The academic portion of the fellowship is five weeks and includes a combination of classroom sessions, hands-on activities, and field trips.

Though most sessions are taught by PEC’s staff, a number of other professionals and community members lead discussions or serve as panelists. The classroom sessions provide background information on each of the main subjects. The hands-on activities give participants a chance to apply this knowledge and develop practical, real-world skills. The field trips further illustrate the topics presented in the classroom – sometimes showing sound environmental practices in action, or in other cases, showing the negative results of inaction, poor planning, or bad policy.

2023 Fellow holding a juvenile barn owl during a bird banding presentation. *Credit Hugh Kenny/PEC*

Learn from experts with our interdisciplinary lectures

Examples include:

History of Land Conservation
Introduction to Agencies & Land Management at the Local, State & Federal Level
How Local Government Works
Habitat and Stream Restoration
Public Access & Community Engagement
Land Use 101
Land Use, Transportation & Climate Change
Farming / Agriculture
Energy Policy in Virginia
Development 101 for Nonprofits: Where does the money come from?

Enjoy immersive field trips

Examples include:

The Piedmont Memorial Overlook
Gilberts Corner: Conservation & Property Management
Rapidan River Canoe Trip
Visit to a conservation easement property
Walking Tour of Downtown Culpeper
James Madison’s Montpelier
Camping and sunrise hike in Shenandoah National Park

Man paddles a canoe on the Rappahannock River — Fellows canoe on the Rappahannock River. *Credit Hugh Kenny/PEC*

Gain hands-on, practical experience

Examples include:

Mock Board of Supervisors hearing

The PEC land use staff guided the fellows through a simulated hearing while addressing a current land use issue from the region. Each fellow takes on the role of a land developer, concerned citizen, business owner, or a representative from an environmental advocacy group, the chamber of commerce, or the planning commission. PEC staff took on the role of the supervisors, deciding for or against the proposal based on the information presented.

Nonprofit Communications

During the first half of this session, Fellows met with PEC’s Communications staff to learn and ask questions about PEC’s communications toolbox including email, social media, print publications, work with local newspapers and other media outlets, and event-based outreach. Then Fellows were given a research assignment to find a local environmental organization in their communities, then use its website and social media to go on a scavenger hunt for communications tools that the organization is currently using to communicate with its constituents. Fellows reconvened to compare what they discovered about their local organization with what they learned about PEC’s communications tools.

Benthic macroinvertebrate stream sampling

The fellows got an up-close look at Thumb Run, a stream in the Rappahannock River Watershed where extensive work has been done to restore its once badly eroded banks and poor water quality. After a tour and discussion with the property owner, the fellows assessed the health of the stream by taking an inventory of the types and numbers of macroinvertebrates living on the streambed.

Fellows identify macroinvertebrates for a stream health assessment. *Credit Hugh Kenny/PEC*

Explore the conservation field

Over the years, fellows have been able to engage with numerous county governments, state agencies, local businesses, individuals and partner organizations:

African American Historical Association of Fauquier County
Blue Ridge PRISM
Bull Run Mountains Natural Area Preserve
Clarke County Government
Clean Virginia
Clifton Institute
Coalition for Smarter Growth
Culpeper County Government
Culpeper Renaissance Inc.
Fauquier County Government
Friends of the Rappahannock
John Marshall Soil and Water Conservation District
John Foote, attorney with Walsh, Colucci, Lubeley & Walsh, P.C.
Jones Nature Preserve
Land Trust Alliance
Monticello
Montpelier
PATH Foundation
Potomac Vegetable Farm
Quail Forever
Shenandoah National Park
Smithsonian Biology Institute
Sunnyside Farm
The Germanna Foundation
The Land Lawyers
Virginia Conservation Network
Virginia Department of Forestry
Virginia Grassland Bird Initiative
Virginia League of Conservation Voters
Virginia Outdoors Foundation
Virginia Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry
Virginia United Land Trusts
Virginia Working Landscapes