Volunteer Opportunities

Would you like to learn about the inner workings of your CNPS chapter and stay in touch with the most current news in local native plant programs? Are you a good listener and do you enjoy writing? Then consider volunteering as Secretary at our monthly board meetings. The Secretary will report primarily to the Chapter President.

Meetings are usually held the second Tuesday of each month between 7 to 9 p.m. in Ventura but occasionally in Ojai. There can be 5 to 9 attendees at any given meeting.

Desired responsibilities of the Chapter Board Secretary are:

• Attend all meetings.
• Record minutes at each meeting and distribute minutes for review via e-mail to all who attended the meeting within a week of the meeting.
• Revise and finalize minutes and e-mail final copy to all within three weeks of the meeting.
• Maintain an archive of all meeting minutes during your term of office.

For more information contact Volunteer Coordinator Janet Takara at jntakara@yahoo.com or Chapter President David Magney at president@cnpsci.org.

Do you enjoy arranging the written word and images into electronic and/or printed formats? As newsletter editor you would be taking information received electronically and composing pleasing newsletters for distribution to our chapter membership. There is a need for both electronic and USPS versions so just let us know what you are interested in. Quarterly publication is desired. The Newsletter Editor(s) will report primarily to the
Chapter President.

We already have a template for the newsletter, so filling in the blanks is mostly what is needed (okay, there is always some reformatting that is required).

Desired responsibilities for the Newsletter Editor(s) are:

• Obtain articles from CNPSCI members on topics of interest to the general
  membership.
• Gather dates and information for upcoming events.
• Format the electronic version for posting on both the CNPSCI website and Facebook pages.
• Format the USPS version and oversee getting it printed at a copy place.
• Coordinate getting the printed copies to the CNPSCI volunteer who then handles the non-profit bulk mailing of the newsletters that must take place at a post office in Ojai.

For more information contact Volunteer Coordinator Janet Takara at jntakara@yahoo.com or Chapter President David Magney at president@cnpsci.org.

Do you have ideas for programs you would like to see CNPSCI sponsor within its membership area (Ventura to Santa Barbara counties) and would you like to help make those happen? Currently we offer programs at the library in Ventura but there is certainly room for more program offerings in Santa Barbara and the Conejo Valley. Programs are offered free and are open to the public. The Program Coordinator(s) will report primarily to the Chapter President.

Desired responsibilities for the Program Coordinator(s) are:

• Develop program ideas of interest to the membership in collaboration with the CNPSCI board.
• Contact potential speakers.
• Coordinate program dates with the board.
• Coordinate logistics with the program venue and book dates.
• Coordinate program publicity with the Publicity volunteer.
• Confirm speaking location, date and time with the speakers.
• Ensure that the necessary equipment for the talk (e.g., laptop, projector, etc.) is present and functioning at the program venue.
• Work with the speaker prior to and during the program to make sure that the speaker’s needs are met.
• Send follow up thank you note to speaker.
• Ensure standard Sign-Up sheet forms are available at each program.
• Record attendee information and archive for annual reporting.
• Give a copy of the sign-up sheets to the Membership and Volunteer Coordinators so they can contact those interested in joining or volunteering.

For more information contact Volunteer Coordinator Janet Takara at jntakara@yahoo.com or Chapter President David Magney at president@cnpsci.org.

Are you excited to share your favorite hiking trail with other native plant enthusiasts? Then consider offering to lead or co-lead a CNPSCI hike. Hikes are offered year-round, are open to the general public, and are offered free of charge. Hikes are offered in any of the Channel Islands Chapter’s membership area of Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties, or maybe even elsewhere in California.

If you aren’t too sure about your native plant identification skills you may request to be paired with a CNPSCI plant expert. If your expertise is in birds, mushrooms, insects, ethnobotany, geology etc. rather than plants, then that makes for an even better hike!

For more information contact Hike Coordinator Andrea Adams-Morden at aadamsmorden@yahoo.com.