This event is sponsored by the Friends of Schumacher Farm; watch their website for further information.

These regular monthly workdays are sponsored by the Anderson Park Friends; see their website for a description of possible activities and visit their calendar page to let them know if you plan on attending.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Join us at Walking Iron County Park - Beckman Rd. on every 2nd and 4th Tuesday from 9am-noon throughout the year to restore and enhance Pasque Flower Prairie and adjoining project sites at Walking Iron County Park!  

Please RSVP and sign up Here.

This remarkable sand prairie remnant harbors a colorful and diverse collection of native plants, wildlife, and rare prairie invertebrates.  A top priority for workdays will include removing invasive species such as spotted knapweed, sweet clover, and sumac but opportunities will arise for other tasks such as collecting native seeds.  All tools and training will be provided.  Wear long sleeves and pants and bring plenty of drinking water.  Thank you for your help to care for the natural areas in our Dane County Parks!

Join the Clean Lakes Alliance for an ONLINE edition of Yahara Lakes 101 to learn about the issues that impact our lakes! About this Talk We'll hear from representatives of the Friends of Pheasant Branch Conservancy, Dane County, and City of Middleton about the recently purchased, 160-acre farm directly north of Pheasant Branch Conservancy.

The property acquisition is the largest conservation preservation investment in Dane County's history, costing nearly 10 million dollars. Pheasant Branch Conservancy is a natural area owned by the Dane County Parks Department, the City of Middleton, and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. The area is also host to the Friends of Pheasant Branch Conservancy, a dedicated group focused on restoring, protecting, and promoting the conservancy as an ecological whole. The conservancy is a natural area made up of many types of diverse habitats, including wetlands, prairies, and forests. Home to a wide variety of animals and plants, the land contains the headwaters of a stream which flows into Pheasant Branch Creek before it reaches Lake Mendota. Restoring the additional Dane County property to natural prairie will help to improve infiltration of rainwater into the ground. Prairie plants often have better root systems than crops, allowing prairies to absorb the rainwater where it falls instead of running off into the nearest waterway. The deep root systems also hold soil in place, which reduces the amount of sediment lost with runoff. Dane County expects to prevent more than 2.6 million gallons of runoff each year through increased infiltration into the natural landscape.

About our Speakers

• Lloyd Eagan (Friends of Pheasant Branch Conservancy) graduated from Smith College with a degree in Environmental Biology and moved to Madison – the birthplace of limnology – to pursue a master’s degree in Water Resources Management from the University of Wisconsin Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies. After several water quality planning jobs, she became Dane County’s FIRST Lakes and Watershed Coordinator. She spent nearly 35 years working for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, serving more than six years as the regional director of the south-central region, and for the final two years of her career she returned to her water roots and served as Water Leader for the southern half of Wisconsin. She currently serves as the co-president of the Friends of Pheasant Branch Conservancy.
• County Executive Joe Parisi has called Dane County home his entire life. Joe sought out public service as a way to give back to a community that has given so much to him. Joe was first elected as County Executive, the chief elected leader of Dane County, in 2011 after 6 years in the State Assembly and 8 years as Dane County Clerk. Joe’s priority is to ensure that everyone in our community has access to the opportunity to succeed. He believes investing in people pays big dividends. Joe knows this can work because he experienced it. As a teenager, Joe dropped out of high school. He was encouraged to return to education through a community program by people who believed in him. So he worked to earn his GED and went on to MATC (now Madison College) and graduated from UW-Madison with a degree in sociology. Now Joe believes it is his turn to give back to ensure that our children’s generation has access to the same opportunities that were available to him.
• Kenneth Potter (City of Middleton Water Resources Commission) is an Emeritus Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering at the University of Wisconsin. He received a B.S. in Geology from Louisiana State University in 1968 and a Ph.D. in Geography and Environmental Engineering from the Johns Hopkins University in 1976. His teaching and research interests are in hydrology and water resources, and include estimation of hydrological risk, especially flood risk; stormwater modeling, management and design; adaptation of hydrologic design to climate change; assessment and mitigation of human impacts on aquatic systems; restoration of aquatic systems; and sediment and phosphorus control through management of streams, drainage ditches, and wetlands. He has been a member of numerous National Research Council committees, including the Committee on Restoration of the Greater Everglades Ecosystem, the Committee on New Orleans Regional Hurricane Protection Projects, and the Committee on Levees and the National Flood Insurance Program: Improving Policies and Practices. He is a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union and the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a Lifetime National Associate of the National Academies. He is member of City of Middleton’s Water Resources Commission. Event Details

