Nicodemus Wilderness Project -- Global Registry of Apprentice Ecologists

Weeks ago, I went to science camp as a volunteer camp counselor at the beautiful Camp Campbell . The weather was perfect, sunny with a couple of clouds to shape the clear blue sky. My friends and I settled comfortably into our cabins and the week started. Everything was amazing that the camp, to breath in that unpolluted mountain air, and to see the squirrels once again climbing trees and the birds chirping lively.

During our first break, Alisa, Hannah, and I decided to explore the forest to see if we could discover anything interesting. What we saw wasn't expected. A 100 yards from the clearing where the kids ate their lunch on their first day, was a mess that looked like the Tasmanian devil came and tore everything up.

Littered throughout the woodland, there were clear plastic bags that animals could choke on playing with them, bags that used to hold food lying on the ground for animals to get stomachs from, and various other forms of deleterious debris scattered around.

Seeing this mess, my friends and I mutually decided that our break time would be put to better use by cleaning up the mess that the kids made and went right to work. We worked together for 45 minutes, and towards the end, we cleared up the place so well that it looked as if no one has ever discovered the place, given the seemingly untouched aura of the place.

Overall, the sporadic cleanup task we set ourselves to was incredibly useful. We ended up not have any time to take a shower that day, but the feeling of cleaning up the place was enough for us. Towards the end of the litter removal, we had filled up three trash cans. Given, those trash cans weren't empty when we started, but the feeling of collecting all those harmful remnants of packaging material like plastic bags, paper boxes and bags, and aluminum cans was a good feeling. This feeling is too complex to describe, but it leaves a feeling of pride and satisfaction.

I read about the Apprentice Ecologist Initiative a couple of weeks ago but I didn't really know of anyplace to have enough litter that cleaning up would make such a difference. When I saw that one area, I swallowed my own words. This program made me feel really good about my accomplishment. I was able to clean up a small part of camp, which enabled the future kids the opportunity to go to science camp and experience a once in a lifetime experience.