Rare Moth Makes Surprise Appearance at Eastover Ridge Preserve
June 8, 2026
Howdy y’all, I’m Atticus Kenney from the class of 2029 at UNC Charlotte studying civil engineering. As a part of the Levine Scholars Program, I was designated to complete a non-profit internship with an organization residing in the Charlotte/Mecklenburg County area. I decided on Catawba Lands Conservancy as my internship for the summer because I always have been an outdoorsy person, whether through fishing, hiking, hunting or playing baseball, so I wanted to work in the community while still being in the great outdoors.
Over the course of the summer, I helped the land stewardship team monitor properties, which is the conservation equivalent of checking for land damage on your property, so taking pictures of where ATVs went or if native plants were disturbed. This part of the summer was amazing as I was able to meet with the landowners of properties.
Another key part of my summer was creating the organization’s Environmental Benefits Calculator. This calculator can hopefully be used to help the organization gain grant funding or more opportunities to receive conservation easements. This calculator can take data from CLC’s projects and quantify the benefits of whether it is nitrogen or runoff reduction.
Overall, I am blessed to be able to work with the incredible people at the Catawba Lands Conservancy along with the fantastic communities along the Carolina Thread Trail and partners like Friends of North Stanly Trails and Parks.