WHAT CAN I DO?
Get Involved!
Each person can play a part in conserving our natural resources and contributing to water quality efforts. Learn more about citizen science opportunities in Greenville and environmentally friendly certifications.
→ Download the Conservation Checklist!
Conservation Practices
Citizen Science Programs
Citizen Science
South Carolina Adopt-a-Stream (SC AAS) volunteers can play an important role in monitoring and tracking water quality while sharing information about local water resources with their communities. In providing baseline information about stream conditions, volunteers, local communities, educators, and local government agencies can partner to protect and restore our waters. You do not need to be an environmentalist, fisherman, or scholar to join this effort. All are welcome to find more information, seek training, and add to the knowledgebase of river health in South Carolina!
Citizen Science
FrogWatch USA volunteers learn to identify local frog and toad species by their calls during the breeding season and how to report their findings accurately. By mastering these skills, volunteers gain increased experience and control over asking and answering scientific questions which, in turn, augments science literacy, facilitates conservation action and stewardship and increases knowledge of amphibians. Volunteers register a wetland site and make multiple evening visits from February through August to collect data on the calls of frogs and toads. Participating individuals and families learn about the wetlands in their communities and help conserve amphibians.
Conservation Certifications
Certification w/ Optional Course
Clemson Extension's Carolina Yards program seeks to work with residents in creating healthy, watershed-friendly landscapes. Use simple and effective gardening methods to help guide you towards a low maintenance yard that works with nature, rather than against it.
Complete the Carolina Yards Scorecard to have your very own certified Carolina Yard!
Certification
ince 1973, Garden for Wildlife has been educating and empowering people to turn their own small pieces of Earth into thriving habitat for birds, bees, butterflies, and other wildlife. In doing so, people across North America are making a difference in their cities, towns, and neighborhoods—all while deepening their connections to the natural world.
Founded on the belief that everyone can enjoy and protect wildlife where they live, work, learn, play, and worship, the National Wildlife Federation’s Garden for Wildlife programs provide simple steps and resources to create beautiful spaces that make a big impact for local and migratory species, from small window boxes to vast habitat corridors.
Certification Course
The South Carolina Master Gardener Program was designed to use the services of trained volunteers who have horticulture knowledge and a willingness to share that knowledge with others through the Clemson Cooperative Extension Service. To help you decide if you should become a South Carolina Master Gardener, ask yourself these questions:
- Do I want to learn more about growing plants and solving plant problems?
- Am I eager to participate in an intense training program?
- Do I look forward to sharing my knowledge with others?
- Can I commit the time needed to attend the training and serve as a volunteer?
Certification Course
Master Rain Gardener is a certification program focused on rain garden and rainwater harvesting system design and installation. The Master Rain Gardener (MRG) program will provide design standards and the knowledge-based skill set necessary to install rain gardens and rainwater harvesting systems on a residential scale. Rain gardens and rainwater harvesting offer residents and landscape professionals with a management tool for flooding on property, erosion prevention, incorporation of native plants and backyard habitat into the lawn, and the establishment of a low-irrigation landscape. The Master Rain Gardener program is a hybrid, multi-week curriculum allowing for self-paced online learning modules, hands-on field experience, and a two-track option to meet the needs of diverse audiences.