We can use your help

Tax deductible contributions to the Green Ribbon Initiative will be used to support education and stewardship work in the Oak Openings Region.

To donate to the Oak Openings Habitat Protection and Restoration Fund, click here.

To donate to the Oak Openings Carbon Offset Fund, click here.

To make a general donation to the Green Ribbon Initiative, click on the donate button below. These funds will go to:




 

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Oak Openings Blue Week is Here! May 16-22

Oak Openings Blue Week 2022 Celebrates Youth in Nature!

Celebrate the arrival of spring with the Green Ribbon Initiative and our partners during Oak Openings Region Blue Week, May 16-22, 2022. Blue Week provides an opportunity to learn about the globally unique Oak Openings region, an area with the highest concentration of rare and endangered species in Ohio. The name Blue Week hails the region’s many blue plants and animals, including Karner blue butterflies, wild blue lupine, bluebirds, blue spotted salamanders, blue herons, and blue racer snakes.

This year we are celebrating youth in nature. Participants can explore the region at one of several organized hikes with a naturalist or discover area gems at their leisure with self-guided tours and activities such as the Blue Week Scavenger Hunt and Oak Openings Photo Contest. Kids will love the story book trail at Black Swamp Conservancy or listening for frogs and playing games the Frogtastic Night event. The whole family can try the many outdoor recreational opportunities and discover a new outdoor passion, regardless of ability, at the Metroparks Toledo Outdoor Expo. Gardeners will want to check out the in-person Blue Week Native Plant Sale to learn more about incorporating native plants into the landscape and to purchase native plants.

For a complete list of activities, locations, and virtual learning opportunities, see http://oakopenings.org/blue-week/.
“Most people think that you need to travel far to see spectacular plants and animals, but we have an abundance of them right here in our backyards in the Oak Openings Region,” says Brittani Furlong, The Nature Conservancy’s Green Ribbon Initiative Partner Specialist. “Oak Openings Blue Week is all about raising awareness and revealing the wonders of our home. We can all feel proud to live in the Oak Openings.”

The Green Ribbon Initiative, is a partnership of public and private organizations, landowners and individuals working to preserve, enhance, and restore critical natural areas in the Oak Openings Region. Click Here to show your support!

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