Voting is Your POWER on Nostr: A Wisconsin prison program is having inmates raise and release monarch butterflies, ...

A Wisconsin prison program is having inmates raise and release monarch butterflies, giving them a hands-on way to support a species in decline across the state.

Now in its second year at Redgranite Correctional Institute, the program grew from 20 participants tending 60 caterpillars last year to caring for 100 caterpillars this year, with duties including feeding, tagging, and collecting data that feeds into broader conservation efforts.

Organizer Carrie Jahnke also provides participants with educational materials on monarchs, pollinator plants, and horticulture.

One inmate, Nathan Lecker, said the work lets him reconnect with a childhood hobby while giving back to the community from inside the prison.

The Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin, which helped build the enclosure, praised the facility for getting involved in monarch conservation.

https://www.wpr.org/news/inmates-at-redgranite-prison-monarch-butterflies