Howard’s Spring Welcome Walk

To welcome in the spring season, Howard University’s National Park Trust College Ambassadors decided to host a peaceful, rejuvenating walk in our local park, Rock Creek Park. Rock Creek Park spans 1,754 acres, so we went to Picnic Grove 1, a different area of the park than our clean-up event. It was beautiful, with lots of families, friends, and pets enjoying the newly warming weather. The grove was surrounded by forested hills, picnic tables, and the calming waters of Rock Creek.

The event was a collaboration between Mycelium Network and Theta Eta Epsilon, two student organizations focused on environmental justice. We felt that connecting with nature and mindfulness are important aspects of environmental justice, which inspired this event.  We had 16 attendees, which created a large, close-knit group. We used public transport to travel to the park, and started our event off with introductions and games to break the ice. Then, I (Kiera) led the group in a guided meditation, allowing students the chance to connect deeply with nature and de-stress. After the guided meditation, we walked through the park trails, admiring Rock Creek and the birds and plants we observed. We walked to the top of a trail, taking in a beautiful view, then returned to the picnic area for lunch. Then, we provided lunch to our fellow students and enjoyed a relaxing meal in the park.

I felt very happy spending time relaxing with students and providing a safe space for them to de-stress before finals season. Students also mentioned that it was good to connect with nature and bond across organizations. The National Park Trust’s support made this event possible, enabling us to provide free lunches and complimentary water bottles to all our attendees. Overall, it was an amazing event and paved the way for further collaboration between the two environmental student organizations.