Calendar of Events

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#AvlQuaranclean   1) AGW Office @ 2 Sulphur Spring Road 2) AGW Office @ 318 Riverside Drive 3) The HOP @ 640 Merrimon Ave #103 4) Sutton / Dezio Law @ 70 Mt Pisgah Hwy (on their back porch) 5) Buncombe County Sports Park Entrance @ 58 Apac Drive Our cleanup events may have been canceled, but there’s still trash to collect as part of Avl Quaranclean! Our Cleanup Supply Stations have been filled and supplies are ready for pick up if you find yourself wanting to get out of the house & motivated to improve our community. Each station has been filled with supply packs— in one roll you will find: 2 trash bags, 1 safety vest and 1 pair of gloves. There are further instructions at each station. Make sure to post videos and pictures and tag #AvlQuaranclean so that we can all see the incredible job you’re doing. And, as always, please stay safe and healthy.

While staying at home and practicing safe social distancing are the best courses of action to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, it doesn’t mean we have to miss out on cultural landmarks around the world. Thanks to the Google Arts & Culture Project, from New York City’s Museum of Modern Art, to Rijks Museum in Amsterdam, here are 6 museums you can tour right now from home.

MoMA, New York

The first museum founded to showcase modern art, The Museum of Modern Art in New York has been doing just that for more than 90 years. From Picasso to Van Gogh, the MoMA is home to incredible pieces of history from the world of contemporary art.

Museo Frida Kahlo, Mexico City

Tour La Casa Azul, the former home of world-renowned artist Frida Kahlo – and current home to the museum honoring her life and legacy. Visible here are not only works from Kahlo, but also numerous personal belongings including her clothing and a body cast she famously painted while ill.

Musée d’Orsay, Paris

On display at the Musée d’Orsay, you’ll discover famous works from French artists who lived and worked between 1848 and 1914. Paintings by Monet, Gauguin, and Cézanne – among others – are featured on this Parisienne art tour.

La Galleria Nazionale, Rome

With just about 500 of its approximately 20,000 artworks digitized for this virtual tour, La Galleria Nazionale in Rome features everything from antiquities to seminal pieces representing the Futurist and Surrealist art movements.

Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe

Honoring one of America’s preeminent artists, the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum settled in the same New Mexican desert she once called home. It is dedicated to enriching visitors in the incredible legacy left by the late artist with its collection of her paintings; of which 30 can be viewed online.

Rijks Museum, Amsterdam

One of the more thoroughly digitized experiences is Rijks Museum in Amsterdam. With over 145,000 works available to view virtually, enjoy incredible works from artists like Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Verspronck, to name a few.

Join over one hundred students on a quest to deepen understanding of the natural sciences through the Blue Ridge Naturalist Certificate of Merit. The program offers adult learners a comprehensive curriculum of study about the natural world of Western North Carolina. Classes meet year round and students work to complete 240 hours in core courses on ecology, botany, geology and plant identification as well as electives on animals, lichens, insects and more. View current class offerings for credit in the Blue Ridge Naturalist program here. All students must complete and present a final project prior to graduation.

To begin your program complete an application and return it to the Education Center along with a a one-time, non-refundable $55 application fee.

If you are reading this, you are most likely a landowner in western North Carolina who is concerned about the future of your land along the French Broad River or one of its tributaries. Perhaps you have a farm or cattle ranch that has been in your family for generations, or maybe you recently purchased your second home in an idyllic rural area. Whatever your situation, many North Carolina landowners face the same dilemma: how do you ensure that the land you love looks the way that it does forever?

Conserving Land

Protected Properties

Parks, Greenways & Blueways

Diverse, intact forests are literally the greenest infrastructure on Earth, vital to our health and survival. As we commemorate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, protecting forests is truly the greenest investment we can make for our future. Yet environmental policy solutions put forward in America today largely fail to recognize protecting existing, natural forests as a “green infrastructure” priority.

Read the full piece on why we need to prioritize protecting and restoring forests as part of the upcoming Green Stimulus and Infrastructure bailout.

The US is the world’s largest consumer and producer of wood products. Every year, millions of acres of forests are logged, damaging the greenest life-supporting infrastructure on Earth, releasing vast amounts of unreported carbon into the atmosphere, and limiting forests’ ability to remove carbon and provide natural protections against intensifying flooding and droughts.

The degradation of forests along with the pollution of our air and water has left communities in a degraded economic condition, with disproportionately high poverty and unemployment rates. These same communities are bearing the brunt of the economic impacts of extreme weather events linked to climate change. And now, they are at greater risk of dying prematurely if they get the Coronavirus due to high levels of industrial pollution which have been linked to higher mortality rates.

