Youth Conservation Corps begins its season and launches weekly “Nature Nugget”

By Youth Conservation Corps

Nolan Wall, along with other Youth Conservation Corps crew members from San Juan, was pictured working on building a beaver dam analog to slow stream flow and restoring wetlands at Zylstra Lake. Photo credit: Mike Rosekrans

There’s a quiet revolution happening on the San Juan Islands—a kind of homegrown antidote to screen fatigue, isolation, and the growing disconnect between young people and the natural world. It's called the Youth Conservation Corps (YCC). Since 2007, it has been changing the lives of island youth by getting them outside, connected to their peers, and engaged in hands-on ecological restoration.

This summer marks another season of meaningful outdoor work for local teens, and with it, the launch of a new weekly “Nature Nugget” from the YCC crews in the field. These dispatches will share highlights, insights, and stories straight from the trails, forests, and beaches where the crews work.

We begin with the San Juan Island crew’s first project of the season: installing a beaver dam analog at Zylstra Lake in partnership with the San Juan County Land Bank and the Island Conservation Corps.

As veteran YCC crew member Nolan Wall explains, “The YCC is a group of young people ages 12–18 that do conservation-based projects around the San Juan Islands that range from building beaver dam analogs like we are doing today, to picking up trash and debris on beaches, to removing invasive plants on our public lands.”

The project at Zylstra Lake is a perfect example of the kind of work that connects young people with the land—and with each other. By constructing beaver dam analogs, the crew helps mimic the ecological benefits of beaver activity: slowing stream flow, restoring wetlands, keeping soil moist during dry summer months, and supporting native plants like willow, which in turn provide shade for fish, habitat for nesting birds, and more structure for healthy streams to flourish.

“Over the past few years,” Nolan shares, “I’ve developed a sense of achievement from the teamwork,  while improving a lot of amazing  parts of San Juan Island, which is pretty awesome!”

And that’s the heart of YCC. It’s not just about conservation work; it’s about giving kids a rare chance to explore, build confidence, and see their place in the community. This year, YCC has nearly 100 youths participating across three islands, contributing more than 5,000 hours of service to keep our public lands healthy and beautiful.

This vital program is facing a funding challenge. With federal and state funding cuts, YCC is turning to the community for support to close the budget gap. Whether through contributions to the current operating fund or to a newly launched endowment at the San Juan Community Foundation, every dollar helps sustain the program for future generations. Visit https://www.sanjuanislandscd.org/ycc to learn more.

Because when we invest in nature and in our youth, we’re really investing in ourselves. Stay tuned for more stories from the field—and consider giving these kids the chance to keep making a difference.

It is, after all, in our nature.