Virginia Master Naturalist Program 2023 Year in Review

Each year, VMN chapter leaders work hard on annual reports that compile their membership and volunteering statistics and describe some of their most impactful projects from the year. It’s exciting for us to hear about their accomplishments, and it is clear that Virginia Master Naturalist volunteers are continuing to make important impacts in their communities and to benefit Virginia’s waters, woods, and wildlife.

Below, we present some of the 2023 data through a table of quantitative outputs and an impact statement that will be submitted to Virginia Cooperative Extension and other sponsors. To learn about more stories of volunteers and their projects, check out our 2023 VMN Program Awards announcement.

2023 Virginia Master Naturalists By the Numbers

​2023 Virginia Master Naturalists contribute to natural resource education, citizen science, and stewardship across the Commonwealth

Relevance

Virginia faces difficult natural resource challenges, such as loss of forestland, impacts of invasive species, pollution of our waterways, and disconnection between people and nature. State and local natural resource agencies need help to address these challenges, and public engagement is critical to their success. At the same time, individual Virginians need opportunities to be actively involved in exploring, caring for, and observing nature in their local communities, both for their own health and wellbeing and for the health of our natural resources. Furthermore, because the most impactful experiences in nature are deeply social, opportunities to connect people with nature through social groups are needed.  

Response

The Virginia Master Naturalist (VMN) program addresses these needs by supporting a statewide corps of volunteers providing education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities. With 30 chapters across Virginia, the program aims to extend the capacities of state and local natural resource organizations to achieve their missions in new ways, engage new audiences, and work towards creating a citizenry more informed about and involved in natural resource conservation and management. The program, because of its chapter-based structure, also promotes learning about, exploring, and stewarding natural areas through social groups. 

In 2023, the program grew to 3,345 enrolled volunteers. VMN chapters offered 30 basic training courses, resulting in 516 newly trained volunteers joining the ranks. Together, VMN volunteers reported more than 235,000 hours of service in Virginia, valued at $7.6 million. More than 1,500 volunteers earned the Certified Virginia Master Naturalist title by completing at least 40 hours of service and 8 hours of continuing education. Since the program’s inception in 2005, more than 7,000 individuals have become trained VMN volunteers, and those volunteers have contributed more than two million hours of service with a value of $57 million to the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Results

Volunteer service hours were completed in four primary areas: education and outreach (52,184 hours; $1.70 million value), stewardship (60,870 hours at more than 600 sites, $1.98 million value), citizen and community science (79,923 hours, $2.60 million), and chapter leadership (42,281 hours, $1.38 million). VMN volunteer contributions in each of these areas resulted in positive impacts, such as restored habitats, new data for use in wildlife and land management, and more Virginians getting connected to nature.

Two noteworthy areas in which VMN volunteers made a difference in 2023 were promoting natural habitats and facilitating opportunities for Virginians to experience and learn about nature. 

VMN volunteers are key contributors to the statewide effort to manage invasive species and promote native plants. In 2023, VMN volunteers helped produce two new regional native plant guides as part of the Plant Virginia Natives campaign. In addition, VMN volunteers created and restored dozens of native plant habitats that are improving ecosystem functions and serving as models for public visitors. Examples included a native plant garden renovation at Mason Neck State Park, a pollinator habitat meadow restoration at Holston Conference Cemetery-Emory & Henry, and a nature trail creation at Historic Smithfield next to the Virginia Tech campus. They also removed invasives from hundreds of additional sites, a first step to restoring habitat. Also in 2023, VMN volunteers assisted the Clifton Institute’s Virginia Native Seed Pilot Project which engages Virginia farmers in growing native plants for seed production. VMN volunteers’ involvement resulted in a substantial expansion of seed collection in previously underrepresented regions. VMN volunteers also made significant contributions to the Virginia Department of Forestry’s annual acorn collection, helping to produce hardwood trees at state nurseries for reforestation efforts. Both projects address the limited availability of local ecotype native plant seeds that has been a significant barrier to habitat restoration and the promotion of native plants. ​