Vince LaFontan, Flanders Nature Center & Land Trust Executive Director since 2019 has been selected to present at the Association of Nature Center Administrators 2024 national conference at the prestigious Lichterman Nature Center within the Museum of Science & History in Memphis, Tennessee in September.
The Association of Nature Center Administrators (ANCA) promotes and supports best leadership and management practices for the nature and environmental learning center profession. It is the only such organization in North America. The ANCA Annual Summit is the premier professional development opportunity for leaders of nature centers, outdoor schools, and related organizations. With a focus on leadership and management practices for this unique profession, the Summit provides participants with knowledge, strategies, and resources to help them excel in their work.
LaFontan was selected to present on his concept of Environmental Courage as an emerging intelligence in young children and our selves—as a way to constructively prepare children for our changing natural world due to climate change—a concept that has gained national and international attention since being released as a white paper in August 2022. Recently, LaFontan was an invited presenter at the National AfterSchool Association convention in Dallas, TX in March as well as a member of an international panel of speakers at the World Forum for Early Care and Education in Vancouver, Canada in April.