About Us
This is where your mission statement goes. You do have a mission statement, right? It should be concise, clear, and accurately explain what your organization does. If it doesn’t fit on two lines, it’s probably too long. Here’s an example:
Our mission is to provide comprehensive resources for people of all ages to enjoy the natural world in the Agloe area.
After your mission statement, you can qualify that statement with a little bit of more specific information. You can cover things like the region you serve, the population you serve, or who your stakeholders are. Here’s an example:
Established in 1908, the Agloe Nature Center is the Agloe region’s oldest nature center. We foster the appreciation, preservation, and examination of the natural world that surrounds us.
Goals
You should identify and explain two or three of the primary goals for your organization. Keep it high-level and strategic. These should be in the format of a paragraph explaining a problem and how your organization is effective in addressing that problem. Here are some examples:
Environment focused education
As the area’s oldest nature center, we draw upon a rich history of educational resources and natural habitat to help people of all ages learn about the beautify that surrounds the Agloe area. We provide workshops every month that teach children and adults about the world around us – bird watching, water management, soil composition, mini-farming, and more. We also have the area’s largest federally approved research facility for hands on understanding.
Develop natural resources
Throughout our 50 acres of land, we have cultivated a wide variety of ways to show how sustainability and development can go hand in hand. From our own apiary to installation of solar panels on our main facilities, Agloe Nature Center has been on the forefront of the sustainability movement. We also believe that natural resources extends to our children, so our camps and workshops are available for all school age children.
Local Economic Investment
Through a generous grant from the Agloe Community Foundation, our center has been able to expand our farm land to also become an incubator for various small businesses looking to make a positive impact on our community. We have planted hops to assist local brewers, we have launched a community supported agriculture (CSA) program, and we have started making various products out of the items we grow, such as honey and soap.
Our Work
It can also be useful to provide specific descriptions of the main programs your organization provides. While the previous section discusses problems and solutions at a more strategic level, this section should be used to explain the specific ways you serve your constituency. Here are some examples:
Agloe Historic Farm
Our farm produces a wide variety of products that are either sold to businesses or direct to the consumer. Our hop yard has supplied local breweries, our apiary has created products such as honey and lavender soap, and we have instituted a training program for local farmers and other small businesses on how to harness the power of nature in a sustainable way.
Nature Trails and Fishing
Our 50 acres of land has an abundance of opportunities for schools, families, and other members of our community to enjoy nature in its native state. Trails wind throughout the federally protected lands to ensure that you may enjoy local wildlife, bringing you to our various ponds and lakes to catch and release fish like cod and trout. Fishing is for pleasure only and you may not take the fish home with you.
No Child Left Inside
We are proud to be a member of the No Child Left Inside movement, which aims to bring children connected back to nature. While we proudly offer classes and workshops to learn about nature in a hands on way, we also offer dozens of acres of land specifically dedicated to unstructured play for people of all ages. This approach ensures that imagination and connection to the land is fostered.
Environmental Education
Agloe Nature Center is proud to contribute to education in our community through two major initiatives: scholarships for local agricultural students, and public events that focus on modern issues facing our environmental Scholarships are awarded to area students or undergraduate students following an agricultural focused track. We also have partnerships with several regional extensions to provide discounts to our junior members pursuing agricultural education.