We're excited to welcome our newest partners to The Intertwine Alliance: the Hoyt Arboretum, KPFF Consulting Engineers, Leach Botanical Garden, OBEC Consulting Engineers, the Oregon Zoo, and Rewild Portland. Check out their websites for more on these inspirational organizations.
Founded in 1928, the Hoyt Arboretum has been dedicated to promoting conservation education and protecting endangered species in our community. The Arboretum, located near the Oregon Zoo, includes 187 acres of more than 5,800 specimen from around the world and approximately 1,100 different species.
KPFF Consulting Engineers has worked on local, national and international projects ranging from parks and recreation to housing for the U.S. Department of Defense. They provided structural engineering, civil engineering and managment consulting for the Classical Chinese Garden in downtown Portland and for the Confluence Project Land Bridge in Vancouver.
The Leach Botanical Garden sits on the former property of John and Lilla Leach, both of whom actively explored botanical gardens in the 1930s. After they left their property with the City of Portland, it opened to the public as a partnership between Leach Garden Friends and Portland Parks and Recreation. In addition to being a popular place to host special events, the facility offers tours and events such as this month's presentation by a retired curator from the Department on Agriculture focused on the transformation of the apple industry.
For nearly 50 years, OBEC Consulting Engineers has successfully provided safe and efficient designs for multi-modal infrastructure -enhancing our region while supporting responsible stewardship of public lands. Currently, the firm is working on three bike/pedestrian projects: Minto Island Bicycle and Pedestrian Bridge in Salem, Bear Creek Greenway Trail in Jackson County, and Middle Fork Willamette River Loop Path in Springfield. The firm recently received the national 2012 PCA Bridge Design Award of Excelllence for the Delta Ponds Pedestrian Bridge in Eugene.
Rewild Portland is a local non-profit organization that focuses on environmental education in Portland and its neighboring wild and rural communities. Their objective is to create cultural and environmental awareness by utilizing earth-based arts, traditions and technologies. "Rewilding" refers to living in a similar lifestyle to those of populations that lived before the innovation of agriculture and industrialization. They offer a variety of youth and adult educational programs that focus on survival and primitive living.
Every fall, the Oregon Zoo recruits students from ages 15 to 17 interested in working with animals to gain training to become a ZAP (zoo animal presenter). The three-year, paid internship program has developed from a collaboration with public and alternative schools, and Portland-area social service agencies.. Approximatley 100 teens apply for 10 open positions every year. Students involved in the program receive training in: natural sciences, animal handling, giving presentations, and being an outdoor educator.
