Catching Up With CAT: Seed Amplification and the Loss of our Beloved Blue Van
Hello and welcome back to Catching Up with CAT! This week's installment is brought to you by both Noah and Tia!
This is Noah. A few weeks ago I had a bit of a jarring welcome back to the office. I came back after the office was closed for a week, having spent that time disconnecting and getting out into the great outdoors. I even went on my first bike-packing trip!
This was a little tough for a couple of reasons. First, one of our vans died. RIP Blue Van. In the very near future, we’ll be needing a new vehicle, so please stay posted, and thank you in advance for the generosity I’m sure is soon to come.
The week ended with our Community Paddle on Saturday, which included seed collecting, food, and best of all, paddling! I’m so grateful that I had the time before the program to enjoy all these things, as well as surfing the waves from the motorboats and getting into some other bits of tomfoolery, including attempting to ride a unicycle.
The biggest takeaway I had from Saturday was a great reminder of just how wonderful the people I work with are and how good they are at what they do. They were able to pivot, stay patient, and deliver a great experience for our participants even when things weren’t going exactly as we had planned.
It was a great reminder that, even when things go sideways because let's face it, things always will, I’m lucky to work alongside a team that knows how to roll with it and make the best of the situation.
-Noah
Hello, everyone! This is Tia. A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to connect with nature in a completely different way. Before our paddle on the African American Heritage Trail, I got the chance to participate in seed amplification with the Forest Preserves.
So, what exactly is seed amplification? It’s “the process of collecting a small number of wild or native seeds, growing them in a controlled commercial environment, and harvesting the newly produced seeds to dramatically increase the available seed supply.”
This was a completely new experience for me. Although I’ve always loved flowers and I’m very into gardening, I had never participated in seed amplification or really knew what the process involved. It was refreshing to learn something new while also finding another way to give back to Mother Nature.
The experience brought so much peace to me and my coworkers. It also gave us a chance to slow down, enjoy the outdoors, and bond over our shared love of nature, friendship, and the work we do here at CAT. Sometimes, it’s nice to step away from the busy schedule and simply reconnect with the environment around us.
All in all, I have to say that this past week reminded me just how much I enjoy my different roles here at CAT, from connecting with nature and our community to helping support the work behind the scenes.
-Tia