Nature Abounds is partnering with the Carnegie Mellon University’s Learning Media Design Center on a $1.7 million grant proposal to develop and study cyberlearning tools that support deep looking and learning in citizen science.

The grant was funded by the National Science Foundation.

Nature Abounds will use and evaluate the tools in the field through their Senior Environment Corps Program which now has senior volunteers engaged in activities across a third of Pennsylvania and into Maryland.

Specifically, the tools will be used when the SEC volunteers identify macroinvertebrates (insects) in freshwater streams twice a year as part of the SEC Water Quality Monitoring protocols.

“We’re really excited to be working with Carnegie Mellon University and the other partners on such an important project,” said Nature Abounds’ President Melinda Hughes-Wert. “Improving macroinvertebrate identification skills allows our volunteers, who already gather high quality data, to improve even further upon their skills, giving even more credibility to our data as well as our protocols for data collecting.”

While Carnegie Mellon University will be coordinating the grant project, there will also be several other partners, including the University of Pittsburgh Learning Research and Development Center, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Stroud Water Research Center, and Clemson University.

Including Nature Abounds, five water monitoring programs across Pennsylvania and Maryland will also be involved in the field portion of the project.

Nature Abounds is a national nonprofit organization with over 6,500 volunteers across all 50 states and beyond engaged in activities for a healthy planet. For more information, check out the Nature Abounds website or call 814-765-1453.

Fundraising Initiative

DuBois-based Nature Abounds is selling $5 booklets to support our mission of bringing people together for a healthy planet.  The organization keeps 100 percent of the booklet price and the customer receives up to $500 in special shopping offers at BonTon.

Community Day’s is a four-day shopping event (November 11-14) at BonTon created to enable nonprofit 501C3 groups and schools to raise money to support their mission. In addition to BonTon, the coupons can also be used at BonTon’s sister stores - Bergners, Boston Store, Carson's, Elder-Beerman, Herbergers, and Yonkers.

Booklets can be purchased through October 30th online at the Nature Abounds’ Community Days webpage. You can also purchase booklets at the Nature Abounds office at 331 W. Long Avenue in DuBois. Regular office hours are Monday to Thursday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. through November 12th.

“Community Days is a great fundraising event for our organization. Not only does it give shoppers a great deal and a kickoff for their holiday shopping, but it also introduces people to Nature Abounds and all of the good work we do, from monitoring our water quality to helping wildlife to fighting for healthier food options,” said Nature Abounds’ President Melinda Hughes-Wert.  

10/26/2015