This event will be held online via Zoom. The online talk is free and open to the public. A link to access the talk LIVE will be sent to all registered attendees ahead of the event. Yahara Lakes 101 Lecture Series Yahara Lakes 101 is a series of educational events open to the public and a great chance for residents to learn more about the science behind the issues that affect our lakes. Each month Clean Lakes Alliance feature a different expert to make the science accessible and interesting to non-technical audiences. The series is produced in partnership with the UW-Madison Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, with presenting sponsors First Weber Foundation and Johnson Financial Group, hosting sponsor The Edgewater, supporting sponsor National Guardian Life Insurance Company, and media partner the Isthmus.

This event is hosted by the Friends of Donald Park and the Madison Astronomical Society; watch their websites for details.

Join Bob Bennin, Head Chicken Wrangler, for one of our free Workshops this summer. You will learn how to care for chickens and hear the history of chickens on the farm. Children are welcome. Enjoy the chickens as they free roam the yard. They won't go too far if you're feeding them! No registration required.

Join managers, applicators, and others involved in the world of winter maintenance to learn tips and techniques that can save you time, money, and protect our waters. The workshop will cover pre-storm preparation, application rates, de-icer selection, equipment calibration, and more. The goal of the training is to educate winter maintenance professionals on how to calculate and use the least amount of de-icing materials necessary to keep pavements safe throughout the winter.

At the end of the virtual training you will complete an online Salt Certification exam and have the option of being listed as a certified salt applicator with Salt Wise and on the City of Madison Winter Salt Certification site.

Register Today!

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Join managers, applicators, and others involved in the world of winter maintenance to learn tips and techniques that can save you time, money, and protect our waters. The workshop will cover pre-storm preparation, application rates, de-icer selection, equipment calibration, and more. The goal of the training is to educate winter maintenance professionals on how to calculate and use the least amount of de-icing materials necessary to keep pavements safe throughout the winter.

At the end of the virtual training you will complete an online Salt Certification exam and have the option of being listed as a certified salt applicator with Salt Wise and on the City of Madison Winter Salt Certification site.

This is a Friends of Wisdom Prairie event; see the website for further information.

A large portion of the Rock River Basin consists of wetlands that were converted to croplands. The Actually Restorable Wetland (ARW) map helps locate suitable wetland restoration sites based on both property boundaries and ecological factors. This user-friendly interactive map show’s ARWs in relation to soils, contours, existing wetlands and other map layers that are useful to both private landowners and wetland restorationists.

Registration is FREE! This webibar is hosted by the Rock River Coalition

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Join us at Walking Iron County Park - Beckman Rd. on every 2nd and 4th Tuesday from 9am-noon throughout the year to restore and enhance Pasque Flower Prairie and adjoining project sites at Walking Iron County Park!  

Please RSVP and sign up Here.

This remarkable sand prairie remnant harbors a colorful and diverse collection of native plants, wildlife, and rare prairie invertebrates.  A top priority for workdays will include removing invasive species such as spotted knapweed, sweet clover, and sumac but opportunities will arise for other tasks such as collecting native seeds.  All tools and training will be provided.  Wear long sleeves and pants and bring plenty of drinking water.  Thank you for your help to care for the natural areas in our Dane County Parks!

