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Dear NPLD Site Managers, Partners and Volunteers:
Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc. has supported The National Environmental Education Foundation's (NEEF) National Public Lands Day (NPLD) program for last 14 years. This partnership has allowed NPLD to grow into the nation's largest single-day volunteer event for public lands.
In an announcement last week, Toyota extended their long-term support for public lands and friends groups by contributing $3 million dollars to NEEF to expand its public lands program with the vision of making "National Public Lands Day Every Day".
With Toyota's support, the positive impacts of NPLD will expand beyond September. By providing grants and support services to friends groups, the they will be made stronger, more successful and better able to support their public lands. The effect will be felt in public lands across the country as people reconnect with their parks and green spaces.
To kickoff the Toyota contribution to NEEF, friends groups are invited to apply for Every Day Grants. Learn more about them below and apply today!
Happy holidays!
Robb Hampton
Director, National Public Lands Day
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Toyota Makes $3 Million Grant to NEEF Toward Public Lands
Friends groups will benefit from Every Day Grants  | On December 12, The National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF) announced a $3 million grant by Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc. to NEEF to improve the capacity of community-based organizations supporting parks and other public lands. NEEF was joined by U.S. EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Nancy Sutley and other officials for the announcement. This public-private partnership, consistent with President Obama's America's Great Outdoors Initiative, comes at a time when public lands are in need of financial aid and volunteer support.
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From left to right: Lisa Jackson, Nancy Sutley, Tina Orcutt and JL Armstrong
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JL Armstrong, National Manager, Corporate Affairs at Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc., part of Toyota Motor Company, said, "The grant furthers our commitment to public lands across the nation, from local parks which bind our communities, to our treasured national parks and public lands. We are proud to support the dedication and initiative of friends groups and other volunteer organizations that are helping to sustain the nation's public lands." Jackson, Sutley, Wood, Armstrong and other officials attended a ceremony marking the grant at Baltimore's Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine. The event featured the work of the Friends of Fort McHenry, which received a $5,000 grant from the Foundation, made possible by the Toyota funding, to assist the group's organizational capacity to serve Fort McHenry. The group has supported the development and implementation of educational programming for Baltimore city schools, living history activities about Fort McHenry, interpretive exhibits and visitor facilities.
NEEF has supported the work of local organizations and friends groups through its National Public Lands Day, the nation's largest, single-day volunteer event for public lands, since 1994 and its Every Day Grants program since 2010. Toyota has been NPLD's national sponsor for what will be the 14th consecutive year. NEEF has made grants to 22 groups this year, including the Friends of Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pa., and 10 grants in 2010.
 
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Volunteer of the Year Award Recipients
Five outstanding volunteers went above and beyond for NPLD | |
The Volunteer of the Year Awards recognizes NPLD volunteers who showed exceptional dedication to service on NPLD and throughout 2011. These volunteers displayed an ethic of land stewardship and inspired those around them to be better volunteers themselves.
In 2011, five individuals were chosen to receive Volunteer of the Year Awards. They are listed below in alphabetical order:
- Dr. Richard I. Ford, Vecinos del Rio - Mesa Prieta Petroglyph Project, Velarde, N.M.: Dr. Ford works with local youth at the Mesa Prieta rock site to teach them archeology, ethnobiology, GPS and other data collection skills. He is especially dedicated to connecting minority and Native American youth to public lands on NPLD and during their summer internship.
 Lewis E. Gorman III, Open Space Commission, Cherry Hill, N.J.: Through Lew's volunteer efforts on NPLD, and year-round with the Cherry Hill Environmental Advisory Committee, he spearheaded a program to build a trail system on area public lands. He helped create 10 miles of new trails and two of these trails received National Recreational Trail designation by the US Department of the Interior.- Robert Schallmann, Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach, Seal Beach, Calif.: Naval employee Robert Schallmann has been a key factor in the success of the Seal Beach event for the past eight years. Robert successfully applied for award funding from the Department of Defense and he found volunteers from a range of groups including scout troops, organizations and college and school groups. Almost 100 volunteers planted 735 native plants.
- Major Leonard "Len" Summers, Eglin Air Force Base Reservation, Fla.: Although this was the first year that Major Summers participated in NPLD, he made a tremendous impact on the public land and his fellow volunteers. Major Summers recruited a team of volunteers for a native planting. In just this year alone, Major Summers has helped plant over 1,000 native species and has recruited 30 volunteers from his own squadron to help with erosion control projects.
 Mark Thien, J. Percy Priest Lake, Nashville, Tenn.: Mark is the co-founder of the Nashville Clean Water Project which is dedicated to removing trash from J. Percy Priest Lake outside of Nashville. The Nashville Clean Water Project leads large scale volunteer events several times a year, including NPLD, and depends on Mark's efforts to recruit volunteers, advertise and plan the event. During this year's NPLD, Mark organized the day's events and even found time to man the trash barge.
