2026 Biodiversity Jamboree @ North Branch Nature Center

Back again by popular demand, North Branch Nature Center presents a summer nature festival for all ages! Celebrate birds, bugs, plants, and pollinators in a day of outings, workshops, exhibits, kids activities, live birds, music, food, art, presentations, and more! Find out what you can do to protect biodiversity in your own backyard and in your community.

BioJam Activities

Field Walks

All Day! | From butterflies to birds, explore nature with NBNC staff and guest naturalists on twelve nature walks! See field walk schedule below.

Live Birds of Prey
10 am – noon / 1 – 4 pm | Meet and greet with raptors by Vermont Institute of Natural Science and Outreach for Earth Stewardship.

Songbird Banding
10 am – 1 pm | hands-on avian research with biologist Kevin Tolan with Vermont Center for Ecostudies.

Insect Exploration Station
10 am – 1 pm | Investigate insects under the microscopes with biologist Amber Jones with Vermont Center for Ecostudies. Bring Your Own Bugs (if you want!).

Face Painting
11 am – 2 pm | with NBNC Teacher-Naturalist Ana Maria Arroyo.

Kids Activity Tent
Noon – 5 pm games and crafts with NBNC educators.

Food Truck
11:30 – 2 pm | Tacos and drinks by Caja Madera.

Music & Open Mic
Noon – 2 pm | Music on the porch with Matt Delligatti. Sign up here to play in the open mic.

Art Station: Handmade & Homegrown
1 – 5 pm | DIY and foraged art materials from nature. Upcycle natural sources from our everyday lives and environments for ink and collage, and meet some traditional dye plants. With Rachel Mirus.

Invasive Plant Sculpture and Crafts
All Day | Create sculptures and crafts from invasive plant materials with artist Justin Cifello, creator of NBNC’s lake monsters (Champ and Winnie).

Native Plant Sale
All Day | Shrubs, trees, perennials, and herbs by The Farm Upstream and Bird & Bee Native Plants.

Art Exhibit: A Critical Balance
All Day | Life-sized paintings of endangered African birdlife to support conservation in Kenya’s Amboseli National Park.

NBNC’s 30th Birthday Party
Right after the Jamboree, stay for NBNC’s 30th Birthday Party from 5-7 pm! Eat cake, raise a glass, and kick up your heels to live music by The Spring Chickens!