Nestled above the Duwamish greenbelt, the Heron’s Nest is a sacred space dedicated to community engagement, environmental education, and preserving the cultural heritage of the Duwamish Tribe. As they restore the land and waterways, the Heron’s Nest team emphasizes the importance of sustainability, reminding us that proper care for the environment—whether through gardening or responsible hazardous waste disposal—is essential for protecting both people and nature.
The Heron’s Nest is a nonprofit founded in 2020 that focuses on community engagement and education. It is a place for healing, growth, renewal, and is open to the community. The Heron’s Nest staff maintain the land, which is currently being restored as a safe place for community and Tribal members to call home. Joselynn, one of the caretakers of the land, invited the Hazardous Waste Management Program to the Heron’s Nest to tour the land and share the importance of protecting the environment for past, present, and future generations.
A space for learning and growing
The Heron’s Nest provides a variety of community education classes like outdoor gardening. They also recycle and repurpose items to grow food and maintain the land. Volunteers come every Monday to give their time to the land. The community garden grows corn, beans, tomatoes, squash, watermelons, kale, collard greens, mint, beans, peppers, and pumpkins for the Tribe. Located near the entrance is a greenhouse to grow food and host seed starting classes. They hold free education classes to learn about welding, candle making, and mushroom growing. Volunteers work to restore native plants and trees that originally grew on the land.
The Heron’s Nest also provides educational tours via the
River Access Paddle Program (R.A.P.P.). This program provides tours of the Duwamish River, removes tons of trash with the help of volunteers, and to emphasizes the importance of the river to the Duwamish Tribe. The R.A.P.P also offers paid job training for kayak guides and small motorboat operations for Duwamish River Valley community members.
Protecting the environment
The Heron’s Nest and the Haz Waste Program share an interest in protecting the soils, waterways, rivers, and streams that are so essential to our region’s heritage and environment. The two groups' efforts go hand-in-hand.
Where the Heron's Nest connects community members to the ideas of land stewardship and conservation, the Haz Waste Program educates community members on keeping hazardous materials out of that very same land and environment through safe disposal and collection of hazardous materials, such as oil-based paint, pesticides, herbicides, and automotive fluids.
Think you might have a few hazardous items to dispose of? Use our product library to see how to dispose them. The Haz Waste Help Line is also open Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Call us or email us at 206-296-4692, haz.waste@kingcounty.gov.
A place to come together
The Heron’s Nest is truly a hidden gem with beautiful gardens and a rich cultural history. The Heron’s Nest staff have a wealth of information they are ready to share. They accomplish their work with a holistic, community-centered approach to bring equity into their services to improve community outcomes.
The Heron’s Nest is open by appointment and is located at 4818 Puget Way SW Seattle, WA 98106. If you are interested in visiting the Heron’s Nest, want a tour of the land, or are interested in becoming a volunteer, contact HeronsNestOutdoor@gmail.com.
