Upcoming Events
The Beach Clean-Up is Back!
Saturday, April 27th 10am-12pm
Celebrate Earth Day by joining together to protect our Island environment – one beach at a time! If you’re a first timer, don’t worry, it couldn’t be easier to participate in this Island tradition. Just come out to your favorite beach from 10 to noon and helpful volunteers will be there with bags and gloves for collecting (or just BYOB and get down to it!). When you’re done, drop off the trash with the volunteer group leader and let them know the strangest things you found – you might win a prize!
Join us at one of these beaches:
Aquinnah: Lobsterville, Philbin, Tribal Beaches
Chilmark: Lucy Vincent, Menemsha, Squibnocket
Edgartown: Felix Neck, Fuller Street, Lighthouse Beach, Norton Point, South Beach (Left and Right fork), State Beach (Bend in the Road), Wasque Point
Oak Bluffs: Eastville Point, Jetty Beach, North Bluff (Pier) Beach, Shellfish Hatchery, State Beach (Little Bridge), Town Beach (SSA to Pay Beach and Inkwell)
Tisbury: Lagoon Pond Landing, Lake St. (Tashmoo) Landing, Owen Little Way, Owen Park, Tashmoo Beach, VH harbor (waterfront from SSA all the way to Shell Station),
West Tisbury: Cedar Tree Neck, Lambert’s Cove, Long Point
EARTH DAY Conservation FESTIVAL
Afterward, join your fellow beach cleaners at the MV Museum for the second annual Earth Day Conservation Festival. The event will be from 12-3 and will replace our traditional Beach Clean-up after party. Thanks to donations from generous local businesses, all Beach clean-up participants will be served a free lunch, with free entry to the Museum! Over 15 local conservation organizations will be there with fun and educational activities, prizes, games, music and, new this year – TRIVIA at 2pm! Watch for answers to trivia questions on social media and at the tables on Earth Day.
TRASH CONTEST
Save the coolest, grossest, most unusual things you find on the beach and bring them to share at the after party at the MV Museum. If you can’t make it, post on Facebook or Instagram and tag @vineyardconservation, or just email us your pics at info@vineyardconservation.org. Fun prizes!
THANK YOU TO:
The haulers: A huge part of pulling off this event every year is moving thousands of pounds of beach trash to its final destination. We are so grateful to the good folks at Bruno’s, the MV Refuse District, and all the Towns’ staff (including DPWs in Edgartown, Oak Bluffs, and Tisbury) who over many years have donated so much of their time, as well as collection and hauling fees to the cause. In addition, this year the VTA is again offering free rides to anyone going to the beach cleanup – hauling our most valuable resource of all!
Beach leaders: Local organizations returning this year to work at designated beaches include the MV Bank, Lagoon Pond Association, Friends of Sengekontacket, Wampanoag Tribe of Aquinnah, Tisbury Waterways Inc., MV Surfcasters Association, Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation, MV Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby Committee, MV Shellfish Group, MV Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts, Felix Neck, Harborview Hotel, and The Trustees.
Event sponsors: Thank you to sponsors MV Bank Charitable Foundation and Mad Martha’s, and to Scottish Bakehouse, Waterside, Mo’s, Great Harbor Market, Back Door Donuts, Cash & Carry, Bobby B’s, and Morning Glory Farm for feeding all our hard-working volunteers!
Thank you all for your participation in this year’s Clean-up!
Library Tour: A Love Song for the Vineyard Lawn
Edgartown, January 30th, 4:30pm
West Tisbury, Feb 10th, 3pm
Chilmark, Mar 13th, 4pm
Vineyard Haven, April 9th, 5:30pm
Oak Bluffs, May (date TBD)
This winter and spring, VCS will be taking our “Love Song for the Vineyard Lawn” presentation on tour across the Island Libraries. Each month from January until May you will have an opportunity to catch this wonderful talk and Q&A. Find out how the simple act of lawn care choices affects everything from our personal health to our community’s water quality to the global climate, along with tips and resources for how to apply the Vineyard Lawn approach in your own backyard.
Beach BeFrienders
Clean-Up Gatherings Now Happening Monthly!
In collaboration with our town Libraries and DPWs, and brought to fruition by dozens of volunteers, VCS has launched an exciting new beach cleanup initiative – Beach BeFrienders!
There are two ways to participate:
1) On the 4th Saturday of every month, a volunteer will be at a pre-selected location with bags and gloves. They will also handle disposal of the trash collected.
2) Or, “BeFriend a Beach” anytime and anywhere you like! Stop by any Island library and pick up one of our special VCS trash stickers (available mid-May), put that on your collected junk, and the transfer stations will take it free of charge.
For more info please email us and sign up today to let us know you’re interested in joining the crew – thank you for helping protect our Island beaches!
Check out the Beach BeFrienders profile in Bluedot Living magazine!
Since launching the program in May 2023, dozens of beaches have been “BeFriended” with at least one gathering, including Philbin, Squibnocket, Inkwell, South Beach, Lambert’s Cove, Eastville, State Beach, Lobsterville, and many more. Thank you to everyone who has pitched in!
Climate Action Fair
Save the Date: Sunday, May 19 at the Ag Hall
PS: The 2024 Art of Conservation opening show and awards presentation will be held during the Climate Fair!
VCS Annual Meeting
Monday, June 24th at the Grange
Join us from 5:30 – 7:30 pm at the historic Grange Hall in West Tisbury for the Annual Meeting of the Membership & Board of Directors of the Vineyard Conservation Society. During the regular business portion of the meeting, Members will have the opportunity to vote on the new slate of Board members, and to hear from Executive Director Samantha Look about how VCS is responding to the growing issues of our Island.
