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Grand Canyon National Park - Environmental Education

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last updated
November 15, 2005

Linking the preservation of Grand Canyon National Park to the conservation of your backyard and community

Vision
The Grand Canyon Environmental Education program will empower individuals to become informed advocates of the Earth. It will forge active partnerships across domestic, international, and cultural boundaries to reach a diverse audience. The program will be multidisciplinary with emphasis on science and culture using a variety of media and methods to achieve its goal of preserving, protecting, and regenerating the Earth's precious resources for generations to come.

Mission
The Grand Canyon Environmental Education Program will provide opportunities to acquire knowledge, build skills, and support attitudes and values that will enhance commitment and promote participation in the protection of Grand Canyon National Park, local communities, and individuals' own backyards. It will offer both on-site and off-site environmental education activities to ensure reaching the largest audience possible. All activities will be directed at a diverse audience. While the primary focus initially will be on the Park's communities, neighboring communities, and visitors; ultimately, the focus will expand to include the communities of the Colorado Plateau and beyond, eventually reaching across international borders. The program will engage a variety of activities and media ranging from simple hands-on activities to using the Internet and technology based approaches to spark curiosity and generate excitement. The program will utilize resources from all divisions within the park and will forge active partnerships with a variety of public and private organizations.

Program Objectives
The projects and activities of the Grand Canyon Environmental Education Program will offer opportunities for educators, students, and visitors to use Grand Canyon National Park as a classroom to develop awareness, knowledge, and skills related to understanding our world. It will provide opportunities to be actively involved in restoring, preserving, and protecting the environment. To this end, all activities will strive to achieve one or more of the following:

Knowledge - to help participants gain a basic understanding of the workings of the environment that is the Grand Canyon;
Awareness - to help participants acquire an awareness and sensitivity to Grand Canyon resources and its environmental issues, and make linkages to the environment outside the park;
Attitudes - to help participants explore their attitudes and feelings of concern for the Grand Canyon and the environment as a whole;
Skills - to help participants develop the skills for identifying potential environmental problems and preventing them before they happen, and solving existing problems both within the Grand Canyon and at home; and
Participation - to provide participants opportunities to be actively involved at all levels in working toward the prevention and resolution of environmental problems.