Greetings!
We hope that you had a restful Thanksgiving last week. We are feeling very thankful for you and all that you do to support your communities in the collection and sharing of phenology data and information.
On a more sober note, we have recently experienced some difficult and bittersweet staff transitions here at the USA-NPN. Education Coordinator LoriAnne Barnett is leaving her post after ten years with the USA-NPN. LoriAnne's strategic vision and commitment to relationships and community-building shaped the Education Program, led to the creation of Local Phenology Programs, and inspired a Community of Practice to enable the sharing of ideas. You can read LoriAnne's full note on her departure and what's next for her here. Join us in wishing her the best! And please know that we remain committed to supporting all of the wonderful individuals that she has engaged over the years and all of the Local Phenology Programs that she helped to launch.
Due to decreases in funding, we also recently lost several other wonderful long-time team members, including Data Product Coordinator Kathy Gerst, Participant Services Specialist Sara Schaffer, and Application Systems Analyst Kevin Wong. Their creativity, vision, and dedication to the field of phenology has shaped the USA-NPN into what it is today. Though our team and capacity are dramatically affected by these changes, we remain positive about the organization's future - phenology data and information are critically important to science and society.
Thank you, as always, for being part of our Network.