Strengthen your skills for leading volunteers in natural areas management with this interactive workshop at The Morton Arboretum—and gain the fundamental community organizing skills to recruit, retain, and empower volunteers.
Participants will learn how to:
- Plan and run a productive volunteer workday
- Plan activities such as tree planting, invasive brush removal, and seed collection
- Bring volunteers together using social media, mailing lists, and in-person meetings
This program includes self-paced online components and a live online session.
Instructor: Robb Cleave, volunteer coordinator, Forest Preserve District of Kane County; Trinity Pierce, stewardship manager, Chicago Region Trees Initiative
Continuing education: This class fulfills a requirement for the Natural Areas Conservation Training (N-ACT) Program.
Age: 18 and older
Course number: W510
Instructor
Robb Cleave, volunteer coordinator, Forest Preserve District of Kane County
Cleave has been the Volunteer Coordinator for the FPDKC since 2010, supporting service in natural resources, environmental education, cultural and historic preservation, public safety, and trails and recreation. He loves spending time outdoors as often as possible by cycling, paddling, hiking, and camping with his dog.
Trinity Pierce, stewardship manager, Chicago Region Trees Initiative
Trinity Pierce thrives on leading and learning alongside volunteers in and around green spaces. She has designed and implemented restoration projects from the Mountain West to the Midwest, from rural to urban ecosystems. In her role as the Chicago Region Trees Initiative stewardship manager, she collaborates with communities to increase awareness of the importance and benefits of trees and to foster action through plantings and ongoing maintenance in order to grow a healthier, more diverse urban forest. She holds a master of landscape architecture from the University of Michigan and has a background in history, ecological restoration, and urban green space reconciliation.
What to Know
This program includes an online component you will complete on your own and a live, scheduled Zoom session.
Online Materials
Please provide a unique email address for each registrant at registration. Registrants will receive an email with instructions on how to access TreeLearning, the Arboretum’s online learning portal.
Access to online materials begins at noon on the class start date and is available for 60 days after the start date.
Complete self-paced activities, such as e-learning modules, reading material, short videos, interactive activities, and quizzes to check your understanding. The self-paced activities do not need to be completed in one sitting. Your instructor will not be online with you.
Complete the online component before the scheduled Zoom session. It should take about 90 minutes.
Live Zoom Session
The link to the live Zoom session will be provided via email.
Continuing Education
This class fulfills a requirement for the Natural Areas Conservation Training (N-ACT) Program.
Program Schedule
This program includes a self-paced module online and a live online session.
Sunday, March 1, 2026, noon. Online materials become available.
TreeLearning
Wednesday, March 11, 2026, 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. Meets live online.
Zoom