Forests should be prioritized in a way that reduces poverty and increases well-being. The world’s leading scientists recently revealed that restoring degraded land between now and 2030 could generate $9 trillion in environmental benefits, such as clean water, clean air, and increased wildlife.

It’s not too late for “green” policy initiatives to embrace letting existing natural forests grow to reach their full biological potential. No batteries, no mining, no transportation, no chemicals, and no factories are required. Protecting forests is truly the greenest investment we can make for our future.

Invest in our green future today. Make a special Earth Day gift to protect the forests and people of the South.

For our forests,

Amid the coronavirus outbreak, Atlanta’s Center for Puppetry Arts is closed, but as it notes on its homepage, it’s “digitally open.”

That includes livestreaming performances and an expanded lineup of digital learning activities and workshops, which are all available for free online.

https://www.ajc.com/lifestyles/center-for-puppetry-arts-livestream-performances-for-free/KuBGQBiqLKxYs2l0WORhWO/?fbclid=IwAR17Ds6ftqLlyHEMda-rNXz3a9PHlERNkHuILTYJON58mQ005dZtC-DkUSc

Ready, set, snap! Connect with fellow nature lovers from around the world in the 2020 City Nature Challenge, a worldwide bioblitz held April 24 – 27 that encourages participants to get outside and celebrate their region’s biodiversity by taking photos of plants and animals found in their communities and uploading them to iNaturalist. This year, the Challenge will not be a regional competition but rather a four-day global citizen-science collaboration that embraces the healing power of nature and supports scientists worldwide. The Arboretum will be serving as the lead institution for the Western North Carolina region and will be offering a variety of online programming for adults and youth in conjunction with the Challenge.

How to Participate

1.) Download iNaturalist, a free mobile application on your iPhone or Android device.

2.) From April 24 – 27, get outside in your backyard or a nearby natural area (while practicing social distancing) and take pictures of wildlife, including plants and animals (no pets, please!).

3.) Upload your photos to iNaturalist and tell your friends to join in on the fun! **Children 12 & under can submit their photos via ecoexplore.net.

Kennedy Center Education Artist-in-Residence at Home

Around the world, people of all ages have joined Mo Willems in his studio for weekday LUNCH DOODLES. The three-week run, all 15 episodes and their downloadable activities, are archived below. Let the doodling continue! Please tag your artwork on social media with #MoLunchDoodles so that we can all see it!

We applaud the many other authors and illustrators who are sharing stories and leading activities online. For a short list of people to visit, click here. [Please note that this list is just a small number of the many wonderful artists who are sharing their talent and insights at this time. So, grab a favorite grown-up and look around the internet to discover authors/illustrators who are new to you!]

You can always visit Kennedy Center @ Home to enjoy free videos of extraordinary live and on-demand performances. Our KC Ed Now site also has fun educational activities to do at home.

Mo Willems and the Kennedy Center thank YOU for sharing your creativity with us! This pandemic is going to require some time to get better.  It is also going to require lots of kindness, lots of empathy, and lots and lots of doodles. Doodle on, fellow ART MAKERS!

NEW! North Carolina BioBlitz Patch

For adults looking for an extra challenge this spring, the Arboretum has created the North Carolina BioBlitz patch in conjunction with the 2020 City Nature Challenge (April 24 – 27). To earn the patch, participants will need to create a free iNaturalist account; attend the “Intro to iNaturalist” class on April 9 (or watch the recorded version later); make 50 nature observations during the City Nature Challenge; and help identify 50 species during the Challenge’s “identifying” stage (April 28 – May 3). Students in the Arboretum’s Blue Ridge Naturalist and Blue Ridge Eco-Gardener certificate programs can earn three elective credits if they complete the North Carolina BioBlitz program and one credit if they only take the “Into to iNaturalist” class.

Healthy Rivers equal Healthy Communities. RiverLink’s Watershed Resources program works to improve water quality in the French Broad River and its tributaries. These waterways support critical wildlife habitat for many species, such as the hellbender salamander and rainbow trout. Our local economies thrive on water-based recreational tourism. The French Broad River watershed also provides drinking water for many communities. These things are true only if the water is clean. Our Watershed Resources program uses a combination of initiatives, including on the ground projects and community outreach to improve and protect water quality.

