On the morning of October 28, Campolindo students gathered around a trailhead near the bottom of Mount Diablo to learn about conservation and helping the environment. Every year “Save Mount Diablo,” a nonprofit organization in Walnut Creek, hosts a work day where students from Campolindo can come and work with SMD employees to learn about the importance of conserving the land on Mount Diablo and helping the environment around it as well.

The students gathered around in a circle a short distance away from where they initially met. They were provided with snacks like Cliff Bars and tangerines while the directors went over what the day was going to be like.

The students were separated into two groups, one group staying at the current location to do volunteer work like pulling weeds or planting, while the other group went on a short hike up a hill to spend 30 minutes journaling in nature. Then after lunch, these groups would swap activities.

When the volunteers went on a hike up the hill, they spent a little bit of time together discussing what nature is to them and what their place is in nature. Then, the students would all separate and individually find a tree where they would sit by themselves with a journal provided by SMD, and answer the questions of what nature is and what their place is in nature, for themselves. “My job is to teach my own children and my students about nature and get them in nature so they also learn and grow to love it,” said science teacher Katherine Guy.

For the volunteer aspect, students were pulling out invasive plant species from the river nearby. “It’s good to expose [students] to some community service and activities that they can do to help the environment,” said Guy.

Not only did the students benefit by helping nature, but they also were able to enjoy time with their friends and classmates. “I love seeing all my classmates outside of school and having the ability to work outside in nature,” said Junior Noor Ahmed.

This opportunity given to Campo students is one they should all try to take. “I enjoyed getting to go outside into a part of Mount Diablo that wasn’t generally open to the public. I thought it was fun to go and hike with many of my friends from school that would not normally want to go outside into nature,” said Junior Emory Hsiao.

Students experiencing nature and giving back yields many benefits for the way they interact with nature around them and with our community.