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Letters in Defense of Nature Centers On Saturday, December 4, 2004, this editorial appeared in the Pasadena Star News. Since some of our letters in response weren't published, they are posted here. Our Responses
Nature centers just unnatural
THEY are curious affectations. Nature groups pour millions into buildings that sit alongside building-less nature preserves. Often, these same groups fight tooth and nail to prevent rooflines from spoiling mountain ridges. What gives? They may all be well and good, but the nature centers I've been in at Whittier Narrows, Eaton Canyon and Monrovia Canyon are pretty pedantic. Before we pour millions into another one the next one to be built will be on the San Gabriel River let's take a look at what we're getting for our money. You know, the Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District has poured a quarter million dollars into a future San Gabriel River Discovery Center. These are the same folks that many of you pay taxes to go ahead and check your property tax bill, which by the way, is due Friday. The Sanitation Districts (you also pay taxes to them) kicked in $100,000 for the river museum. The Central Basin Water District, not wanting to be outspent, recently announced it is donating $750,000 of cash toward the $15 million project. Monuments to water districts? Donors immortalized in stone and wood? You bet. Too often, these so-called nature centers are nothing more than banal buildings that advertise politicians' names and are stuffed with useless paraphernalia. You've seen them. They pop up along creeks, in the shadow of majestic canyons, beneath towering sequoias. But I've never been all that wowed by them. These places are so less interesting than the surrounding terrain. God's creation always trumps man's. After a bike ride along the San Gabriel or down the Arroyo Seco, or after a hike to Eaton Canyon Falls, visiting them is like seeing a movie made from a great book you've recently read. The film adaptation always pales in comparison. Take the Eaton Canyon one. It is so typical of the rest, with the giant stuffed birds and the stuffed and mounted mountain lion suspended from the ceiling, and the bank of fish tanks filled with lizards and snakes. Lions and tigers and snakes, oh my! The rest of the place contains glass cases of Polaroids of people who hike and watch birds. Not that inspiring. Neither are the trinkets sold at the front- and-center cash register. Isn't there a new thought, a newer, more dynamic design for the inside of nature centers? I am not just talking about architecture, which is important. But design should marry function. Nonprofits who work tirelessly to raise money for these things often put less time and effort into their function. There are many nature centers that do work. The Big Bear Discovery Center is chock full of useful things, such as docents who really answer questions about hiking and habitat, hand out trail maps and spread insider advice. One time, a ranger had his high-powered scope trained out the window on a nest of bald eagles. You could see the mother bird feeding her young. Now that's a nature center. Another one worth noting is the Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana. There is a miniature river running through it, with sand that the children can move to dam it up or change its course. There is an exhibit on the history of weather, a sort of Fox program on natural disasters. The stuff is really interesting. I spoke with the Sierra Club's Jeff Yann, who is supervising the restoration of the San Gabriel and Rio Hondo rivers, as well as the plans for the nature center. He shared my concerns and said this one will have a fascinating story to tell. "There's the story of the Whittier Narrows habitat and wildlife. The story of the people who settled there, where the Gabrielinos had villages and where the settlers built the first San Gabriel Mission, on the Rio Hondo next to the Montebello Hills.' Yann says the church missionaries learned a lesson that remains true today. The San Gabriel, like many rivers in Southern California, appears dry in summer but floods in winter. When the waters rose on the first mission, they packed up and moved to San Gabriel. Nature centers must be alluring, hands on, interesting. Or they shouldn't be built at all. As a colleague shared, these places must pass the cool test: "Would you want to go there if there was no river or canyon next door?' -- Steve Scauzillo is the editorial page editor of the San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group. Write him at 1210 Azusa Canyon Rd., West Covina, CA 91790, or by e- mail at steve.scauzillo@sgvn.com
Sunday, 05 Dec 2004
I'm so sorry the Eaton Canyon Nature Center doesn't measure up to your notion of what it should be. We couldn’t have shown you a bald eagle, but if you had bothered to ask one of our docents, you might have been introduced to Lesser Goldfinches and Pine Siskins coming to the feeders in the patio. Of course, they're not nearly as exciting, but the people who visit us are a lot more likely to have a goldfinch than an eagle in their yard - we teach what's around us! I’m sorry you didn’t take the time to look around at the exhibits of the natural and human history of Eaton Canyon. You obviously didn’t find the snakeskin and other hands-on items that our young visitors love to touch. I’m sorry you didn’t appreciate the museum mounts of the birds and mammals of the area, and the exhibit geared towards people who live on the edge of the wilderness. I’m sorry you weren’t here in the spring, when you'd have