANAT Partner Organizations
Benton Conservation District
Benton Conservation District (BCD) operates from West Richland in the Tri-Cities metropolitan area. This organization encourages wise stewardship of all natural resources for residents of Benton County. They do this through multiple programs including the Heritage Garden certification program, Volunteer Stewardship Program, water resource management, wildlife conservation, and the Salmon in the Classroom education program.
Volunteer opportunities
- Salmon in the Classroom volunteering occurs M-F during the school day, including Salmon Summit
- Volunteers support educational stations, assist with student groups, help with event logistics, and contribute to creating a meaningful outdoor learning experience for participating students
- Some events are M-F in the late afternoon and evening.
- Field work volunteering includes: citizen science & monitoring, habitat restoration, native plant seed collection, water stargrass removal
- Educational volunteering is primarily in some of March and most of April.
- Volunteer training usually takes place immediately before events for orientation and briefing
Contact
Berenice Bunker: Education and Outreach Program Assistant
Email: berenice-bunker@bentoncd.org
Dishman Hills Conservancy
Dishman Hills Conservancy (DHC) operates in Spokane in Spokane County. Their mission is to permanently protect the Dishman Hills while connecting people to nature through conservation, education, recreation, and stewardship. The DHC collaborates with local schools and educators to organize educational events in the Dishman Hills, such as Kids in the Hills, as well as collaborating with local schools and summer camps. They also offer a self-guided tour (with an informational map and brochure) of their Enchanted Ravine, available on their Outdoor Resources webpage. Be sure to check out their event calendar for guided hikes as well, led by various DHC staff members and volunteers. Sign up for event notifications: DHC Event Signup
Volunteer opportunities
- Kids in the Hills, a full week of all-day environmental education for youth during the month of May
- Education booth at events in March, April, September. Weekdays and weekends.
- Flexible restoration work on their properties.
- Lead educational hikes on their properties, weekdays and weekends.
- 20–30-minute training takes place the day of or a few days before events like the booth. Kids in the Hills program requires attendance at meetings (1 hour/month) for 3 months prior to the event and provides scripts and practice for working with students.
Contact
Ruth Gifford: Executive Director
Email: ED@DishmanHills.org
Great Peninsula Conservancy (GPC)
Great Peninsula Conservancy (GPC) operates in Bremerton and around Kitsap County. This organization protects land by creating nature preserves that they own, partnering with public agencies to create local parks, and by placing permanent restrictions on private land that help sustain family farms and forests through generations. GPC works in collaboration with community groups, local governments, tribes, and landowners, providing the tools and expertise to preserve forever the special landscapes of the Great Peninsula region. They offer several educational opportunities, including stewardship work parties, habitat protection trainings, and “walk and talks” where topics from wildlife tracking to benthic sampling may be discussed. The GPC focuses on environmental education through their Land Labs program where they reach middle school students from six different Kitsap County school districts.
Volunteer opportunities
- Salmon in the Classroom on weekdays in March. Accompanying field trips during weekdays in April. REQUIRES ADDITIONAL TRAINING BY GPC
- Land Labs on weekdays in January, April/May, June, and October. REQUIRES ADDITIONAL TRAINING BY GPC
- Creekside Guides. REQUIRES ADDITIONAL TRAINING BY GPC. After training, you can do this volunteer activity on your own schedule.
- Work parties involving clean ups, planting, invasive species removal etc. occur every other Saturday for 2-3 hours.
Contact Information
Gabriel Newton: Community Engagement Manager
Email: gabriel@greatpeninsula.org
Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group (HCSEG)
Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group’s (HCSEG) headquarters, known as The Salmon Center, are located in Belfair in North Mason County. HCSEG serves the entire Hood Canal Watershed, striving to deepen the connection between land, people and salmon through research, restoration and education. Their mission is to ensure that wild salmon are once again abundant in the Pacific Northwest. They offer many environmental educational opportunities to youth of all ages throughout the year. This includes school field trips to the Salmon Center to explore the Union River Estuary Preserve, Salmon in the Classroom release events, summer camp programming and more.
Volunteer opportunities
- Tuesday-Friday environmental education programs during school hours.
- Summer Camp programming starts in mid-June and goes through mid-August and takes place during weekdays.
- Volunteers arrive 30-60 minutes prior to the event or field trip for training/overview
- Most school programming takes place from March through early-June.
Contact
Leticia Sosa: Education & Outreach Coordinator
Email: leticia@pnwsalmoncenter.org
Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust
Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust stewards the Mountains to Sound Greenway National Heritage Area, a landscape that covers 100 miles from Seattle to Ellensburg along Interstate-90. Across this 1.5-million-acre landscape they lead collective action to conserve and restore natural lands and wildlife habitat; build and maintain sustainable trails; empower the next generation of environmental changemakers; advocate for public lands; lead a robust volunteer program; and enhance connections to nature for all. Some of their most prominent programs include the Trail Ambassadors and Environmental Education.
Volunteer opportunities
- Multiple stewardship work parties almost every Saturday.
- Many of these opportunities require a car to get to, but some events can be accessed through public transportation.
- Trail ambassador volunteer opportunities most Saturdays and Sundays during spring/summer.
- You will need to drive or get a ride to trailheads.
- Environmental education program runs on weekdays during the school day
- Fall season: mid-September through mid-November.
- Spring season: late March through early June.
- Opportunities are offered year-round, but November to January is a slower season.
- Habitat restoration and trail event volunteers receive training (tool safety, plant ID) at the start of the event. Anyone wanting to support an educational field trip will get an orientation ahead of time so they feel prepared to guide students in activities.
