MEDIA – Natural Lands Trust (NLT) is accepting applications for its fourth “Force of Nature” volunteer training program, which educates and trains participants to serve as volunteer project leaders and ambassadors for the regional land conservation organization, a trust news release said.

“More than 60 years ago, a group of volunteers who were passionate about our region’s wild places founded Natural Lands Trust,” said Molly Morrison, president of Natural Lands Trust. “To honor their legacy, we established the Force of Nature volunteer program in 2011.”

Force of Nature is a comprehensive, hands-on training and service experience through which participants learn natural resource management and outreach skills from Natural Lands Trust’s experts, and then give back as a valued volunteer. Over the course of five training sessions, Force of Nature participants learn about tree planting and care, habitat management, invasive plant identification and removal, bluebird nest box building and monitoring, and more, the release said.

Following their training, graduates are asked to dedicate at least four hours per month for a minimum of five months at one (or more) of Natural Lands Trust’s 42 nature preserves, including the Binky Lee Preserve in Chester Springs and the Sadsbury Woods Preserve in Coatesville. The preserves are located throughout suburban Philadelphia, the Poconos, and the New Jersey bay shore. In its first three years, more than 80 people have joined Force of Nature, the release said.

“Being involved in Force of Nature allows me to channel my passion for the environment and help others gain a better appreciation for nature,” says program graduate Brian Delphus.  “And I’ve made some great friends with fellow volunteers who share my love of the natural world.”

Training sessions for the 2014-2015 class will begin in October 2014, and continue through March on the third Saturday of each month (excluding December). A complete training schedule and application are available online at natlands.org/volunteer/force-of-nature. The registration deadline for the 2014-2015 class is Aug. 1. Learn more online, or contact Debbie Beer, engagement manager, at 610-353-5587, ext. 266.