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

This is a Friends of Wisdom Prairie event; see the website for further information.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Join us at Walking Iron County Park - Beckman Rd. on every 2nd and 4th Tuesday from 9am-noon throughout the year to restore and enhance Pasque Flower Prairie and adjoining project sites at Walking Iron County Park!  

Please RSVP and sign up Here.

This remarkable sand prairie remnant harbors a colorful and diverse collection of native plants, wildlife, and rare prairie invertebrates.  A top priority for workdays will include removing invasive species such as spotted knapweed, sweet clover, and sumac but opportunities will arise for other tasks such as collecting native seeds.  All tools and training will be provided.  Wear long sleeves and pants and bring plenty of drinking water.  Thank you for your help to care for the natural areas in our Dane County Parks!

Join managers, applicators, and others involved in the world of winter maintenance to learn tips and techniques that can save you time, money, and protect our waters. The workshop will cover pre-storm preparation, application rates, de-icer selection, equipment calibration, and more. The goal of the training is to educate winter maintenance professionals on how to calculate and use the least amount of de-icing materials necessary to keep pavements safe throughout the winter.

At the end of the virtual training you will complete an online Salt Certification exam and have the option of being listed as a certified salt applicator with Salt Wise and on the City of Madison Winter Salt Certification site.

This event is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see the race website for further information.

These regular monthly workdays are sponsored by the Anderson Park Friends; see their website for a description of possible activities and visit their calendar page to let them know if you plan on attending.

Dane County Parks - Volunteer Program would like to invite you to our annual Volunteer Appreciation Gathering. This gathering will be held at the Lussier Family Heritage Center, 3101 Lake Farm Road, Madison, WI.

This is our way of saying thanks for the many, many hours you have given to support Dane County Parks over the past year. Take this opportunity to meet other volunteers, relax, eat and enjoy. We will be providing dinner along with beverages.  You are welcome to bring your own beverage of choice.

Please come join us and bring your partner, spouse and children.

Please RSVP on Signup by Thursday, 9/10/2020 so we have time to purchase the provisions.

Hope you can join us!

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

This is a Friends of Wisdom Prairie event; see the website for further information.

This event is sponsored by the Friends of Schumacher Farm; watch their website for further information.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Join us at Walking Iron County Park - Beckman Rd. on every 2nd and 4th Tuesday from 9am-noon throughout the year to restore and enhance Pasque Flower Prairie and adjoining project sites at Walking Iron County Park!  

Please RSVP and sign up Here.

This remarkable sand prairie remnant harbors a colorful and diverse collection of native plants, wildlife, and rare prairie invertebrates.  A top priority for workdays will include removing invasive species such as spotted knapweed, sweet clover, and sumac but opportunities will arise for other tasks such as collecting native seeds.  All tools and training will be provided.  Wear long sleeves and pants and bring plenty of drinking water.  Thank you for your help to care for the natural areas in our Dane County Parks!

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

This is a Friends of Wisdom Prairie event; see the website for further information.

Join us for the 16th Annual Harvest Moon Festival held every year at the beautiful Lussier Family Heritage Center.

Harvest Moon features a torchlit prairie trail with nature-based and recreational stations such as live critters, kids tree climb, bears, bats, tractors, and so much more.  Inside the Heritage Center, the Friends host a silent auction of locally sourced items.

Enjoy live music and autumnal treats - chili, homemade pie and other goodies - alongside a roaring bonfire.

If you're interested in volunteering to help with the event, please visit this link for available spots.

Join managers, applicators, and others involved in the world of winter maintenance to learn tips and techniques that can save you time, money, and protect our waters. The workshop will cover pre-storm preparation, application rates, de-icer selection, equipment calibration, and more. The goal of the training is to educate winter maintenance professionals on how to calculate and use the least amount of de-icing materials necessary to keep pavements safe throughout the winter.

At the end of the virtual training you will complete an online Salt Certification exam and have the option of being listed as a certified salt applicator with Salt Wise and on the City of Madison Winter Salt Certification site.

