Clark County Holidays are Greener Than Ever

Give the Gift of Green.

Make a great gift of nontoxic home cleaning products for friends and family and learn how to keep your home free of chemicals during a free workshop!

Make green cleaning gifts for the holidays at a workshop co-sponsored by the Washington State University Clark County Extension Watershed Stewards and the Clark County Clean Water Program.

Watershed Stewards will provide practical tips on “green” cleaning using everyday inexpensive household products such as baking soda and vinegar. Learn how you can replace expensive and potentially toxic cleaners with earth-friendly products for a healthier environment for your family and pets.  Make a green gift this holiday season!

The FREE workshop will be held on Thursday, December 10^th, 2009 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Three Creeks Library, 800-C NE Tenney Road, Vancouver, WA. Pre-registration is required: Call WSU Clark County Extension at 360-397-6060 x 7703. Class size is limited to 25 participants. Participants can pre-purchase the $15 cleaning kit (optional) with materials to take home.

Kit includes: spray bottles w/waterproof labels for glass cleaner, furniture polish, “safer scrub” along with handy bottles of hydrogen peroxide, rubbing alcohol, baking soda, borax and vinegar.  You’ll also receive two microfiber cloths, a recipe book and a handy carrying case.

WSU Extension programs are available to all without discrimination. If you require special accommodation, call WSU Extension Clark County at (360) 397-6060 ext. 0 prior to the event.

Bats at WSU Vancouver

Discover the Unspooky Side of Bats on Halloween at WSU Vancouver.

Bats turn into Vampires at night.  If you get bit by a bat, you’ll get rabies. Bats are just flying mice.  Actually, none of these myths about bats are true.  You can find out more about bats at WSU Vancouver in Salmon Creek on Halloween (I don’t think they could have picked a better day for a class about vampires…er, I mean, bats!)

“VANCOUVER, Wash. – Christine Portfors, associate professor of biology at Washington State University Vancouver, and Peter Ritson, instructor of chemistry at Clark College will give their seventh annual presentation on bats Oct. 31, from 2 – 4 p.m. in Administration building, room 110. The event is free and open to the public. It’s an ideal activity for families with children 4 to 12 years old.

At a time of year when bats are often portrayed as blood-sucking, vicious animals, local families have an opportunity to see live bats up close, and learn why bats are largely misunderstood. In addition to teaching the visitors about bats, Portfors and Ritson will read a short story and lead the group in making bat crafts.

In the presentation, Portfors dispels popular folklore and teaches about the beneficial role bats play in nature managing insect pests, pollinating plants and dispersing seeds. She shows pictures of different bats, as well as a few of her captive tropical fruit bats.

“Many people want to get rid of bats and consequently, certain species are becoming endangered,” she said. “These misunderstood animals need to be understood in order to protect them. My role as a scientist is to help educate the public about their importance, and kids especially have a lot of fun coming to see the live bats.”

Portfors is a biologist and neurobiologist who has studied bats in the wild and in the lab for more than 15 years. For more information about her research, visit her website, “The Bat Lab,” at www.vancouver.wsu.edu/fac/portfors/portfors_home.html

WSU Vancouver is celebrating 20 years of bringing quality education, research and service to the citizens of Southwest Washington. The campus is located at 14204 NE Salmon Creek Ave., east of the 134th Street exit from either I-5 or I-205, or via C-Tran bus service. WSU Vancouver offers 16 bachelor’s degrees, 10 master’s degrees, one doctorate degree and more than 36 fields of study. Learn more at www.vancouver.wsu.edu “

via Discover the Unspooky Side of Bats on Halloween at WSU Vancouver – WSU Vancouver Press Releases.

Clean and Green in Clark County

Green Cleaning Workshop at Three Creeks Library.

You don’t have to use harsh chemical products to clean your house. Learn how to make simple nontoxic products for pennies per ounce. These products are effective and are safer for your children, pets and your health.

This workshop, sponsored by WSU and Clark County Clean Water Program, will be held at the Three Creeks Library in Salmon Creek on December 10, 2009. For more information, call 360.397.6060 x 7703, or click for WSU Clark County Extension.

