Community Engagement

Thank you for your interest in volunteering with the River Revitalization Foundation!

Fostering Our Riparian Biodiversity (F.O.R.B.) is River Revitalization Foundation’s volunteer opportunity! Participate in land restoration activities with RRF Stewardship Director and other RRF staff. Meet and work alongside individuals passionate about the natural world and preserving its integrity.

We also have a longstanding relationship with UW-Milwaukee to provide service learning opportunities to students in environmental courses.

Note: An orientation is required prior to volunteering with RRF. All orientations will be held via Zoom. Sign up for an orientation, and we will email you the Zoom link prior to the orientation.

New safety protocols

There will be a max of 5 people per volunteer day. Online signup required. (The signup link will be provided to you during orientation).
Masks are required, and we recommend you bring your own work gloves.
All tools will be sanitized after each use.
Volunteers will maintain at least a 6 feet of distance from others.
Our office is currently closed to the public so there will not be access to a restroom and volunteers should remain outside of the building.

FORB details

FORB times

Mondays 2-4pm
Fridays 1-4pm
1st & 2nd Saturdays 9am-12pm (May-November 2021)

Please note these are blocks of time and the start and end times are listed. If you need to leave early, that’s OK but make sure to let our staff know.

There will be no FORB on 5/31, 11/26, 12/24, 12/27, and 12/31 of 2021

General information

RRF will provide the necessary tools, supplies and work gloves which will be sanitized prior to each use. There are no training requirements for this opportunity, however it is somewhat physical since most of the work is outdoors. Volunteers must be willing and able to participate in manual labor for at least 2 hours outdoors in varying weather conditions.

FORB activities

Activities could include, but are not limited to: Removing invasive species, establishing native plants and trees, maintaining trails, seed collecting and cleaning, controlling erosion.

All activities are important for improving the quality and access of the habitat surrounding Milwaukee’s river basin.

What to wear/bring

Please wear clothes you don’t mind getting dirty (we recommend layers) and close-toed shoes.

Other items to consider bringing with you: water bottle, sunscreen, bug repellent.

Group volunteer days

We can accommodate larger groups (max of ~20 for 2-3 hours of work) for your work, school/youth group or club, fraternity or sorority, etc. and are happy to assist you in scheduling a volunteer day. Please email us for more information.

Safety protocols like breaking into smaller groups, social distancing, and masks will be put in place for larger groups.

New to volunteering with RRF? Please complete our online volunteer waiver form

UWM Service Learning

The River Revitalization Foundation has worked with UW-Milwaukee and its environmentally focused classes as partners in its service learning program for 15 years. This program engages students in six to 10 hours of land stewardship efforts as part of a class requirement. We lead them on an introductory hike before working in the field, and the students enjoy the hands-on working and learning that we provide in our outdoor classroom.

Thousands of native plants, trees, and herbs have been planted by UWM students over the years in addition to the thousands of pounds of invasive species removed from river lands. We are thankful for this partnership with UWM and hope that all service learners will become regular volunteers!