seen displays of native plants, not just showy wildflowers, but inconspicuous and valuable members of our ecosystem. And I’m sorry you didn’t realize that the "Polaroids of people who hike and watch birds" are actually suggestions for the many activities available to the public including guided bird walks, native plant walks, twilight and moonlight family programs, Sierra Club hikes and school tours.You might take it for granted, but for many of the thousands of school children who visit us every year, it's their first experience in a natural area. Imagine—being outdoors on something not covered with soccer fields and picnic areas. In fact, on field trips, some children actually stumble because they've never walked on dirt paths. The cases of snakes and lizards that you find so mundane and uninteresting are often the only chance our visitors have ever had to see reptiles and amphibians close-up. And it’s from our well-trained and dedicated docents they learn the difference between a gopher snake and a rattlesnake, why both belong here, and why they are not to be feared, but respected.The old nature center was destroyed in the Altadena fire of 1993. The county, having financial problems at the time, wasn’t going to rebuild. But the citizens, many of whom had enjoyed Eaton Canyon as children, and now enjoy it with their own children, wouldn't let that decision stand. The building was replaced with a combination of public funds from various sources, including FEMA, state and county money. But the contents of the museum, 1000+ volume natural history library, classrooms and lab were completely paid for by private funds, a combination of individual donations, grants, and in-kind donations, through a campaign run entirely by volunteers. And we couldn't have gotten the campaign going without support from the Pasadena Star-News, whose forward-thinking editor, Hope Frazier recognized the value of the Nature Center to all the citizens of the Los Angeles basin. I’m sorry the location of the gift shop offended you, although I’ve been trying without success to think of a museum, large or small, that doesn’t sell souvenirs somewhere near the front door. By the way, those oh-so-very-silly trinkets that offended you are chosen so visiting school children can have souvenirs for under a buck. Please let the gift shop volunteer know next time you're in, and we'll try to hide all the pencils, magnets, bookmarks, rubber snakes and bug boxes, that offended you so, and just leave the high-end stuff on display. And I guess you missed the wide array of nature books for adults and children we have on sale.Normally a letter like this ends with a request to come in for a special visit. I’m not sure I want to do that, because it sounds as though your mind is made up. But I’d suggest you come by some day when a school group is in the building, and see how valuable Eaton Canyon Nature Center is to the community. Judy Bass
A worthy rebuttal Standing ovation, please, for Judy Bass, of Eaton Canyon Nature Center. Thank you for your most informative response to Steve Scauzillo. And we thank the Star-News for having the objectivity to print it! Pat Dunlap
Sunday, December 12, 2004
Your opinion-page concerns about nature centers were certainly taken to heart. I think that many of your concerns were well-placed and on target. Nature centers like schools and other educational facilities are not created equal. So often--as you pointed out--they reflect the limited vision and self-serving motives of the people planning and financing them. On the other hand, like all other large institutions including newspapers and media conglomerates, there are exceptions to the rule. Quality can emerge from mediocrity and a herd mentality. For balance--which I realize is not always the marketable trend on opinion pages these days--I would like to suggest that you look a little further - to the Mt. Baldy Visitor Center in Mt. Baldy Village. Nearly five years ago we created an educational program there which some of us see as the paradigm for others currently in the planning stages. This work is happening under Karen Fortus's direction at the U.S.D.A. Forest Service (626/335-1251, ext. 249). Let me simply "hit on" the highlights, should you like to follow up, and become a drum major for a quality program which is running on a shoestring budget: 1. An environmental education program at the gateway to the Angeles National Forest which provides grade-specific programming, tied in to CA. state curriculum guidelines, currently used by nearly 10,000 students and teachers from the L.A. basin. Mt. Baldy Environmental Education provides teachers--hard hit by stringent testing expectations in the classroom--a laboratory environment where, for example, students learn geology by practicing it, that is, doing what geologists do - making rock boards, walking along fault zones, and placing their fingers on dykes and intrusions. (This is just one program of the many Mt. Baldy offers, but it amply illustrates an effective philosophy of environmental education operating throughout the entire program). 2. Perhaps, more importantly, this program realizes its profound responsibility for teaching environmental ethics to students who tomorrow will be both users of the nation's most-heavily used, and some might say abused forest, and our civic leaders. If you haven't done it already, visit San Gabriel Canyon during a summer holiday; and after that sobering experience, ask yourself if education has a role to play in addressing this problem. If you come to the conclusion that it does, might a well-run nature center play an influential role? (You might be interested to know that Karen Fortus is playing a collaborative role in the San Gabriel project as well, so don't give up on it just yet. Quality people leave quality work and institutions in their wake). 