Workshop is free, but $15 buys a green cleaning kit to give to a friend for the holidays. 

Watercolor at WSU Vancouver

Watercolor Not Just For Kids.

Washington State University Vancouver in Salmon Creek is currently displaying a group exhibition of selected Watercolor Artists from the Southwest Washington Watercolor Society in the Engineering Life Science Building through November 6.

The Southwest Washington Watercolor Society was established in 1979 to bring fine art to the community and to encourage a higher experience and education for both artists and the community.  WSU Vancouver Art Galleries are free and open to the public 8 am to 9 pm Monday through Thursday, and 8 am to 5 pm Friday.

Clark County Harvest Celebration

Showcasing the Bounty of Clark County Farms.

It’s time for the WSU Clark County Extension 11th Annual Harvest Celebration, celebrating the diversity of farming in Clark County, Saturday, September 19, 2009 from 10 am to 3 pm.  Visit participating farms for free during this time, many offering tours and other informational classes during the day.

“As a society, we are rapidly losing our connection to the land and our food sources. Today, vegetables come out of a can and meat comes home from the store neatly wrapped in plastic on styrofoam trays. These come to us after being shipped hundreds or thousands of miles from where they were produced. Many consumers do not give much thought to the farmer who grows and raises this food.”

Many children (and adults) do not know what their favorite vegetable, fruit, or type of meat looks like as it is being grown or raised; and many have never visited a farm.  Now is the time to change that.  There are many different farms open, from Alpacas to Zinnias, Goats to Grapes and everything in between.

For more information, participating farms and map, click here.

Living Well with Diabetes

Title: Living Well with Diabetes
Location: Memorial Health Center
Link out: Click here
Description: Free classes through WSU Clark County Extension on living well with diabetes. Click link for more info.
Date: 2009-09-14

Graffiti Art Creation

Title: Graffiti Art Creation
Location: WSU Vancouver in Salmon Creek
Link out: Click here
Description: Graffiti artists creating a large scale work of art. Available for questions and comments.
Start Time: 10:00
Date: 2009-09-09
End Time: 4:00

Living Well with Diabetes

Free Classes Offered Through WSU Clark County Extension.

Do you have diabetes? Has your doctor told you that your sugars may be a little high? If the answer is “Yes”, then you may benefit from this free program.

This series of five classes will discuss the 5 important test all diabetics should be doing regularly and what the numbers mean, how to select the correct foods and portion sizes that keep your diabetes in control, the importance of exercise, how to eat out successfully and general tips for preventing serious complications.

Classes will begin Monday, September 14 at the Memorial Health Center.  The classes are free, but registration is required.  To register or for more information, call (360) 397-6060, visit the WSU Clark County Extension website, or view the Living with Diabetes flyer .

Living on the Land

Title: Living on the Land
Link out: Click here
Description: 12 week class for living on small acreage in Clark County. Click link for more information.
Start Time: 18:30
Date: 2009-09-02
End Time: 21:30

Living on the Land in Clark County

Get More Out of Your Land.

Got Acreage? Want to reduce mud? Control weeds?  Grow more grass?  Reduce chore time?  Save money? If you answered YES! to any of these questions, this Living on the Land class is for you…and it’s FREE!

Classes start Wednesday, September 2, 2009 from 6:30 to 9:30 for the twelve week Living on the Land – Stewardship for Small Acreages class series sponsored by WSU Clark County Extension, the Clark County Clean Water Program, and the Clark Conservation District.  The series provides a basic, overview understanding of soil, water, plant and animal interactions on small acreage properties.

The class is free, but pre-registration is required as class size is limited.  Call (360) 397-6060 x7720 or email erin.harwood@clark.wa.gov to register or for more information.

 

“Green acres is the place for me
Farm livin’ is the life for me
Land spreadin’ out so far and wide
Keep Manhattan, just give me that countryside.”

- Green Acres by Vic Mizzy  (Does anyone else remember that TV Show?)

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