A Community-Based Natural Resources Volunteer Program

Our Mission

Mushroom Walk 2022
Explore Park Mushroom Walk – 9/2022

To develop a well-informed corps of volunteers to provide education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities for the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Goals

  • Natural resource service – To provide, promote and fulfill volunteer service while recognizing and utilizing sound natural resource management, enhancement and conservation practices in accordance with the sponsors’ and program’s mission.
  • Enhancement of public understanding through education and outreach – To enhance existing natural resources education and outreach activities by providing natural resources and interpretive training at the local level, thereby developing a supply of dedicated and informed volunteers.
  • Develop a volunteer network – To develop a Virginia Master Naturalist volunteer network that can be self-sufficient.
Fish Monitoring Field Trip – 6/2022

A Virginia Master Naturalist knows…

  • All aspects of his or her role as a Virginia Master Naturalist, the mission and objectives of the program, and the guidelines for participation
  • What a naturalist is and does and the significance of naturalists and natural history
  • Biogeography of Virginia
  • Ecology (basic concepts)
  • Geology (basic concepts
  • Resource management (basic principles)
  • Some native flora and fauna in the region
  • Process of science
  • Roles of Virginia state agencies in the management and conservation of natural resources

A Virginia Master Naturalist can…

  • Use a key to identify organisms
  • Use a field guide
  • Share knowledge with others
  • Make and record observations in nature
  • Recognize when he or she does not know the answer to a question, but be able to seek out answers from people, books, or other reliable resources

Get Involved

  • Follow us on Facebook for updates on events and training classes
  • Join Roanoke Valley Master Naturalists