3. The nature center as a meeting place for a region's cultural and scientific heritage. Mt. Baldy has created a program under the title "Saturdays in the Forest" which has brought together the leading authorities in their respective fields on this (San Gabriel Mt.) region. This program series creates an opportunity for the public to spend time with individuals such as: John Robinson, the preeminent historian on the San Gabriels; Jon Nourse (Cal-Poly geology professor) and D. Trent (retired Citrus College professor), among the leading experts on San Gabriel Mt. geology, and others, such as Jane Strong of the California Native Plant Society . . . 4. The nature center as a cutting-edge venue for immediate information. After the devastating wildfires which have hit the region over the last two years, through several public programs Mt. Baldy has taken a proactive interpretative, civic role. Unknown to most of the general public, we live in or near a (chaparral) habitat which has fire as part of its historical ecology. While newspapers and other forms of media have a role to play in this educational awareness, walking through a burnt zone with wildland ecologists, forest and city planners may help to impact policy or ultimately reach individuals who will become future educators in the cause of wise, responsible and manageable growth along our wildland-urban interface. Steve, I hope that I haven't come across as too reactionary or self-serving. I only mean to add another perspective to the dialogue. I value our Angeles National Forest as a precious and unique public resource. But it is under siege, in a sense, from being loved to death. I believe that well-thought-out nature centers and proactive programs are a valuable piece of an equation which at its core aims at education and environmental ethics.
Sincerely,
Environmental Studies Instructor
Program Coordinator (formerly)
Monday, December 6, 2004
Where is Godzilla when you need him? Help! Can we resurrect a monster to battle Scauzillo, Monster of Misinformation? Please! Scauzillo is attacking Eaton Canyon Nature Center! Docents arise and fight! Arm yourselves with your walking sticks and teaching aids. School children, run for the chaparral and hide! Loyal staff, surround the building and lock arms! Senior Docents, prepare to evacuate! Scauzillo, in his ignorant erring, hopes to eliminate caring and storm Nature's cache. Let go now, Eaton Canyon Nature Center Associates, with words of Stinging Nettle and Poison Oak. Summon the animals and tell them to flee into the San Gabriels. Kill the monster wordmonger before it can multiply. It has no worthy place in our natural habitat. Remember always, lies and rumors of lies will not prevail over truth. Sandra Geyer
Sunday, December 10, 2004
Matter of fact, I was at the Whittier Narrows Nature Center just yesterday with my kids. We had gone on a walk sponsored by Whittier Audubon and oriented toward newbies, and it finished up at the Center. They had free juice and donuts! Oh, and the center itself was interesting, small but crammed with good exhibits, topped by a captive Great Horned Owl on a stand, which you could approach as closely as you dared. (Given the fully functional beak and talons, most people decided that 24 inches was sufficient.) Fabulous eyes. As we left we were gifted with wicker baskets filled with pine cones and ribbon. Mark Hunter
About Steve Scauzillo's column relating to nature centers "Ponder nature of nature centers,' Dec. 4): I disagree with his assessment of Eaton Canyon Nature Center. The Center is an active place which offers information and a variety of programs to its visitors. It is also a meeting place for a number of very worthwhile organizations. The Center is there to protect the canyon, and to protect its visitors, too. No, it's not Disneyland. It is true there is not a bald eagle's nest within view of the Nature Center, but there is plenty else to see. Also, let's not compare nature centers based on their gift shops. I think Scauzillo's opinion of the ECNC is rather shallow and surely will be discouraging to the many very dedicated, hard- working volunteers and staff who devote countless hours to Eaton Canyon. Susan Josenhans
Wednesday, December 8, 2004
The desire of some politicians and plutocrats to have their names emblazoned on some type of imposing architectural edifice is certainly not a revelation, and Steve Scauzillo's recent article about nature centers and the plans for the San Gabriel River Discovery Center bring our attention once again to this all too human trait. He is certainly not alone in questioning the necessity of some of these projects. Unfortunately, he has badly undermined his effectiveness when he makes patronizing statements about the well utilized Eaton Canyon Nature Center that indicate a cursory visit and no communication with the gifted staff and dedicated volunteers who could have enlightened him about the variety of programs and activities that have given many children and their families an introduction to the natural world. Had he taken the trouble to look at the Center's web site, (the address is prominently displayed on the offending gift shop/information desk counter), he could have learned a great deal and would not now be hearing from so many willing to educate him after the fact. Elaine MacPherson
Web page editor's note: The Eaton Canyon Nature Center website Elaine refers to is http://www.ecnca.org/.
