Pickle Creek near the Spanish Land Grant Trail at Hawn State Park. Photo by Louise Bullock.
Whether your interest is conservation, policy, trail maintenance, activism or enjoying our outings, everyone with a love for the outdoors is welcome here. We appreciate you being a part of the Eastern Missouri Group (EMG) of the Missouri Sierra Club.
Sierra Club Speakers Series - April 8 Data Centers in our Communities: What We Know, What's at Stake, and What We Can Do The Sierra Club and the Audubon Society will host Sally Burgess and Henry Robertson from the Sierra Club for a presentation about data centers and what communities can do to slow down the onslaught of proposed data centers pushing into all areas of Missouri. Data centers put a major strain on our clean energy goals, use a lot of water, create noise and light pollution. Learn about them and what you can do. Here's a brief ABC news video discussing data center growth and impacts. The event will be held on Wednesday, April 8, 7:00 pm (doors open at 6:30 pm) at Webster University, Browning Hall Auditorium.
On March 28, members of the Sierra Club participated in the No Kings Protest. They took part in four different locations across St. Louis and were a part of the 3.200 protests across the nation. These people were protesting a variety of the Trump Administration's policies ranging from gutting EPA Clean Air and Water Act to ignoring many of our constitutional rights. Pictured are Trudy Gruinther, Premsri Barton, Louise Bullock, Dave and Julie Campbell. Photo by Dave Campbell.
No Kings March, Downtown St. Louis. Photos by Glenn May.
Environmental Racism Report updated for 2026 From WashU Sustainability A new WashU report examining environmental racism in St. Louis offers updated data and a series of recommendations aimed at addressing longstanding disparities in health, housing and environmental conditions across the region. READ HERE
Republicans target public lands protections in a new way From Missouri Independent Conservation advocates say Congress is recklessly throwing out detailed plans, which are created after years of research, public meetings and local collaboration. READ MORE
SURVEY: Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park Planning Underway for North County Connections Great Rivers Greenway, the Saint Louis Zoo, St. Louis County and East-West Gateway Council of Governments are working to create a plan for the area along Riverview Drive between Chain of Rocks Park and the Columbia Bottom Conservation Area. With all the people expected to visit, they are developing a proactive plan for the surrounding area. Your feedback as a future visitor can help shape this plan! TAKE THE SURVEY
The Renewable Energy Train Has Left the Station From Sierra Magazine For most of the climate change era, fossil fuel interests have stymied the transition to renewable energy for two main reasons: Burning oil and gas was cheap and clean energy was relatively expensive. Put another way, the primary thing causing the climate crisis, accounting for around two-thirds of the world’s emissions, was also the thing that undergirded the global economy. But now, that calculus has shifted. READ MORE
Kid-Friendly Hike at Emmenegger Nature Park - April 7 Kids are welcome on this hike as we’ll be able to spot spring ephemerals: plants that experience their entire lifecycle in one season. Dogwoods and redbuds will likely be blooming at this time as well. A picture scavenger hunt will be provided for identifying some unique features of this park during the spring. MORE INFO
Data Centers in our Communities: What We Know, What's at Stake, and What We Can Do - April 8
The Sierra Club and the Audubon Society will host Sally Burgess and Henry Robertson from the Sierra Club for a presentation about data centers and what communities can do to slow down the onslaught of proposed data centers pushing into all areas of the Midwest. Learn what you can do. MORE INFO
Wild and Scenic Film Festival - April 12
The Wild & Scenic Film Festival is making its return to Columbia, MO on Sunday, April 12, celebrating over two decades of activism through film and art! MORE INFO
EMG ExCom Meeting - April 14 Join the Eastern Missouri Group Executive Committee Meeting and hear updates and voice your thoughts on how EMG is impacting the region. MORE INFO
2026 Lobby Day - April 15 Join us for our 2026 Lobby Day! Members from all over the state come together at the Missouri Capitol to speak directly with elected officials about protecting our air, water, land, and climate. Your voice matters! RSVP to let us know you can join us! MORE INFO
GO Green Justice Team Monthly Meeting - April 15
Join us on the 3rd Wednesday of each month from 5:30-7:00pm as we fight for clean, affordable, renewable energy for our communities. MORE INFO
EcoFaith Summit 2026 - April 18 EcoFaith Summit for the Upper-Midwest. Looking for renewed energy and practical strategies to help heal creation? Come for the full day or join for lunch and local speakers. SC's own Jenn DeRose will be a speaker. MORE INFO
Valley View Glades Natural Area Hiking - April 22 Valley View Glades Natural Area is a comparatively short looped hiking trail (2.8 miles) less than an hour from the metro area. The hiking trail (thin and rocky soil) is comprised of forested hollows and windswept grassy glades. The glades are very prolific this time of year. MORE INFO
MO Sierra Space | MOSS - April 29 Join the Sierra Club Missouri Chapter new & returning members, supporters, volunteers, allies, and staff to intentionally connect from across the state to: 1) build community amongst ourselves as teammates in Sierra Club’s mission, vision, values, and norms; 2) share updates on campaigns, victories, or other goings on in the state; 3) provide actionable steps to support grassroots organizing efforts for MO communities and environment. RSVP HERE
Urban Pollinator Garden Tour in South Saint Louis City - May 2
Join Laurie, Missouri Master Naturalist, and Myles of Alley Asters for an educational walking tour of pocket-sized native gardens tucked into the alleyways of the Tower Grove neighborhood. MORE INFO
Sierra Club EMG Pint Night - October 22 Please join us on October 22nd at Alpine Shop in Kirkwood for happy hour! Learn about the mission of Sierra Club; America’s oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organizations. We offer it all: bird walks, tree ID hikes, trail maintenance, map reading, invasive cleanups, even water events. We offer training to become outings leaders so that YOU can lead a group and encourage others to get outside and smell the fresh air! There will be raffles, lots of conversations and meeting new people. Save to your calendar!
