Intertwine April 2013 Newsletter
Dear Friends,

April showers! At Alliance HQ, we've felt a bit underwater recently -- polishing Our Common Ground (The Intertwine's new promotions campaign), prepping for last Friday's sold-out Spring Summit, welcoming new partners and staff members. But life in The Intertwine means enjoying the sunbreaks, and we have: biking up to Council Crest, perusing our partners' hardy and native plants sales, looking for bitterns at Ridgefield and early morels at Sauvie Island. And now, ahhh...bring on those May flowers!

May call-out: Between our new report -- Our Common Ground 2013 -- and Frank Creative's corresponding promotions campaign, we've been trying a lot of new things lately. Like what you see? Spark any ideas? Want to get involved? We'd love your feedback. Email Ramona
 
Alliance Updates

That's a lot of elbow rubbing. The Portland-Vancouver metro area's proverbial "big tent," The Intertwine Alliance now encompasses 83 partners! We couldn't be happier to welcome our three newest full partners -- Ecology in Classrooms and Outdoors, The Bullitt Foundation, and Columbia Riverkeeper.
 
Speaking of big tents. The World Forestry Center was PACKED (like a winter beehive? like a sac of red-legged frog eggs? like a clutch of greenspace geezers?) for last Friday's Intertwine Spring Summit. Among the many highlights: a rockin' urban forestry panel; the launch of Our Common Ground 2013 and Frank Creative's long-anticipated promotions campaign, and a sweet Greenspace Movement retrospective. Many thanks to everyone joining us on April 26th! And please weigh in (even if you couldn't make it) -- by telling us how we can make the next Summit even better. Take the survey here.
 
Our Common Ground.. The biking beaver, the steelhead in the plaid hat. Get ready to meet the animals of The Intertwine! Over the past many months, we've been working closely with Frank Creative to launch a campaign that supports our partners and their programs while captivating the public. Because we think it's high time the secret got out -- that The Intertwine is free, easy, and right outside your door.
 

.. and the State of The Intertwine. Of course, free isn't exactly free. We still need to manage that stormwater, protect those natural areas, plant those trees. And that's why we produced Our Common Ground 2013 -- an inaugural publication intended to reach our elected and civic leaders. With this annual report, we hope to make the case that no critical infrastructure has the ROI like nature.

Inside scoop on Outside Voice. You may have noticed a lot of blog talk around The Intertwine. Here's the latest: our forthcoming blog now has a shiny new name, chosen (with great difficulty) from the many quality entries in our recent Facebook contest. Congratulations, Nicole B. Schmidt -- winner of a free pair of KEEN shoes and official Namer of the Blog. Look for Outside Voice to launch this month!

Under this big tent, some even bigger plates. Yes, it's true. So much positive momentum can mean biting off a lot to chew. Lucky for us, we've got two fabulous new staff members hungry to help out:
  • In the midst of April's deluge of work arrived our new Program Manager, David Cohen. Like a rescue boater with a headlamp, David threw us a rope and lightened our workloads. Welcome David -- we hope you've got back-up bulbs for that headlamp!
  • Landscape/urban designer and graphic artist Emily Hull also joined our team. Armed with a palette and some serious project management skills, Emily wrangled Our Common Ground 2013 into shape, dressed it up with infographics, and got it to the printer on time..
Intertwine News

Got ballot? As we count down to May 21, support for Measure 26-152 is ramping up with a series of events: May 2nd's Audubon Phone Bank, May 7th's Washington County Democrats Dialing for Natural Areas, May 8th's rally at the Waypost, and more at Restore Our Natural Areas.
 
Love that leaden language. Oregonian columnist Steve Duin may have a few issues with the way we talk about greenways and bioswales, but his love for The Intertwine betrays him. We think he knows, in his heart of hearts, that more sharrows is just another way of saying more sparrows.
 
Adventuretwine. We are putting the finishing touches on our Intertwine Adventure Cards, each showcasing a local adventure packed with nature, food and drink. Due out in May, the set includes adventures like:
  • Walk among waterfowl at Fernhill Wetlands
  • Paddle and walk around historic Oregon City
  • Explore Vancouver's wetlands by bike
  • Connect with nature at Tualatin Hills Park
  • Go for a trail run in Forest Park
  • And remember, you can always peruse our online adventures!
 
Partner Updates
 

World Environment Day45 Days of Success. World Environment Day may be over a month away, but we've been celebrating since April 22nd with your stories of success in sustainability. Partners featured so far include BES, Friends of Trees, Washington County, Clean Water Services and the City of Tigard. Keep up with series on Facebook and Twitter -- and let Irene know if you've got a story to share.


Outdoor Adventure
Nature at play. Opening in 2014, the Portland Children's Museum just-announced Outdoor Adventure will transform 1.3 acres of previously inaccessible Museum land into an intentional, education-based, ADA-accessible outdoor play space. The design -- with planned features like creeks and bouldering, a meadow and tree pods -- focuses on promoting a sense of place in the Pacific Northwest.


Regional Trails FairBlazing trails, breaking ground. From car-less bike rides to glacial blueprints, learn the latest in trails next Thursday at the Third Annual Regional Trails Fair -- held at Metro from 1 to 3:30 p.m. on May 8. Free and open to the public, the fair includes a presentation by Lake McTighe of Metro on "Regional Active Transportation Plan: Priority Walking and Bicycle Routes."


Tacoma Street/Johnson Creek MAX Station Salmon Habitat & Interpretive Boardwalk ProjectThe running of the salmon. Oh, Johnson Creek Watershed Council. Those are some goofy socks in your video. One for Coho and one for trout? Cute -- and thanks for keeping us up to speed on your awesome Tacoma Street/Johnson Creek MAX Station Salmon Habitat & Interpretive Boardwalk Project. After all, Johnson Creek needs salmon runs -- and matching sweat socks, not so much!