MEDIA ADVISORY: Local Students Will Showcase Civic Ecology Research at Show Me Nature Research Symposium at MU

Story Contact(s):
Timothy Wall, walltj@missouri.edu, 573-882-3346

WHAT: Teams of fourth and fifth graders from six Columbia Public Schools will present findings from their civic ecology research projects at the Show Me Nature Research Symposium at the University of Missouri. Teams of students will display posters of their projects and will be available to answer questions.

Projects include “Weather at West,” “Fairview ecosystems investigators,” “Protecting the environment at Lee: one rain barrel at a time,” “Seeing the unseen: bending time and space with cameras at Benton,” “Using remote cameras to study wildlife at Two Mile Prairie,” and “Harnessing the energy of the sun at Cedar Ridge.” Show Me Nature is a federally funded program that bridges scientific research at MU and science education in the Columbia Public School District.

The Show Me Nature Research Symposium also features a Saturday Morning Science talk by ecologist and author Marianne Krasny. Krasny will talk about how people can integrate scientific methods into local stewardship projects. In her talk, “Linking citizen science and civic ecology,” Krasny will highlight innovative urban-based efforts, including some in Columbia.

WHO: Marianne Krasny is professor and chair of the Department of Natural Resources and director of the Civic Ecology Lab at Cornell University. She started the award-winning “Garden Mosaics” project, a federally funded science education and community action program that promotes intergenerational and multicultural understanding through urban garden projects.  She is the author several of books, including the popular Hands on Herpetology: Exploring Ecology and Conservation, Invasion Ecology and Garden Genetics.

WHEN: 9:30 a.m., Saturday, April 28

WHERE: Saturday Morning Science in Monsanto Auditorium

Posters in first floor Atrium

Christopher S. Bond Life Sciences Center

MU campus