Afterward, we will move to the charming theater space upstairs for a special presentation of the second episode in Ollie Becker’s series of films about the Island’s Great Ponds: Finding a Better Balance. Learn about the problems they face, and solutions we can take, while enjoying magnificent filmography and storytelling. End the evening with a drink and bite to eat, mingling with friends old and new, as we together build a conservation community.
The event is free for VCS Members, $5 for non-members.
Previous / Annual Events
Winter Walks Return!
The always fun and educational VCS Winter Walks return this fall with a new series focused on exploring the Vineyard’s coastal ponds. Get outdoors, take in the Island’s scenic beauty, and learn the conservation history of some of our local ecological treasures.
In addition to sharing some of the most beautiful locations on the Island (many of which are not usually open to the public), this year we hope to highlight the deep connection between past, present, and future land use decisions and the ecological health of the Island’s estuaries.
All walks begin at 10 am unless otherwise noted and usually last about two hours. VCS Winter Walks are free and open to the public – and usually, with cider and cookies afterward, it’s even better than free! Because we sometimes need to limit the total number of attendees, registration is required.
Sign up for the next Winter Walk here!
November 11
Tisbury Great Pond
December 9
Lagoon Pond & Shellfish Hatchery
January 15
Squibnocket Ridge
February 10
Quenames Farm
March 9
Slough Farm & Edgartown Great Pond
Photos: Last year’s Winter Walk at Allen Sheep Farm, and our 2012 Walk at the Frances Newhall Woods Preserve (find more photos here)
Beach Kit Making
Oct. 26th 4-5pm @ the Oak Bluffs Library
Help support the burgeoning Beach BeFrienders movement by joining us for an hour of volunteer work at the Oak Bluffs Library. All ages are welcome and snacks will be provided!
The project will helping to assemble beach clean-up kits to be distributed at Town Libraries. These free kits help make it easy for anyone to “befriend a beach” in between organized BBF outings (see below). Just grab a kit, head to your favorite beach, and drop off the trash at your local transfer station – or save it for the next monthly clean-up!
Harvest Festival
Oct. 21st 10am – 3pm @ the Ag Hall
This fall, the Island community gathers once again at the Ag Hall in West Tisbury for music, pumpkin carving, wagon rides, a hay maze, fiber demos, apple cider pressing, a local wild food challenge, the farmers market, and more. Local nonprofits, including VCS, will be there with all sorts of educational activities for people of all ages. Many details are still TBD, but mark your calendars for the Harvest Festival!
Annual Meeting
of the Membership & Board of Directors
5:30 to 7:30 pm, June 20 @ The Grange in West Tisbury
Please join us at 5:30 pm on June 20th at the historic Grange Hall in West Tisbury for the annual meeting of the VCS Membership and Board of Directors. This year’s meeting will be a special celebration, as we both congratulate Executive Director Brendan O’Neill on his well-earned retirement after 38 years of leadership, and welcome Samantha Look into the role.
The meeting is open to the public, and we encourage everyone who is interested in creating a more sustainable future for our Island to join us and learn about what VCS is up to! (One item on the meeting agenda – voting on the slate of Directors – is limited to VCS Members, as per the bylaws, but it is usually quick.) We hope to see all of you there, in celebration of the past, present, and future of VCS!
Nature as Inspiration
an environmental film festival
May 25 – 28 @ the MV Film Center
Opening Night Toast to Honor Brendan’s Retirement
The ninth edition of our annual film festival collaboration with the MV Film Society returns this Memorial Day weekend with a whole new collection of thought-provoking films, conversations, audience Q&As and more. Check out the Film Society website for the full list of films and events, purchase tickets, or an All Access Pass — it’s going to be a good one!
Please join us Thursday, May 25th starting at 6:30 pm for our Opening Night Reception, featuring a toast to celebrate Brendan O’Neill’s long service to the Island’s conservation community. Help us thank him for his indispensable role in the many significant accomplishments of VCS throughout his 38 years of leadership. Following the Toast, stay for the Opening Night Film, Patrick and the Whale. (Both parts of the event are one combined price – get tickets here.)
No Mow May
Tuesday, May 9 @ the Oak Bluffs Library
Did you ever consider doing less yard work to help the environment? If we let them, our yards can act as extensions of natural ecosystems. On May 9th at 5:30 pm, the Oak Bluffs Library hosts Samantha Look (VCS Director of Advocacy and Education) for a discussion on how home lawn and garden choices impact the protection of native biodiversity. Join us to learn more about the Vineyard Conservation Society’s “Vineyard Lawns” initiative, and how you can apply the Vineyard Lawn approach to your own backyard. For event info email the OB Library.
Great Ponds, Episode 1: On Our Watch
Directed by: Ollie Becker
Produced by: The MV Film Festival & Vineyard Conservation Society
On Our Watch is a brand new short film telling the story of the Island’s coastal ponds: their vital importance, the threats they face, and what we all must do to save them. Beautifully shot and edited by director Ollie Becker, On Our Watch represents the product of a collaboration begun last fall between VCS and The MV Film Festival – and we are now very excited to be able to share it with all of you!
Check back here for announcements of new screening events. Screenings are usually followed by a Q&A session with the film’s creator, Ollie Becker, and other guests, including Emily Reddington of Great Pond Foundation and Jeremy Houser from VCS.
