by Jonathan Doherty | Aug 4, 2020 | Lightning Update
Farming is a big part of the landscape and a big share of Chesapeake land conservation. This week we explore the reality or potential of regional food distribution systems for supporting farmers. (Photo: CCP) Chesapeake conservationists spend a lot of resources...
by Jonathan Doherty | Aug 3, 2020 | Monday Magic
Morning dawns at McKee-Beshers Wildlife Management Area, northwest of Washington DC and close by the Potomac River. The sunflowers will be aglow in minutes. (Photos: Clandestine Wren Photography) Each July and August several fields at the 2,000 acre McKee-Beshers...
by Jonathan Doherty | Jul 28, 2020 | Lightning Update
Masked up shoppers at the Anne Arundel County Farmer’s Market in Annapolis (above), and apparently at other markets, have driven sales higher for a number of Chesapeake farmers during the pandemic. (Photos: above and first two below — Doherty; others...
by Jonathan Doherty | Jul 21, 2020 | Lightning Update
Now is the time for thinking about creative solutions to public open space, including reducing the vast swaths of urban real estate dedicated to cars, not people. (Illustration: Practice for Architecture and Urbanism via New York Times) Back in May, still in the...
by Jonathan Doherty | Jul 14, 2020 | Lightning Update
The economic benefits of conserving 30 percent of the planet are substantial. But, we might have known that already. So we ask ourselves, what steps are we taking to advance a stronger movement toward policies, practices and financing to conserve nature? (Photos:...
by Jonathan Doherty | Jul 7, 2020 | Lightning Update
The Center for American Progress recently released “The Race for Nature,” the third report in a continuing series on strategies for achieving a “30 x 30” conservation goal. We continue to explore implications for conservation from both the...
by Jonathan Doherty | Jun 30, 2020 | Lightning Update
Earlier this month, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam announced the release of ConserveVirginia 2.0, an interactive map system for viewing Virginia land conservation priorities. (Image: Virginia DCR) Conservationists have always relied on maps. And that is never more...
by Jonathan Doherty | Jun 23, 2020 | Lightning Update
It’s not too late to listen in to “We Need to Talk,” a conversation the National Park Service hosted last week on the intersection of race, history, and the outdoors. View the 90 minute conversation on YouTube. On Juneteenth, the National Park...
by Jonathan Doherty | Jun 22, 2020 | Monday Magic
Snowy Egret, along the South River, Maryland, June 2020. (Photos: Clandestine Wren Photography) Snowy Egrets, which grace shorelines and marshes around the Chesapeake Bay, truly seem to define elegance. Thus the reason they were hunted to near extinction in the United...
by Jonathan Doherty | Jun 15, 2020 | Monday Magic
Weed (noun): a plant that is not valued where it is growing and is usually of vigorous growth.Merriam Webster Dictionary Long, long ago. It was different here. Forests reigned supreme. Only in sunny clearings would this plant have been found. To the west, in the...
