2023 Green Team
The Green Team program teaches youth to be environmental stewards while they learn job readiness and build life skills towards their futures. If you are interested in being a trainer for our youth, in the future please reach out to Patricia Alvarez at palvarez@swbcdc.org.
The Green Team wrapped up their 15th year this August with the largest team we have ever had! We employed 21 teens and 7 crew leaders, five crew leaders supervised the 21 youth in the Hyde Park woodlands. The remaining two leaders were placed at the We Grow Microgreens Farm to help supervise other college interns that Microgreens recruited, where they learned to grow, harvest, and support an urban farm.
Thanks to the teamwork of the Green Team, the Parks Department our partners and supporters the Hyde Park woodlands received some extra TLC. Restorative projects throughout Hyde Park were in Sherrin Woods, at Dell Rock, on West Street and at Sprague Pond.
The summer partnership with Microgreens was a great learning experience for our leaders who assisted with Farmers markets in Hyde Park and other regions, while recruiting Hyde Park families experiencing food scarcity by installing free raised garden beds on their properties.
Green Team work projects this summer included:
Sherrin Woods
Glass and trash removal around entrances and around Pine Rock, removed invasive species in the woods and meadow, did trail hardening to prevent flooding of trails when it rains, created trenches and installed water bars on sloping trails to prevent runoff, soil erosion; and built habitat piles for small animals and insects from woody invasive plants they removed.
Beautification projects you may notice around Sherrin woods are painted rocks or signage like the sign above welcoming you to Sherrin woods, reminding you to clean up after yourself or watch out for poison ivy. They finished the summer off by building new bench using old tree stumps and logs they found in the woods. The bench is located near the base of Pine Rock and it includes a finished look complete with a path.
Other projects by location:
West St – pruned and cleared an area to extend a trail in the future.
Dell Rock – the youth dug trenches and inserted waterlogs to prevent soil erosion on the sloped trails. They added wood chips and rock to make the trail around the rock more inviting and accessible. The Team also removed a large amount of yard waste that presented a fire hazard.
Sprague Pond –The Team met with Joe Bagley, the City’s archeologist to learn about the history of the Massachusett Tribe and the 54th regiment; and about the process that the city will use to do an archeological assessment of the site. The youth also did pruning and invasive removal near the entrance. Going forward the Green Team will help with restoration, monitor the site, and report to the Parks Department on its condition.