Interview with Eric Powers, Your Connection To Nature
For as long as he can remember, Eric Powers loved playing with turtles, salamanders, snakes, and bugs. Today, Powers heads and works full-time for Your Connection To Nature (YC2N), a Long Island-based company that he started in 2003 to help city dwellers appreciate and gain a deeper respect for nature. “My mission is to save the Earth by helping save plants and animals from extinction,” Powers boldly states. “I do this through education, by showing people animals and taking them into nature.”
As a child in Greeley, Colorado, Powers was only allowed to keep bugs and reptiles as pets if they did not cost his parents money to maintain them. That is when he began interacting with nature in a strong, fun, educational manner. He remembers having to care for his first pets, saying “it not only made me more responsible but made me learn about the ecology of the animals without even realizing it. I had to learn exactly what it ate and go out and catch it.”
Powers, through YC2N, offers several wilderness trips, live animal shows, and many other programs in the NY area. According to his website, YC2N.com, Powers promotes reconnecting with nature because it “can teach us lessons about ourselves, our religious beliefs, and help us keep perspective in our lives.”
“I often tell people that if you take away all of nature, people die.” Powers explains, “but if you take away all the people, nature thrives. I think that really helps people understand my message.”
-By Tamir Elterman, student at NYU
Zachary Paiva graduated from Stony Brook University in 2018 with his B.A. in Ecosystems and Human Impact. In his time involved with environmental conservation he has engaged in many projects. He has tagged horseshoe crabs, tracked down terrapin turtles, waded through muck to pull out the invasive water chestnut from the Peconic Estuary, installed native habitat gardens and other adventures. Now he works with Your Connection to Nature to help organize and run programs.
Michelle Truitt obtained a double major Bachelor’s degree in Biology (Marine) / Zoology with a minor concentration in Wildlife Management.
Michelle is an experienced biologist focusing on zoological, marine, and ornithological rehabilitation, education, research, and conservation. She has designed and conducted various research projects implementing skills including radio telemetry, animal handling, small boat handling, and drift netting. These projects covered species ranging from Feather Boa Kelp, to salamanders, to Roosevelt Elk, and various bird species.
Through ecological and biological educational presentations and tours, along with daily personal sustainable practices she strives to ensure the continuation of the connections in nature.
Michelle is a proud member of the Your Connection to Nature Team!
Michelle is an experienced biologist focusing on zoological, marine, and ornithological rehabilitation, education, research, and conservation. She has designed and conducted various research projects implementing skills including radio telemetry, animal handling, small boat handling, and drift netting. These projects covered species ranging from Feather Boa Kelp, to salamanders, to Roosevelt Elk, and various bird species.
Through ecological and biological educational presentations and tours, along with daily personal sustainable practices she strives to ensure the continuation of the connections in nature.
Michelle is a proud member of the Your Connection to Nature Team!
Meet some of Ranger Eric's Animal Ambassadors...
Photo credits go to the amazingly talented photographer, David Rosenzweig (IG: @davidrphoto)
