Pre- and Post-Retreat Trips––More than Just Fun!

by Bethany Wall, Mertz Gilmore Foundation and EGA Management Board

Each year, as you hurriedly thumb through EGA’s Fall Retreat program (or do a quick scan of it online), you may notice the listing of Pre-Retreat trips and think: “No, no, this has nothing to do with our grantmaking areas” or “Hmmm, looks fun, but probably more of a jaunt than real work.” And there’s always the guilt-tinged question: “But can I justify taking the time?” As a true fan of Pre-Retreat trips, I enthusiastically suggest that yes, you certainly can justify the time.

Seasoned attendees of EGA’s annual retreat know that the opening reception kicks off a packed schedule of compelling plenary discussions and workshops. The full agenda challenges one’s ability to step outside, blink in the sunshine and meaningfully absorb where you are, let alone gain hands-on knowledge of local environmental activity and action. While this year’s retreat schedule incorporates several off-site sessions, pre-retreat trips are another effective––and fun––way to enrich your overall experience. Try it once, and my guess is you’ll be attending EGA’s pre-retreat trips henceforth. Here are some of the reasons why.

First, every trip has one or more thoughtfully-selected, knowledgeable resource guide who dispenses a wealth of information. You will learn about the region, the work, the gains and the challenges. Next, the small group size offers a relaxed, informal setting in which to “exchange notes” with colleagues known and new, broadening and deepening your resource pool for future work. Finally, pre- and post-retreat trips anchor us in the place we are visiting. By steeping ourselves in the less familiar, local context, we learn about issues from a new vantage point, often in a new light. We are given an opportunity to think creatively about how our work intersects with issues, constituencies, and places we may not yet have considered. In short, we are able to reflect more deeply on our work then our hectic daily schedules typically allow.

If you’re new to EGA, a pre- and/or post-retreat trip is an excellent way to begin developing your network and scope out funders who share your concerns. If you’re an experienced “retreater,” trips can help reinvigorate your work. In the face of so many challenges at the personal, local and global levels, pre- and post-retreat trips can help nourish an easily-flagged spirit and strengthen our resolve to forge ahead.

Fall Retreat Trip Highlights

by Pi‘ikea Miller, Hawai’i Community Foundation (Host Committee Liaison)

The 2004 EGA Fall Retreat features an overnight pre-retreat trip into the forests of Kauai’s Koke‘e State Park, home to at least 57 endangered plants and millions of years of evolution unique to the Hawaiian Islands. Join us as we clear invasive plants, while seeing off-the-beaten-track Kaua‘i and connecting with local issues. You’ll overnight at the historic 1930s Civilian Conservation Corps Camp and explore Kauai’s forests early the next morning with an expert local birder and naturalist.

Pre-retreat day trips will explore: the Na Pali Coast, some of the most rugged coastline in the world with 3,500 foot cliffs; the Waipa watershed, a modern site of traditional Hawaiian land stewardship; McBryde Garden, home to the largest collection of native Hawaiian flora in existence; the Alaka‘i Wilderness, a window into ancient and intact montane bogs and rainforest; Limahuli Preserve, recognized by the American Horticultural Society for conservation excellence in its research and educational programs; and the Maha‘ulepu Coast, a site of significant archaeological and paleoecological research.

Following the retreat, there will be opportunities to experience the unique landscapes of neighboring islands. A three-day adventure to Hawai‘i Island under the guidance of Dr. Peter Vitousek, professor of biological sciences at Stanford University, will include stops at Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, taro farms of Waipi‘o Valley, and an observatory atop Mauna Kea. A two-day trip is also planned to the island of Molokai, home to the highest sea cliffs in the world, and the longest continuous fringing reef in the US. You’ll hike through a pristine rainforest and fragile bog, and visit the remote Kalaupapa National Historical Park, a former leprosy settlement.

These rare opportunities are not just a great way to get new perspectives on current conservation issues, but a chance to really connect with the place and the people of Kaua‘i. Sign up early, space is limited!