Welcome to the 11th annual Indian Lake Trail Run, featuring a 7k and 12k, plus a 1k kids fun run. The 2020 event takes place on Saturday, October 3 at Indian Lake county park, 25 minutes northwest of Madison, Wisconsin. There is no race-day registration. The kids fun run is free with no need to pre-register. Join us for a morning of trail fun, food, music, and more! For information including mail-in registration, directions to the park, course maps, updates, and other news, visit the race website at www.friendsofindianlake.org.

All proceeds from the Indian Lake Trail Run fund projects at the park. Money raised by the race has been used to restore and expand the park's prairie, savanna, and sedge meadow, enhance Indian Lake's fishery, construct a children's play structure near the new shelter, and maintain trails throughout Indian Lake and Halfway Prairie.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

These regular monthly workdays are sponsored by the Anderson Park Friends; see their website for a description of possible activities and visit their calendar page to let them know if you plan on attending.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Join us at Walking Iron County Park - Beckman Rd. on every 2nd and 4th Tuesday from 9am-noon throughout the year to restore and enhance Pasque Flower Prairie and adjoining project sites at Walking Iron County Park!  

Please RSVP and sign up Here.

This remarkable sand prairie remnant harbors a colorful and diverse collection of native plants, wildlife, and rare prairie invertebrates.  A top priority for workdays will include removing invasive species such as spotted knapweed, sweet clover, and sumac but opportunities will arise for other tasks such as collecting native seeds.  All tools and training will be provided.  Wear long sleeves and pants and bring plenty of drinking water.  Thank you for your help to care for the natural areas in our Dane County Parks!

This is a Friends of Wisdom Prairie event; see the website for further information.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

This event is sponsored by the Friends of Schumacher Farm; watch their website for further information.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Join us at Walking Iron County Park - Beckman Rd. on every 2nd and 4th Tuesday from 9am-noon throughout the year to restore and enhance Pasque Flower Prairie and adjoining project sites at Walking Iron County Park!  

Please RSVP and sign up Here.

This remarkable sand prairie remnant harbors a colorful and diverse collection of native plants, wildlife, and rare prairie invertebrates.  A top priority for workdays will include removing invasive species such as spotted knapweed, sweet clover, and sumac but opportunities will arise for other tasks such as collecting native seeds.  All tools and training will be provided.  Wear long sleeves and pants and bring plenty of drinking water.  Thank you for your help to care for the natural areas in our Dane County Parks!

Join managers, applicators, and others involved in the world of winter maintenance to learn tips and techniques that can save you time, money, and protect our waters. The workshop will cover pre-storm preparation, application rates, de-icer selection, equipment calibration, and more. The goal of the training is to educate winter maintenance professionals on how to calculate and use the least amount of de-icing materials necessary to keep pavements safe throughout the winter.

At the end of the virtual training you will complete an online Salt Certification exam and have the option of being listed as a certified salt applicator with Salt Wise and on the City of Madison Winter Salt Certification site.

Join managers, applicators, and others involved in the world of winter maintenance to learn tips and techniques that can save you time, money, and protect our waters. The workshop will cover pre-storm preparation, application rates, de-icer selection, equipment calibration, and more. The goal of the training is to educate winter maintenance professionals on how to calculate and use the least amount of de-icing materials necessary to keep pavements safe throughout the winter.

At the end of the virtual training you will complete an online Salt Certification exam and have the option of being listed as a certified salt applicator with Salt Wise and on the City of Madison Winter Salt Certification site.

This is a Friends of Wisdom Prairie event; see the website for further information.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Join us at Walking Iron County Park - Beckman Rd. on every 2nd and 4th Tuesday from 9am-noon throughout the year to restore and enhance Pasque Flower Prairie and adjoining project sites at Walking Iron County Park!  

Please RSVP and sign up Here.

