At IslandWood, we’re lucky to be surrounded not only by the beauty of nature but also by the dedication and hard work of those who protect and share it. IslandWood Senior Naturalist and Community Education Manager Christina Woolf is a great example of this commitment. After moving to Bainbridge Island in 2005, following a stint as a naturalist on a Florida island, Christina was new to the Pacific Northwest’s ecosystems—she didn’t yet know a Douglas-fir from a Grand fir. Armed with field guides and a deep curiosity, she began her IslandWood journey as a docent and AmeriCorps volunteer. Now, 18 years later, Christina is a certified Master Naturalist. We sat down with her to hear more about her remarkable path and what this milestone means for her work.

What prompted you to get certified?

Given Washington’s outdoor ethos, it was surprising that our state was one of only a few in the US that didn’t have a Master Naturalist program.  Our neighbors in Oregon, Idaho and California do, and so it was with great enthusiasm I saw that Washington State University had started their program.  I signed up and was in the second class.

The certification process was robust and the kind of academic challenge I was looking for in my career.  There were peer-reviewed modules on Ecology, Scientific Inquiry, and the Ecoregions of Washington, as well as four different water ecosystem modules, field learning and volunteer service with a partner organization.  I spent my volunteer time planting trees with families in Silverdale and leading Kitsap Salmon Tours along Clear Creek.

What are your plans now that you’re certified?

I plan to bring fresh energy and attention to some of my new connections that came out of my participation with this program.  For starters, it was awesome to feel more connected to Kitsap Peninsula, and we already have fun stuff in the works for y’all with new partnerships with Kitsap Environmental Coalition, Kitsap County Parks, and the Great Peninsula Conservancy.  More to come on that!

Where is your happy place?

I knew I was going to be an environmental educator after working as a zookeeper over twenty years ago.  Many of my colleagues would say, “Oh, I like animals more than I like people.”  I never felt that way!  People, after all, are fancy apes, and we are an incredible species capable of such cooperation and kindness and innovation.  I love looking for rough-skinned newts on the trail with my students, or inspecting a new mushroom, or gazing up above Mac’s Pond when the ospreys go by.  I’m a bonafide total nerd with INaturalist and recommend it to everyone.  All of this would be an intellectual endeavor by myself, but I’m not a research scientist – I’m an educator, and sharing the thrill and wonder of discovery with thousands of folks each year is my happy place! I love to watch the “fancy apes” go bananas when we turn over a log and find a salamander, or when we pick juicy salmonberries together on the trail.  Find me at the corner of ecological study and community.  That’s where my joy lives.

I’m super grateful to have had such excellent mentors and friends over the years who have been generous with their teachings and inclusive in their practice such as Dr. Dennis Paulson, Phoebe Goit, the late Dr. Olaf Ribeiro, our event partners at Kitsap Peninsula Mycological Society and the Bainbridge Island Land Trust and countless docents and students over the years!  These folks have delighted me with their inquiry, perspective and insights and I am so thankful for their support.  Onward!