Stream Restorations

Stormwater Control

WaterRICH, Water Conservation Program

Watershed Planning

Name That Creek

Alum Cave At-Home Adventure is a Virtual Fundraising Hike on one of Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s most iconic trails. Although the trail will look different for everyone, we’re all going the distance together – 4.6 miles for a roundtrip hike to Alum Cave or 10 miles up to the top of Mount Le Conte and down via Alum Cave Trail. Find your own trail. It could be your yard, your neighborhood or a treadmill in your basement. If a hike isn’t your thing, just choose the Park Bench option! Anyone can join us in solidarity to raise funds for Great Smoky Mountains National Park from the comfort and safety of your own home. Here’s how it works: 1. Register to virtually hike at AlumCaveAtHome.org, and personalize your fundraising page. 2. Ask your family, friends, and coworkers to support you by making a tax-deductible donation to Friends of the Smokies through your personal fundraising page. 3. You have until June 6, 2020 to fundraise and complete your virtual hike, then you will receive your hike swag, including a t-shirt and finishers medal, in the mail! Over the last few weeks, we’ve become pros at staying home and practicing social distancing. As we take care of ourselves and each other, we hope you’ll also help us take care of the Smokies. The park is closed for the safety of visitors and staff, but critical conservation projects still need funding. It’s up to us to preserve the park for generations to come so we hope you’ll join us.

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#AvlQuaranclean   1) AGW Office @ 2 Sulphur Spring Road 2) AGW Office @ 318 Riverside Drive 3) The HOP @ 640 Merrimon Ave #103 4) Sutton / Dezio Law @ 70 Mt Pisgah Hwy (on their back porch) 5) Buncombe County Sports Park Entrance @ 58 Apac Drive Our cleanup events may have been canceled, but there’s still trash to collect as part of Avl Quaranclean! Our Cleanup Supply Stations have been filled and supplies are ready for pick up if you find yourself wanting to get out of the house & motivated to improve our community. Each station has been filled with supply packs— in one roll you will find: 2 trash bags, 1 safety vest and 1 pair of gloves. There are further instructions at each station. Make sure to post videos and pictures and tag #AvlQuaranclean so that we can all see the incredible job you’re doing. And, as always, please stay safe and healthy.

While staying at home and practicing safe social distancing are the best courses of action to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, it doesn’t mean we have to miss out on cultural landmarks around the world. Thanks to the Google Arts & Culture Project, from New York City’s Museum of Modern Art, to Rijks Museum in Amsterdam, here are 6 museums you can tour right now from home.

MoMA, New York

The first museum founded to showcase modern art, The Museum of Modern Art in New York has been doing just that for more than 90 years. From Picasso to Van Gogh, the MoMA is home to incredible pieces of history from the world of contemporary art.

Museo Frida Kahlo, Mexico City

Tour La Casa Azul, the former home of world-renowned artist Frida Kahlo – and current home to the museum honoring her life and legacy. Visible here are not only works from Kahlo, but also numerous personal belongings including her clothing and a body cast she famously painted while ill.

Musée d’Orsay, Paris

On display at the Musée d’Orsay, you’ll discover famous works from French artists who lived and worked between 1848 and 1914. Paintings by Monet, Gauguin, and Cézanne – among others – are featured on this Parisienne art tour.

La Galleria Nazionale, Rome

With just about 500 of its approximately 20,000 artworks digitized for this virtual tour, La Galleria Nazionale in Rome features everything from antiquities to seminal pieces representing the Futurist and Surrealist art movements.

Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe

Honoring one of America’s preeminent artists, the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum settled in the same New Mexican desert she once called home. It is dedicated to enriching visitors in the incredible legacy left by the late artist with its collection of her paintings; of which 30 can be viewed online.

Rijks Museum, Amsterdam

One of the more thoroughly digitized experiences is Rijks Museum in Amsterdam. With over 145,000 works available to view virtually, enjoy incredible works from artists like Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Verspronck, to name a few.

Welcome to Art in the Time of COVID– an online artwork exhibition by Pink Dog Creative artists. The work in this exhibition is either related to the COVID-19 pandemic, made during the time of Stay-At-Home orders, or is uplifting or otherwise helpful during this challenging time. Most of the work is for sale. Our artists are hard at work and appreciate your support during this difficult time. Check out our artist pages and please get in touch with artists directly for information on work, online classes, & commissions! Work will continue to be added during the quarantine, so please check back for updates.

Karen Keil Brown, Where Will Our Path Take Us, Oil on canvas, 14 x 11″

Join over one hundred students on a quest to deepen understanding of the natural sciences through the Blue Ridge Naturalist Certificate of Merit. The program offers adult learners a comprehensive curriculum of study about the natural world of Western North Carolina. Classes meet year round and students work to complete 240 hours in core courses on ecology, botany, geology and plant identification as well as electives on animals, lichens, insects and more. View current class offerings for credit in the Blue Ridge Naturalist program here. All students must complete and present a final project prior to graduation.

