Natural Resources Trust of Easton Receives $35,000 3Mgives Eco Grant

Natural Resources Trust of Easton Receives 3Mgives Eco Grant. Grant will be used for a new outdoor educational program at NRT’s Sheep Pasture

Natural Resources Trust of Easton has been awarded a $35,000 3Mgives Eco Grant to enhance its educational opportunities for visitors to its Sheep Pasture location on Main Street in Easton, MA. The new program, Sheep Pasture’s NaturePages, will feature a series of free educational interactive stations set throughout the 154-acre conservation property. The stations will cover a variety of environmentally themed topics that will be interesting for visitors of all ages, and the program will also allow teachers from throughout the local area to teach STEM topics by using the outdoors as their classroom with students.

Started in 1967, the Natural Resources Trust of Easton (NRT) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to educate the public about the importance of natural and cultural resources and to preserve land of special character for the benefit of the public. Since 1973 the NRT has been offering environmental education programs for students and families from throughout the local area. Each year, over 4,500 students participate in programming, while thousands of additional visitors enjoy the many events, programs, and outdoor recreational access that NRT provides to the community.  To promote community access to outdoor recreational opportunities, the NRT maintains Sheep Pasture as a property that is open free to the general public throughout the year for recreational uses such as running, birding, dog walking, and even snowshoeing and cross country skiing in the winter. The 3M Gives Eco Grant greatly helps the NRT further its work in community education.

NRT executive director, Jennifer Cummings, says, “ This 3M grant is a wonderful opportunity for the NRT to be able to expand its educational programming. It allows people of all ages to learn more about the Sheep Pasture property, engage with the natural world, and find new ways to be environmentally proactive in their own lives. We are all very excited by the opportunities this new 3M Eco Grant brings to our organization, local students and teachers, and members of the community who visit Sheep Pasture.”

3Mgives is awarding almost $400,000 to 9 organizations with its 2013 Eco Grants, which are aimed at connecting kids to nature and improving environmental and conservation education for youth. Since 2001, 3M’s environmental giving program has invested more than $20 million in sustainability initiatives as part of the company’s vision of improving every life. 

The 2013 grant recipients are nature and environmental learning centers located in communities near a 3M facility. Recipients were selected based on criteria, which include: connecting science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education with outdoor learning opportunities, improving environmental and conservation education, and increasing student visits and teacher preparedness—thereby extending the learning beyond a single visit. 

“3Mgives is committed to improving every life through innovative giving in education, community and the environment. Organizations like the Natural Resources Trust of Easton are helping to connect the future workforce to nature and science as well,” said Kim Price, vice president, 3Mgives. “We are delighted to support the Natural Resources of Easton in its efforts to enhance environmental education.”

For more information, visit www.3Mgives.com. The NRT can be reached online at www.nrtofeaston.org.

About 3M

3M captures the spark of new ideas and transforms them into thousands of ingenious products.  Our culture of creative collaboration inspires a never-ending stream of powerful technologies that make life better.  3M is the innovation company that never stops inventing.  With $30 billion in sales, 3M employs 88,000 people worldwide and has operations in more than 70 countries. For more information, visit www.3M.com or follow @3MNews on Twitter.

About 3Mgives

Since 1953, 3M and the 3M Foundation have invested $1.3 billion in cash and products around the world. 3M’s investment in communities where the company operates reflects the philosophy and practice of the governing principles they have operated by since 1908.  For more information, visit www.3Mgives.com or follow@3Mgives on Twitter.

 
Contacts:

Jennifer Cummings

Natural Resources Trust of Easton

jcummings@nrtofeaston.org

508-238-6049

Jacqueline Berry

3M Public Relations

(651) 733-3611