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Week 1 · Nature Detectives · Apprentice (ages 15–18)

The Mystery of the Missing Ducklings

Role: Investigator

Briefing

A small community asks you to draft a biodiversity and conservation brief for one of their parks or natural areas. They will use it to plan the next 5 years. Your brief, Apprentice, becomes a real document a real adult can act on.

Evidence File

  • EX-01Most parks in the U.S. have no current biodiversity baseline.
  • EX-02Native species lists exist for every county — find yours through your state's wildlife department or iNaturalist.
  • EX-03Invasive species cost the U.S. economy over $20B per year.
  • EX-04Restoration projects with community input have 3× the long-term success rate.
  • EX-05A good conservation brief includes: baseline, threats, goals, actions, budget, owners, and review dates.

Weekly Milestones

  1. Day 1
    Select your site. Map its boundaries. Contact a real local steward (park manager, naturalist, master gardener) for a 15-minute interview.
  2. Day 2
    Catalog 25 species using personal observation + iNaturalist data.
  3. Day 3
    Identify 3 priority threats and 3 priority opportunities.
  4. Day 4
    Draft the brief: baseline, threats, 5-year goals, year-1 actions, rough cost estimates, named owners.
  5. Day 5
    Review with a mentor and revise. Submit to a real local steward or post in a local forum.

Your Deliverable — Apprentice

Ages 15–18

2–3 page conservation brief including baseline, threats, 5-year goals, year-1 actions, budget, and ownership table. Delivered to a real local audience.

Other tracks tackle this same case at their own depth — see the catalog.

Rubric

Realism

Every action has a named owner and a defensible cost estimate.

Evidence

Brief cites at least 3 outside data sources.

Community

At least one real adult outside your family read and responded to it.

Quality

Brief is publishable — no jargon, no padding, no excuses.

Badge

Apprentice — Conservation Brief, Bronze

  • ✓Brief delivered to a real local steward.
  • ✓Brief includes baseline, threats, goals, actions, budget, owners.
  • ✓Apprentice received and incorporated at least one piece of outside feedback.

Notes for the Parent / Mentor

This mission is meant to be done with a mentor — a teacher, naturalist, pastor, or grandparent. The point is real-world contact. Even if no agency acts on the brief, the apprentice has done the work of a citizen.