To begin your program complete an application and return it to the Education Center along with a a one-time, non-refundable $55 application fee.

Diverse, intact forests are literally the greenest infrastructure on Earth, vital to our health and survival. As we commemorate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, protecting forests is truly the greenest investment we can make for our future. Yet environmental policy solutions put forward in America today largely fail to recognize protecting existing, natural forests as a “green infrastructure” priority.

Read the full piece on why we need to prioritize protecting and restoring forests as part of the upcoming Green Stimulus and Infrastructure bailout.

The US is the world’s largest consumer and producer of wood products. Every year, millions of acres of forests are logged, damaging the greenest life-supporting infrastructure on Earth, releasing vast amounts of unreported carbon into the atmosphere, and limiting forests’ ability to remove carbon and provide natural protections against intensifying flooding and droughts.

The degradation of forests along with the pollution of our air and water has left communities in a degraded economic condition, with disproportionately high poverty and unemployment rates. These same communities are bearing the brunt of the economic impacts of extreme weather events linked to climate change. And now, they are at greater risk of dying prematurely if they get the Coronavirus due to high levels of industrial pollution which have been linked to higher mortality rates.

Forests should be prioritized in a way that reduces poverty and increases well-being. The world’s leading scientists recently revealed that restoring degraded land between now and 2030 could generate $9 trillion in environmental benefits, such as clean water, clean air, and increased wildlife.

It’s not too late for “green” policy initiatives to embrace letting existing natural forests grow to reach their full biological potential. No batteries, no mining, no transportation, no chemicals, and no factories are required. Protecting forests is truly the greenest investment we can make for our future.

Invest in our green future today. Make a special Earth Day gift to protect the forests and people of the South.

For our forests,

Earn your Permaculture Design Certificate and transform your life! This class meets one 3-day weekend a month, from April-November 2020, at the Wild Abundance campus based near Asheville, NC.

Are you ready to…

– Move toward the lifestyle that you yearn for in your bones?
– Dive deep into the world of permaculture and sustainable living?
– Meet like-minded people who share your passion for living close to the Earth?
– Become initiated into the world of Earthskills?
– Learn how to create a food forest?
– Take time out of your life to feed your connection with the Earth?
– Learn to become more self-sufficient?

Then head on over to our website to learn more about our Earthskills & Permaculture Immersion: https://www.wildabundance.net/classes/earthskills-and-permaculture/

Amid the coronavirus outbreak, Atlanta’s Center for Puppetry Arts is closed, but as it notes on its homepage, it’s “digitally open.”

That includes livestreaming performances and an expanded lineup of digital learning activities and workshops, which are all available for free online.

https://www.ajc.com/lifestyles/center-for-puppetry-arts-livestream-performances-for-free/KuBGQBiqLKxYs2l0WORhWO/?fbclid=IwAR17Ds6ftqLlyHEMda-rNXz3a9PHlERNkHuILTYJON58mQ005dZtC-DkUSc

To help prevent the spread of COVID-19 (novel coronavirus), Grandfather Mountain will close until further notice, effective Sunday, March 15. The closure means the park will prohibit public access, including from the main entrance gate and hiking trails.

In addition, all special events and programs scheduled through Memorial Day have been canceled or postponed.

Kennedy Center Education Artist-in-Residence at Home

Around the world, people of all ages have joined Mo Willems in his studio for weekday LUNCH DOODLES. The three-week run, all 15 episodes and their downloadable activities, are archived below. Let the doodling continue! Please tag your artwork on social media with #MoLunchDoodles so that we can all see it!

We applaud the many other authors and illustrators who are sharing stories and leading activities online. For a short list of people to visit, click here. [Please note that this list is just a small number of the many wonderful artists who are sharing their talent and insights at this time. So, grab a favorite grown-up and look around the internet to discover authors/illustrators who are new to you!]

You can always visit Kennedy Center @ Home to enjoy free videos of extraordinary live and on-demand performances. Our KC Ed Now site also has fun educational activities to do at home.

Mo Willems and the Kennedy Center thank YOU for sharing your creativity with us! This pandemic is going to require some time to get better.  It is also going to require lots of kindness, lots of empathy, and lots and lots of doodles. Doodle on, fellow ART MAKERS!

WELCOME TO THE FIRST-EVER NATIONAL ARTS ACTION DIGITAL SUMMIT!

Designed to bring advocates the latest updates in federal arts policy, compelling up-to-the-minute data, and successful advocacy techniques, the National Arts Action Digital Summit is the best way to prepare yourself to make key asks of your federal elected officials and to learn how to be the best arts advocate you can be.