If you know a dedicated volunteer, consider nominating them for the 2012 Volunteer of the Year Award. NPLD will begin accepting nominations in late summer of 2012.
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Does a Friends Group Support Your Favorite Public Land?
Invite them to apply for an Every Day Grant. Deadline is Jan 13.
 The Every Day Grants, sponsored by Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc. are designed to provide funding to strengthen the effectiveness of community-based Friends Groups. The grants help fund capacity building projects such as staff and board training, fundraising, technology and website development, strategic planning and to help a Friends Group receive 501(c)(3) status.
There will be two rounds of Every Day Grants in 2012. Each round will result in 25 grants of up to $5,000 each. The deadline for the first round of Every Day Grants is January 13, 2012. Any applications not funded in the first round will be considered in the second round later in spring 2012.
Questions about the Every Day Grants? Visit the Every Day Grants website for more details and frequently asked questions.
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Apply for the Every Day Grants now!
Deadline is January 13, 2012.
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Armed with Science and NPLD
NPLD is featured in the Department of Defense science blog
The Department of Defense science blog, Armed with Science, shares news and research on science and technology. It is a popular source of information for military scientists, engineers, staff and families.
Throughout the fall, the Armed with Science blog has featured stories on NPLD sites that took place on Department of Defense installations. The stories describe the volunteer projects, how they improve natural or historical resources, and include photos of volunteers and wildlife.
Here are a few of the Armed with Science stories:
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Banded burrowing owl from 2010 Umatilla event.
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Visit the Armed with Science blog to read more stories of NPLD projects.
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Site of the Month
Over 400 volunteers lent a hand during the first annual Toyota Tupelo event.
| Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc. is the national sponsor of National Public Lands Day. Each year, the company shows its support for NPLD by encouraging offices, factories and dealerships to host volunteer events at local public lands. In 2011, there were 40 Toyota sites in 19 states and Puerto Rico that participated on NPLD.
One of Toyota's newest manufacturing facilities, near Tupelo, Miss., decided to kick off their first community volunteering event by hosting a large-scale NPLD celebration. Even though the organizers had never planned an event and many staff are new to the area, 431 Toyota employees and their families participated in NPLD. They volunteered at five sites: the Natchez Trace Parkway, Trace State Park, Tupelo High School, Carver Elementary School and the City of Tupelo's Oren Dunn Museum, Ballard Park & Sportsplex.
The largest volunteer team was at the Natchez Trace Parkway. 224 Toyota team members helped remove invasive plant species, restored an exhibit shelter, cleaned an outdoor classroom and deconstructed old fencing. Kids had fun in the park and participated in educational programs, nature walks and a "boatman" relay race.
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 The National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF) provides knowledge to trusted professionals who, with their credibility, amplify messages to national audiences to solve everyday environmental problems. Together, we generate lasting positive change.
NEEF partners with professionals in health, education, media, business and public land management to promote daily actions for helping people protect and enjoy the environment. Through our primary programs- Classroom Earth, National Public Lands Day, National Environmental Education Week, Business and Environment, Earth Gauge, and Health and Environment- we offer Americans knowledge to live by. To learn more, call (202) 833-2933 or visit www.neefusa.org.
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National Sponsor | |
Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc. operates under a Global Earth Charter which was set forth to promote environmental responsibility for every aspect of the company and significantly reduce the impact that Toyota's vehicles have on the planet.
In line with their commitment to environmental responsibility, Toyota has sponsored the National Public Lands Day program for 13 consecutive years. They have also sponsored Tour Grants and the Every Day Grants.
Toyota encourages employees to get involved in NPLD activities by helping to care for parks, forests, rivers, beaches, shorelines and other public lands. Read more about Toyota's strong commitment to the environment and their support of National Public Lands Day.
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Corporate Sponsor
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Northrop Grumman Corporation is a leading global security company whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products, and solutions in aerospace, electronics, information systems, shipbuilding and technical services to government and commercial customers worldwide.
Through its partnership with National Public Lands Day, Northrop Grumman employees across the nation will join together to improve and enhance public lands, supporting the company's corporate responsibility efforts in embracing green initiatives and translating values into action. |
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Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts
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NPLD has a special partnership with both the Girl Scouts of the USA and the Boy Scouts of America.
Scouts are invited to get involved with National Public Lands Day by volunteering at a local park, forest or other public land.
NPLD is an excellent opportunity to educate Boy and Girl Scouts about the natural world while engaging them in the outdoors.
Scout troops that register online with NPLD can download volunteer certificates and Girl Scouts may be eligible to earn the Get with the Land patch.
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Fee Free Day |
National Public Lands Day is a fee free day on many federally managed lands. Volunteers who participate on National Public Lands Day at federal land sites are rewarded with coupons for free entry into their favorite federal public land areas. |
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About NPLD | |
National Public Lands Day is the nation's largest hands-on volunteer effort to improve America's public lands. NPLD began in 1994 with three federal agencies and 700 volunteers. |
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