Outings Report By Laura Self The EMG of Sierra Club has done great work at Castlewood State Park this March. Dave Campbell, Outings Coordinator, worked with David Meeker, the Castlewood Superintendent, to plan extensive tree work. Dave organized three separate work days for volunteer sawyers to buck up trees that were down across trails and fell hazardous trees in various areas of the park. These groups worked for a total of 138 hours and fell over 50 trees across the three days. This work is invaluable for the health of the park and the safety of visitors. As a metro area park it experiences high visitation numbers year round. This EMG Outing was a great contribution to our local community that enjoy Castlewood State Park in St. Louis County.
Photos by Laura Self.
Trash Pick-up with Confluence Academy - April 8 We will be working with the Trailblazer Activity Club at the Confluence Academy. We will be helping clean up trash from around the school campus and perhaps at Strodtman Park or whatever we can do in an hour. This is a great opportunity to do some outreach and help this school. SIGN UP
Castlewood Service Project - April 10 We will be assisting in the general care and upkeep of the park under the direction of park staff. The specifics of our tasks depend on what they determine is the parks greatest need at the time. Some of these tasks are maintaining and repairing trails, closing social trails, and picking up trash. MORE INFO
Trail Work at Roger Pryor Pioneer Backcountry - April 10 Twice a year Sierra Club does a multi-day trail maintenance stewardship in the amazing backcountry of Roger Pryor Pioneer Backcountry. In addition to making sure that trails are passable and adequately as well as accurately blazed, participants get a chance to hike and work in a back country that is beautiful and unique. MORE INFO
Open Space STL Confluence Trash Bash - April 11 Open Space STL is proud to be the main organizer of the #TrashBash alongside their partners from Great Rivers Greenway, MSD Project Clear, and Earthways Center. Through coordinated efforts, they annually host the #ConfluenceTrashBash. MORE INFO Volunteer with fellow Sierra Club members through the event listing below.
EMG Sponsored Trash Pick-Up - April 11 Join Us for an EMG Trash Pick-up! EMG is partnering with Open Space STL for a trash pick-up along the Centennial Greenway from 9am-11am. Our section of the Greenway goes from Olive Blvd. to Shaw Park. We will split into two groups; one group goes north to Olive Blvd and the other group goes south to Shaw Park. Each section is two miles round-trip. Volunteers will receive a T-shirt provided by Open Space STL. MORE INFO
Trail Maintenance at O'Fallon Park - April 18 We will be working with the St. Louis City Forestry Division and the Ozark Trail Association. We will be cutting and clearing brush, creating new trail and marking trails. All tools will be provided by the Sierra Club. Participants can work as many hours as they want. SIGN UP
St. Louis Earth Day Festival Tabling & Lemonade - April 25 Sign-up today to support the Eastern Missouri Group of the Sierra Club educate the greater St. Louis community on our conservation & clean energy priorities and raise funds for our conservation & outings program! We have shifts throughout the day, but appreciate any time you can donate to the Sierra Club. This is a great time to pitch and help out. We REALLY need YOUR help to raise funds for our Eastern Missouri Group and educate our community on local environmental action. SIGN UP TODAY
Photo by Tim Elwell.
Nature Site Spotlight Source: St. Louis County Website. Submitted by Louise Bullock Jefferson Barracks Historic Site is located at 345 North Road in the Lemay area of St. Louis County. The site offers reservable shelters and picnic sites, trails, wedding sites, two disc golf courses and an archery range as well as multiple athletic fields. The museums operated by St. Louis County Parks and Recreation include the Laborer’s House and Ordnance Stable, both built in 1851. The Old Ordnance Room was also built in 1851, and it features rotating exhibitions about military history. The Powder Magazine Museum was built in 1857 and highlights the history of the barracks.
In addition to the museum buildings operated by St. Louis County, visitors will find several other museums which include: the Missouri Civil War Museum, the Jefferson Barracks Telephone Museum, the POW-MIA Museum and the Jefferson Barracks Ordnance Depot Museum. Jefferson Barracks Park is included in the Mississippi River Greenway that connects to the larger Great Rivers Greenway trail system.