Amid the health crisis of COVID-19 and wanting to prioritize the health and safety of our attendees, we made the difficult decision to cancel the traditional in-person gathering of the National Arts Action Summit originally planned for the end of March. Now we are delighted to bring advocates a brand-new experience to engage with one another digitally, and to have an entire suite of arts policy webinars at your fingertips!

Advocating for the arts is more important now than ever, and we’re excited to present over a dozen plenary and issue-specific breakout session webinars live from April 27 – May 1, 2020. Over these five days, you’ll gain a depth of knowledge from policy experts at Americans for the Arts and many of our National Partners. You’ll also be able to watch a recording of these webinars whenever you like to refresh your understanding of the issues.

NEW! North Carolina BioBlitz Patch

For adults looking for an extra challenge this spring, the Arboretum has created the North Carolina BioBlitz patch in conjunction with the 2020 City Nature Challenge (April 24 – 27). To earn the patch, participants will need to create a free iNaturalist account; attend the “Intro to iNaturalist” class on April 9 (or watch the recorded version later); make 50 nature observations during the City Nature Challenge; and help identify 50 species during the Challenge’s “identifying” stage (April 28 – May 3). Students in the Arboretum’s Blue Ridge Naturalist and Blue Ridge Eco-Gardener certificate programs can earn three elective credits if they complete the North Carolina BioBlitz program and one credit if they only take the “Into to iNaturalist” class.

Healthy Rivers equal Healthy Communities. RiverLink’s Watershed Resources program works to improve water quality in the French Broad River and its tributaries. These waterways support critical wildlife habitat for many species, such as the hellbender salamander and rainbow trout. Our local economies thrive on water-based recreational tourism. The French Broad River watershed also provides drinking water for many communities. These things are true only if the water is clean. Our Watershed Resources program uses a combination of initiatives, including on the ground projects and community outreach to improve and protect water quality.

Stream Restorations

Stormwater Control

WaterRICH, Water Conservation Program

Watershed Planning

Name That Creek

 

A scenic, wild, team adventure in the mountains of Western North Carolina, the Smoky Mountain Relay is an adventure that is not to be missed. This course will challenge you and your friends with tough legs and reward you with stories to last a lifetime. Choose from the original 200-mile course or the shorter 135-mile course with your team of 8 or 12 participants.

The 200-mile course begins at the Pink Beds Trail Loop picnic area just outside of Brevard, NC In the Pisgah National Forest. Teams of 12 or “ultra” teams of 6 make their way through 36 legs and finish at Nantahala Outdoor Center.

The 135-mile course begins at the Jackson County Recreation Complex in Cullowhee, NC. Teams of 8 or “ultra” teams of 4 make their way through 24 legs and also finish at Nantahala Outdoor Center.

Each relay team member will run between 3 and 6 legs of varying lengths and difficulty and will cover an average total distance of 18-20 miles of the race.

Race Information & Registration: Please visit Smoky Mountain Relay’s webpage for more information on registration and pricing. Registration is now open for 2020!

Lodging & Activities

Racers, family and friends receive 10% off lodging, whitewater rafting, ziplining and mountain biking at our Nantahala Campus April 24th – April 26th using code using code SMR2020. Book your lodging while it lasts at one of our overnight options including: platform tents, the Basecamp bunk house, luxury Cabins and the Dogwood Motel. Learn more about our lodging options here.

Alum Cave At-Home Adventure is a Virtual Fundraising Hike on one of Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s most iconic trails. Although the trail will look different for everyone, we’re all going the distance together – 4.6 miles for a roundtrip hike to Alum Cave or 10 miles up to the top of Mount Le Conte and down via Alum Cave Trail. Find your own trail. It could be your yard, your neighborhood or a treadmill in your basement. If a hike isn’t your thing, just choose the Park Bench option! Anyone can join us in solidarity to raise funds for Great Smoky Mountains National Park from the comfort and safety of your own home. Here’s how it works: 1. Register to virtually hike at AlumCaveAtHome.org, and personalize your fundraising page. 2. Ask your family, friends, and coworkers to support you by making a tax-deductible donation to Friends of the Smokies through your personal fundraising page. 3. You have until June 6, 2020 to fundraise and complete your virtual hike, then you will receive your hike swag, including a t-shirt and finishers medal, in the mail! Over the last few weeks, we’ve become pros at staying home and practicing social distancing. As we take care of ourselves and each other, we hope you’ll also help us take care of the Smokies. The park is closed for the safety of visitors and staff, but critical conservation projects still need funding. It’s up to us to preserve the park for generations to come so we hope you’ll join us.