This remarkable sand prairie remnant harbors a colorful and diverse collection of native plants, wildlife, and rare prairie invertebrates.  A top priority for workdays will include removing invasive species such as spotted knapweed, sweet clover, and sumac but opportunities will arise for other tasks such as collecting native seeds.  All tools and training will be provided.  Wear long sleeves and pants and bring plenty of drinking water.  Thank you for your help to care for the natural areas in our Dane County Parks!

This is a Friends of Wisdom Prairie event; see the website for further information.

These regular monthly workdays are sponsored by the Anderson Park Friends; see their website for a description of possible activities and visit their calendar page to let them know if you plan on attending.

This event is sponsored by the Friends of Schumacher Farm; watch their website for further information.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Join us at Walking Iron County Park - Beckman Rd. on every 2nd and 4th Tuesday from 9am-noon throughout the year to restore and enhance Pasque Flower Prairie and adjoining project sites at Walking Iron County Park!  

Please RSVP and sign up Here.

This remarkable sand prairie remnant harbors a colorful and diverse collection of native plants, wildlife, and rare prairie invertebrates.  A top priority for workdays will include removing invasive species such as spotted knapweed, sweet clover, and sumac but opportunities will arise for other tasks such as collecting native seeds.  All tools and training will be provided.  Wear long sleeves and pants and bring plenty of drinking water.  Thank you for your help to care for the natural areas in our Dane County Parks!

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

This event is sponsored by the Friends of Schumacher Farm; watch their website for further information.

This event is sponsored by the Friends of Schumacher Farm; watch their website for further information.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Join us at Walking Iron County Park - Beckman Rd. on every 2nd and 4th Tuesday from 9am-noon throughout the year to restore and enhance Pasque Flower Prairie and adjoining project sites at Walking Iron County Park!  

Please RSVP and sign up Here.

This remarkable sand prairie remnant harbors a colorful and diverse collection of native plants, wildlife, and rare prairie invertebrates.  A top priority for workdays will include removing invasive species such as spotted knapweed, sweet clover, and sumac but opportunities will arise for other tasks such as collecting native seeds.  All tools and training will be provided.  Wear long sleeves and pants and bring plenty of drinking water.  Thank you for your help to care for the natural areas in our Dane County Parks!

These regular monthly workdays are sponsored by the Anderson Park Friends; see their website for a description of possible activities and visit their calendar page to let them know if you plan on attending.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Join us at Walking Iron County Park - Beckman Rd. on every 2nd and 4th Tuesday from 9am-noon throughout the year to restore and enhance Pasque Flower Prairie and adjoining project sites at Walking Iron County Park!  

Please RSVP and sign up Here.

This remarkable sand prairie remnant harbors a colorful and diverse collection of native plants, wildlife, and rare prairie invertebrates.  A top priority for workdays will include removing invasive species such as spotted knapweed, sweet clover, and sumac but opportunities will arise for other tasks such as collecting native seeds.  All tools and training will be provided.  Wear long sleeves and pants and bring plenty of drinking water.  Thank you for your help to care for the natural areas in our Dane County Parks!

This weekly Tuesday morning work group is sponsored by the Friends of Donald Park; see their website for further information, and please let them know at contact@donaldpark.org if you're planning on attending.

Presented by the Four Lakes Traditional Music Collective, the Sugar Maple Music Festival is a two-day outdoor festival in Madison, WI exploring American roots music. Performances, workshops, and jams are held concurrently at three stages. The mainstage features bluegrass, Cajun, Americana, county and old-time music performed by regional and national artists.  The Roots & Reasons stage offers a more intimate setting for festival attendees to interact with the artists through interviews, discussions, workshops and demonstrations. Interviews with performers allow festival attendees to learn about the history, culture, and techniques of the music. And the jam tents offer festival attendees the opportunity to play music side-by-side with some of the mainstage performers.  Attendees of all skill-level are encouraged to bring their instruments and join in! This family-friendly festival is free for kids 17 and under.  David Landau performs music for kids on both Friday and Saturday and the Wild Rumpus Circus Camp offers young children’s activities on Saturday afternoon.