Sunday, December 05, 2004
I am dismayed at your negative portayal of our local nature centers. Numerous awards and enthusiastic feedback from the public paint a quite different picture than the demeaning review in Mr. Scauzillo’s editorial. Mr. Scauzillo questioned the high cost of the projected San Gabriel River nature center. I, too, question if such an elaborate and costly building is necessary and I found it very confusing therefore, that Mr. Scauzillo then proceeded to belittle our existing nature centers. Many volunteers are donating their time and sharing their knowledge with the public without any cost to the taxpayer. Nature centers are valuable tools in educating the public about our natural treasures and our monies are well invested in their support, but nature centers do not preserve or restore our scarce natural areas. In my view, it would be wise to allocate less money to the new river center and invest it instead in the restoration of the natural area along the San Gabriel River. Gabi McLean
Sunday, December 05, 2004
Reading your editorial about our nature centers left me utterly confused and deeply saddened. What point did you try to make? That the new center planned in the Whittier area is too expensive for the taxpayer? I might agree with that point. Or that the nature centers are not interesting enough and don’t pass the “cool test”? Sure, some exhibits are better than others, but I feel you missed the point of what nature centers are about. I have been a volunteer docent at the Eaton Canyon nature center for ten years and have spent more than 1800 hours – mainly on weekends - with families, teens, and adults who came to Eaton Canyon to experience nature and looked for assistance in doing so. People come here because there is (an intermittent) creek and canyon next door. Staff and the many volunteer docents have been providing this assistance and educate about our local natural environment. That’s what those “Polaroids” are about, the many programs we offer and that are well attended and appreciated. Every school week, more than a hundred children come on field trips and explore the area on docent-guided walks and learn about nature. Their thank-you letters to us speak a different story than your editorial. How unfair of you to talk about our mountain lion who was killed by a car on the 210 Freeway in Glendale as “useless paraphernalia … suspended from the ceiling”. How many people ever get to see a mountain lion hiking in the mountains? It usually stays away from people, perching on a ledge, as is the one in the nature center. You frown upon the “stuffed birds”. Rarely does one have the opportunity to observe a red-tailed hawk up close and personal, realize how strong its talons are and how powerful its beak – it usually is soaring a hundred feet overhead. Of course a building cannot compete with majestic canyons and God’s creation. The nature centers and its exhibits are but tools for the people who care enough to share their knowledge, excitement, and concern about our natural treasures with the people who find they need nature and don’t know enough or are hesitant to experience it alone.I can dispel your concern about whether we are spending too much taxpayers’ money for nature centers. I know that Eaton Canyon has become a community center, a place where people come to learn. You talk about “trinkets in the gift shop”. You missed the rich variety of natural history books we offer, the excellent library that is available to the public on site and open from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM EVERY DAY of the week, including Saturday and Sunday. Maybe our exhibits could be more interesting to you but to the curiosity of a young mind the lizards and toads and snakes are fascinating. It’s the programs and the people that make our nature centers come alive. I know of no other publicly funded place that enjoys so many volunteer hours and that therefore can offer so many free programs at NO COST TO THE TAX PAYER. What better investment could we make than in the education of our children and families who learn about their local natural history and have fun in the process? You talk about riding down the San Gabriel River. What impressed me after taking that bike ride was how little is left of the river’s natural flow and the vegetation and animal life it used to support. I think we should spend less on the new river nature center and invest our resources into restoring some of the natural river environment instead. We have so few natural areas left and those areas serve more and more people. Bashing our local nature centers does not help. I hope and appeal to your integrity that you set your story right and acknowledge what valuable services the existing nature centers provide. Gabi McLean
Sunday, December 05, 2004
Regarding Steve Scauzillo's editorial (12/4/04), I must reply a Nature Center is much more than displays. It is a dynamic, living structure filled with trained Docent volunteers, staff and people pouring in and out. It is an information station, a learning place, a starting point for programs or improved visits to a natural area. I have always felt that the building is just a "gateway to the wild". You can rarely display everything you would like to inside the building, but you don't have to. The point with displays is to educate and to orient people to the real experience outside. This explains why they are usually built, worldwide, near the resources they interpret. As important as all the children's displays and programs inside a Nature Center are (like Eaton Canyon's Children's Discovery corner, native creature puppets and weekly nature story programs), they're not just for kids. Adults need environmental education as well. Thus displays and programs must appeal to all who use