We are excited to announce that Utah Friends of Monarchs has joined the MJV partnership! Utah Friends of Monarchs (UFM) is a statewide grassroots effort to educate and raise awareness of the western monarch butterfly. Rachel Taylor, the groups founder and leader, recently gained 501c3 status for the organization and has been connecting communities across Utah with community science programs and through robust social media campaigns.
Rachel has been creating a web of monarch and milkweed observers across Utah, with an annual social media callout to all counties to share photos of the first monarch butterfly they see in their area. UFM encourages reporting to a number of community science programs by offering a prize for the first monarch sighting in each county. Last year 25 of 29 counties in Utah recorded sightings! No stranger to collaborative partnership, Utah Friends of Monarchs began working with the STEM Community Alliance Program for youth in custody in 2018. Youth in the program grow native milkweed to share for free with the city, county, and schools, and in return UFM creates classes on monarchs, milkweed, and migration to fit into their ongoing education program. UFM also works with the Utah State Prison Nursery to grow native pollinator plants, including native milkweeds that can be purchased by municipalities, nonprofits, and other organizations at a much reduced cost.
Utah Friends of Monarchs brings a collaborative mindset to the MJV partnership. We are excited to be able to connect them with partners that are hoping to learn more about creative ways to engage the public, local government, and businesses in monarch and pollinator work. UFM’s expertise in maximizing their connections across the state and the ability to get noticed through media will be a valuable asset for the partnership. For more information about Utah Friends of Monarchs, please visit their Facebook page and check out more of their work here.
The Monarch Joint Venture is a 501c3 nonprofit organization and a national partnership of federal and state agencies, non-governmental organizations, businesses and academic programs working together to conserve the monarch butterfly migration. The content in this article does not necessarily reflect the positions of all Monarch Joint Venture partners. Photo courtesy of Utah Friends of Monarchs.