We are so grateful for your solidarity and patience during this tender time for all of us! We will continue to be here for you as we receive the latest information and guidance regarding COVID-19.
We are continuing to prioritize the safety of participants, staff, and the general public with regards to running our programs. Therefore, we have decided to cancel all programs through May 3.
Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram (@wildearthny) to stay in the loop. We’ll send another email with details about the remote learning offerings shortly.
Below you will find Cancellation & Refund FAQs.
Stay safe and healthy,
Wild Earth
Cancellation & Refund FAQs
As of April 6, Wild Earth programs are cancelled at least through May 3, 2020. As long as Ulster County and New York State have mandated schools to be closed and there is local, state, and federal guidance to avoid social gatherings of a certain size, Wild Earth will not run in-person programs.
If a full program is canceled, you will be offered your choice of either a full program credit (no processing fee) or a cash refund ($25 processing fee). All of the funds you have paid or will pay toward a program or camp you have not yet attended will be returned to you in full as a credit for future programs or as a refund.
To receive a refund for an April program (Spring Break Camp), please email info@wildearth.org or call 845-256-9830 to request the refund explained in the previous paragraph. Otherwise, we will give a program credit to everyone who has not requested a refund.
For programs that have already begun (Artemis, Atlatl, Ropes, Apprenticeship) or if one (of multiple) program dates is canceled, our regular cancelation policy applies (see below). Under the regular cancelation policy, Wild Earth will not provide refunds for programs that are canceled due to unsafe conditions. This policy allows Wild Earth to ensure that our instructing and office staff are compensated and sustained through one-time cancelations.
However, if two or more (of multiple) program dates are cancelled, then you will receive a program credit for each of the program dates after, and including, the second program date that is cancelled due to COVID-19. For example, if three program dates were cancelled due to COVID-19, then you would receive credit for two program dates.
Program credits are good for 1-year from the date Wild Earth resumes regular programming. Any member of your household can use your program credit towards any Wild Earth program. Credits are not transferable beyond your household.
If you must cancel your program registration and the program for which you are registered is still scheduled, your cancelation will be subject to our regular published cancelation policy. (Please refer back to question 2 to review our cancelation policy.)
If your personal finances are particularly challenged at this time and you need to change a summer camp payment plan in which you are currently enrolled, please email hello@wildearth.org and let us know.
We are willing to halt or alter payment plans temporarily during this crisis while allowing you to retain your registration and space in these programs. If you would like to request this option, please email hello@wildearth.org and let us know.
We will attempt to contact participants at least one week before a program is cancelled whenever possible, but given the changing conditions of the pandemic, we may not be able to do so for every program.
Omari Washington identified his purpose in 2004, during a backpacking & paddling trip above the Arctic Circle in Alaska. Despite emerging evidence, at that time few people were willing to believe climatologists’ warnings that humans were negatively impacting our planet. Hiking across the melting permafrost, Omari witnessed the significant changes already taking place. Moreover, he knew that many marginalized communities would be disproportionately affected by our inaction. After returning from that trip, Omari attended Green Mountain College in Vermont and received a B.A. in Environmental Studies. Since then, he has led hikes in urban parks, managed diverse teams of environmental educators, built school gardens, developed curricula, and helped plant 1,000,000 trees in New York City. The focus of all of this work has been to engage and empower youth in developing deep connections to nature, centered around their own unique experiences. Omari is grateful to be welcomed into the Wild Earth community, where young leaders are growing wild! More about Omari's work.