the Center. The morning of Mr. Scauzillo's editorial, the California Native Plant Society drew several hundred people to the Eaton Canyon patio as they offered another native plant sale, featuring hundreds of plants, many volunteers to answer questions and free handouts on planting locations and proper care. A Center staff toured another group around to introduce them to the landscape habitat gardens where, in a new program, they would soon volunteer to keep them looking good. I assure Mr. Scauzillo that from my 33 years working inside Los Angeles County Nature Centers and Natural Areas, both kids and adults enjoy and get excited about live mount taxidermy specimens. "Look Dad, that's how big a bobcat is!". They're real not internet. However, it is always good to examine with fresh eyes what you're doing and how you're doing it. I visit as many nature centers as I can and look for new or better ways to engage the public in our passion. Mr. Scauzillo makes some good points; one that we should spend money wisely. The Center currently proposed for the Whittier Narrows area is not being called a Nature Center but a River Discovery Center with an Auditorium/Conference Center and Theater and the proposed size, which has grown from 8,000 to 16,000 or perhaps 20,000 square feet of construction must pass the test of cost-benefit and environmental sensitivity. The County Parks and Recreation Department is a partner in this plan and wants to insure that what is built serves the public needs and desires and fits the site, just as Mr. Scauzillo says. Michael Long
Saturday, 04 Dec 2004
I was startled to read Steve Scauzillo's article in this morning's Star-News (December 4), and to see that he seems to feel the nature center is just the building. At Eaton Canyon, the one I'm most familiar with, the "center" is the canyon, and the building is the gateway to get some information (or meet your docent) and then go out and explore. The staff and volunteers at Eaton Canyon are trained naturalists, who lead school children and the public out to study anything animal, vegetable, or mineral in the canyon -- and the canyon's human history too. What creatures are active in twilight? How has fire affected the chaparral plants? What do those tracks in the dust tell us? These questions are not answered in the building. The array of plant walks, waterfall hikes, birding expeditions, and more can all be founded listed in the Center's newsletter, Paw Prints. The Center also fosters the meetings and work of the Pasadena Audubon Society, the Sierra Club, the California Native Plant Society, and other groups in the canyon. Mr. Scauzillo seems to have missed all this activity. The article seems to be looking more for inter-active natural history museums, with lots of exhibits and indoor things to do. These sites are good too. But why stay indoors? Visitors to the Santa Ana Discovery Center have their miniature river to study (that does sound neat) but at Eaton Canyon a flock of ten-year olds is out with their docent looking for creatures along the real river. Thanks for getting us thinking about nature at the urban edge! Elizabeth Pomeroy
Saturday, December 4, 2004
Excuse me? Did I read this correctly? Steve Scauzillo wants nature centers that function like miniature Disneylands? I think he misses the whole point of nature centers. They are not supposed to compete with their natural surroundings. They are supposed to blend in with them. Take the river rock building at Santa Fe Dam as an example. Nature centers support and enhance the areas where they are located. The nature centers perform many functions Mr. Scauzillo seems not aware of. They are a gathering place, a center, in fact, for people who are interested in nature, a place where nature begins, a jumpoff for all the wild that surrounds them. The farther you get away from them, the wilder it gets. But people need to start somewhere. And gently. You can take your family along on an interpretive walk. Your children go outdoors on school trips and learn not to be afraid of the animals living there. In the evenings adults learn more about the local birds and plants that are found in the local foothills. The stuffed animals and animals in tanks serve as bridges to the outdoors. Most people want to know what they saw. That is the function of these displays. Then there are the services that are provided by the nature center. There is trail maintenance, there are bathrooms, there is protection of the natural resources, there is security. How does he think these wonderful outdoor experiences happen without this background support? The nature centers are there, not to replicate the outdoors, but to expand the experience. Jane Strong
Monday, December 13, 2004
In response to your editorial regarding nature centers, I agree that it would be very nice if the centers could have more changing exhibits. However, my friends and extended family make great use of the Eaton Canyon Nature Center. All have visited many times with their children. The exhibits are fascinating to the kids and give them a greater appreciation for the plants and wildlife native to our area. My Sierra Club group meets at Eaton Canyon monthly and hosts other programs there. When my adopted son came to live with us at age 11, we visited the nature center often as an interesting, educational and affordable activity. He also took nature appreciation classes at the center, where he learned much about the local environment not touched on in his public school. We feel very fortunate to have the Eaton Canyon Nature Center in our community. Patricia Zeider
Nature Centers in San Gabriel Valley and nearby Mountains What's to Love about Nature Centers? Page made December 9, 2004, by jane AT cnps-sgm DOT org.
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