Over the past decade I’ve realized that May has become one of my favorite months of the year.  Why?  Although I enjoy the flowers, it’s definitely because that is when the Envirothon takes place, an event I take a lot of pride in being a part of.  The ways in which the Envirothon brings together those in the Massachusetts environmental community with the next generation of environmental stewards is truly unique. 

This annual event in May marks the culmination of a year-long ‘EnviroTrek’ that high-school students and their coaches have committed themselves to from across the Commonwealth.  They have studied a range of environmental topics related to soils, water, forests, and wildlife as well as prepared presentations on current and potential climate change impacts effecting their local communities.

We are excited to be back at Blackstone River and Canal Heritage State Park in Uxbridge.  A big thank you goes out to park staff and the rest of the volunteers, judges, and Envirothon committee members for putting in their time and energy to make this event a success.

Good luck to the teams in today’s activities. Although it is a competition, we hope that you will make time to interact and become friends with other team members, judges, and volunteers.  Many of you may find yourselves working alongside each other to help conserve our environment later in life.  In the end, when it comes to protecting natural resources, we are all on the same team. 

Enjoy the day!

~ Justin Gonsor,, Chair, Massachusetts Envirothon Steering Committee