History, Natural History & the Arts
Bird enthusiasts from across New York State are invited to gather in the Adirondacks for a special celebration of birds and the diverse birding community that admire them.
In commemoration of National Black Birders Week, the Adirondack Diversity Initiative (ADI) and John Brown Lives! will host two local events that offer birding opportunities, workshops, presentations, family activities, and more. [Read more…] about National Black Birders Week Adirondack Events
The New York Senate and Assembly have passed their “one-house” budget bills and Adirondack Park advocates are watching annual negotiations with the Governor to see how their budget priorities are reflected in Northern New York.
Adirondack Council Executive Director Raul J. Aguirre called the proposals a “commitment to clean water funding, wilderness and visitor-use management, climate data collection, and crucial training programs for next-generation leaders.” [Read more…] about North Country Proposals in the Proposed State Budgets
Adirondack Park advocates are applauding the New York State Senate and Assembly for proposing increased funding for the Adirondack Park in their FY2027 one-house budgets.
Both proposals increase the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) and restore and/or enhance support for several Adirondack programs that were reduced or eliminated from Governor Kathy Hochul’s proposed budget. [Read more…] about Legislative Budgets Propose Increased Adirondack Environmental Funding
Bird lovers from across Northern New York are invited to celebrate the beauty of birds, nature, and the regional community of Black birders this weekend. In honor of the sixth annual Black Birders Week, the Adirondack Diversity Initiative (ADI) and John Brown Lives! will host a special day of birding at the John Brown Farm State Historic Site near Lake Placid, NY this Saturday, May 31, 2025. [Read more…] about Black Birders Celebration Set for May 31 at John Brown Farm
The NYS Legislature and Gov. Kathy Hochul have approved a state budget that boosts the Environmental Protection Fund by $25 million to a record level of $425 million, while also providing $500 million for municipal clean water projects/septic system replacement, funding for a comprehensive study of climate impacts on Adirondack lake ecosystems, and a new recreation carrying-capacity study for the popular Saranac Chain of Lakes. Adirondack history and diversity efforts have also been given a boost. [Read more…] about Adirondack History, Diversity, Environment Efforts Funded by State Budget
The Adirondack Diversity Initiative Symposium, Creating Inclusivity in North Country Communities, will take place on Tuesday, November 12, 2024, from 10 am to 3:30 pm at Paul Smith’s College VIC, in Paul Smiths, New York. [Read more…] about Adirondack Diversity Initiative 2024 Symposium Set for November 12th
The Adirondack Council thanked Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie for working with Gov. Kathy Hochul to restore what they call key Adirondack priorities in the $237-billion state budget, including money for scientific research and municipal clean water projects. [Read more…] about Most Adirondack Priorities Restored in State Budget
The New York State Senate and Assembly have proposed budgets that will restore funding for critical programs in the Adirondack Park, adds potential funding for road salt management, but leaves out funding for the carrying capacity study required for the Saranac Chain of Lakes. The proposed budgets provide significant funding for Adirondack programs that were reduced or eliminated from the Governor Kathy Hochul’s proposed budget. [Read more…] about Legislative Budget Would Restore Funding for Adirondack Park Initiatives
Members from 17 different Adirondack organizations, over 100 in all, came from all over the state to meet with more than 60 state legislative offices during Adirondack Park Lobby Day on February 26th. The coalition was advocating for state funding and policy advancements for the Adirondack Park and State Forest Preserve. [Read more…] about Adirondack Park Lobby Day Held in Albany
The nonprofit advocate Adirondack Wild: Friends of the Forest Preserve will host its Annual Meeting of Members and Friends at on Friday October 6, 2023, at Newcomb’s Visitor Interpretive Center (VIC) in the Adirondacks in Essex County, NY. [Read more…] about Adirondack Wild Annual Meeting Set, Awardees Named
On Saturday, September 16th at noon there will be a public unveiling of a historic roadside marker to celebrate the recent naming of John Thomas Brook. The new name pays homage to 19th-century Black settler John Thomas.
Thomas escaped enslavement in Maryland and established a successful farm near the small stream in Vermontville that was formerly known pejoratively as “N***** Brook,” then as “Negro Brook.” Thomas, his wife Mary, and their son, Richard, are buried in Union Cemetery in Vermontville, in Franklin County, NY. [Read more…] about Ceremony To Celebrate Renaming Adirondack Stream in Honor of Black Settler
The Adirondack Council called on the New York lawmakers to prioritize wilderness preservation, climate protection measures, clean air across the state and incentives that boost diversity in the Adirondack Park’s workforce, visitors and residents, in its testimony on Governor Kathy Hochul’s FY2023/24 budget proposal. [Read more…] about Adirondack Council Identifies NYS Budget Priorities
The Adirondack North Country Association (ANCA) has announced the hire of the new director of the Adirondack Diversity Initiative (ADI). Tiffany Rea-Fisher, who has extensive leadership experience in the arts, activism and community organizing, will be the second director of ADI, an ANCA program that aims to make the Adirondack region a more welcoming and inclusive place for residents and visitors. [Read more…] about New Director for Adirondack Diversity Initiative
Leaders of Adirondack environmental organizations joined with local elected officials Tuesday to urge Governor Kathy Hochul not to mothball the former Moriah Shock Incarceration Facility in Essex County, NY, as is planned by December 31, but instead to reuse it to bolster conservation and boost employment.
The leaders said there were several possible options that would bring new life to the structure. Reuse would help a small Adirondack community recover from the job losses and lost business opportunities associated with the closure of a state institution, they said. They also pointed to several recent state initiatives that would benefit from an additional state building in the Adirondacks, from which to offer training and housing. [Read more…] about Adirondack Advocates, Officials, Seek Reuse of State Prison
The Adirondack North Country Association (ANCA) has announced that Nicole Hylton-Patterson is stepping down from her role as director of the Adirondack Diversity Initiative after nearly three years heading the program.
ANCA said it convene a hiring committee made up of members of the economic development organization’s board and staff, as well as ADI Core Team members, to conduct a search for a new director. Hylton-Patterson’s final day as ADI Director is Friday, October 14th, 2022. [Read more…] about Adirondack Diversity Initiative Director Steps Down
In a letter to all law enforcement and local government officials in the Adirondack region, the Adirondack Diversity Initiative (ADI) announced its Community Policing Initiative, designed to help local law enforcement meet the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) requirements of Governor Cuomo’s Executive Order 203: New York State Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative. [Read more…] about Adirondack Diversity Initiative Offers Policing Program
Adirondack Wild: Friends of the Forest Preserve has awarded Nicole “Nicky”’ Hylton-Patterson, the executive director of the Adirondack Diversity Initiative, their 2020 Wild Stewardship Award in recognition of her initiating and elevating difficult conversations about race, shared power, and influence in the Adirondack region over the past year. [Read more…] about Adirondack Diversity Director Receives Stewardship Award
North Country Community College, the Adirondack Diversity Initiative and the Adirondack North Country Association are collaborating to present a series of timely and necessary online programs that shine light on Black History in the Adirondacks. [Read more…] about Adirondack Black History Virtual Programs In August
Thousands have gathered for peaceful protests across Northern New York in recent weeks, as people and communities seek ways to engage in the broader national movement for racial justice.
In response, the Adirondack Diversity Initiative (ADI), in partnership with the Adirondack North Country Association (ANCA), will host a series of virtual “Listen-in” and “Teach-in” sessions focused on mobilizing the community on issues of racial equity and transformational justice in America. [Read more…] about Adirondack Anti-racism Online “Listen-in” Series
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