Contact
Swan Phongwarinr: Volunteer Coordinator
Email: swan.phongwarinr@mtsgreenway.org
Skagit Land Trust
Skagit Land Trust supports conservation of wildlife habitat, agricultural and forest lands, scenic open space, wetlands, and shorelines in Skagit County. Based in Mount Vernon, Skagit Land Trust protects over 11,000 acres of land and habitat. They strive to engage community members to be committed stewards to the long-term sustainability of viable resources and nature-based economies, in turn uplifting the health and quality of life for Skagit County Residents. They manage several volunteer programs, including maintenance and restoration work, assisting with special events, educating youth, presenting to community groups, community science programs focused on heron and amphibian monitoring, and developing media to share the natural wonders of Skagit.
Volunteer opportunities
- Utopia Field Trips in May for 2nd graders taking place on weekdays.
- Host stewardship work parties every month, all year.
- Community science heron monitoring opportunities are mostly from April to September (may require more than 20 hours of volunteering).
- Support for adult and youth field trips in summer and fall.
- Support youth programming to get kids outdoors with Mount Vernon High School, the Boys & Girls Club, and the Kulshan Creek Neighborhood from April to December.
- May and June have the most youth education opportunities
- Half day of training required prior to May field trips for youth. The heron monitoring program requires several hours of training online in February/March. Work parties do not require additional training.
Contact
Stacy Dahl: Volunteer & Education Programs Coordinator
Email: stacyd@skagitlandtrust.org
Spokane County Water Resources
Spokane County Water Resources provides K-12 and beyond water education at the County Wastewater Reclamation facility, Doris Morrison Learning Center at Saltese Flats Wetland, in-classroom visits, community outreach events or other off-site locations. They teach about the precious local water resources including the Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer and the Spokane River watershed as well as stormwater, wastewater and natural water cycles. Their activities are informative, hands-on and interactive for learners. They also align with education standards and help students learn about human impacts on water as well as appreciating and conserving it for generations to come.
Volunteer opportunities
- Provide environmental education to youth who visit the Doris Morrison Learning Center.
- Field trips are hosted 4-5 days a week during April and May and periodically in September, October and June.
- Other opportunities include:
- Outdoor Water Education Support (K-College)
- Guiding Bird Walks (all ages)
- Outreach at Community Events (all ages)
- Special Events Support (World Water Day, WRC Open House, Community Tours etc.)
- Saltese Wetland Restoration Volunteer
- DMLC Trail Ranger: maintaining clean trails and providing education materials to other hikers
- Education volunteering requires a 20-minute risk management training video. Optional hands-on trainings are also offered.
- Most opportunities are in late March to mid-June
Contact Information
RaeAnn Nolander: Water Resources Education Specialist
Email: RNOLANDER@SpokaneCounty.gov
Wenatchee River Institute
Wenatchee River Institute (WRI) is based out of Leavenworth in Chelan County. They aim to connect people, communities, and the natural world through environmental education at their Leavenworth campus and throughout north central Washington. They lead youth programs including field days about watersheds, wildlife, native habitats etc. for K-6 during the school year, year-round camps for elementary and middle school students, and a traveling naturalist program that visits local elementary schools. Additionally, they offer programs to the wider community such as workshops on things like foraging, geology etc., seasonal nature walks, a community garden, and their annual Bird Fest.
Volunteer opportunities
- 24 programs days with spots for 4 volunteers
- 22 program days with spots for 2 volunteers.
- All opportunities will be Monday-Friday and during the school day
- Opportunities in September, October, April, May, early June (ends when the school year ends)
Contact
Rebecca Ryan: Education Director
Email: rryan@wenatcheeriverinstitute.org
Whidbey Camano Land Trust
Whidbey Camano Land Trust is based in Greenbank, WA, at the center of Whidbey Island. This organization strives to protect, restore, and improve accessibility to forests, shorelines, farmlands and other habitats in Island County and the Salish Sea, for ecological and community resilience and the benefit of all living things. They connect people of all ages to the natural world through hands-on experiences, guided learning, and community partnerships in their Education and Outreach volunteer program. Connecting Kids to Conservation brings local students to natural areas on the Land Trust’s properties, which are stewarded by volunteer work parties.
Volunteer opportunities
- Weekly stewardship work parties during weekdays.
- Adult and youth education volunteering during weekdays.
- Flexible, everyday opportunities for site stewards (on a specific conservation easement).
- Most activities are offered between the months of February and November.
- Some volunteer activities that involve equipment requires safety training. The training is done on-site and varies from a few minutes to an hour depending on the tool.
Contact
Jessica Larson: Stewardship Director
Email: jessica@wclt.org
Secondary Partners
These are partners found in communities with our other partner organizations with whom volunteer hours can count towards your 20-hour requirement.
Spokane Conservation District
The Spokane Conservation District (SCD) is a locally led agency dedicated to protecting and enhancing the natural resources of Spokane County through education, technical assistance, and community partnerships. In 2017, SCD transformed a 50-acre former industrial site into The Quarry—a thriving conservation campus and community hub where education, innovation, and sustainability converge. Volunteer opportunities include serving as a trail docent to share conservation information with visitors, leading seasonal hikes, and supporting campus clean-up and restoration events, primarily from spring through summer.
Volunteer opportunities
- Opportunities on weekdays, weeknights, and weekends
- Most opportunities offered from April to September
Contact Information
Hilary Gonzalez: Community Engagement Manager
Email: hilary@spokanecd.org