We are only scratching the surface of what our event partners and content contributors have to share! From the iEcoLab to the Elmwood Park Zoo, from the Ambler Arboretum to Temple’s College of Science and Technology, there is a treasure trove of information about science, nature and the world around you! What will you discover?
Temple Ambler EarthFest
Our mission is to provide meaningful, impactful educational experiences for all ages throughout the year. Instead of one day and one event, we invite you to celebrate the Earth at several smaller, student and family-centered events! EarthFest Presents events are designed to provide more personalized opportunities to interact with our program partners and engage in citizen science.
Ambler Arboretum of Temple University
The Ambler Arboretum of Temple University is an educational resource modeling the art and science of horticulture and environmental responsibility while fostering research, celebrating the achievements of women in horticulture, preserving the historic significance of the campus and highlighting the health benefits of nature, plants and gardening. The Ambler Arboretum of Temple University is proud to be a part of America's Garden Capital. The Ambler Arboretum is providing a series of videos designed to help you connect with nature and the outdoors. Take an arboretum walk with Arboretum Director Kathy Salisbury, make new “fronds,” learn about emerald ash borer, and more!
Temple Ambler Field Station
The Ambler Campus was designated in 2020 as the Temple Ambler Field Station, a platform for environmental field research and education. The Field Station leverages the 187-acre Ambler Campus and Ambler Arboretum as a living laboratory, providing access to a diversity of natural habitats including old growth and secondary forests, meadows, ephemeral streams, and our beautiful designed gardens. The Field Station’s goal is to be a platform for research across disciplines, from STEM fields to the liberal arts.
College of Science and Technology
The College of Science and Technology (CST), with more than 4,500 undergraduate and graduate students, is one of Temple University’s fastest growing schools. Through its innovative Undergraduate Research Program, students work side-by-side with experienced faculty researchers in the lab, in the field and in the classroom. External funding for advanced research — in big data, advanced materials, health and beyond — has increased by more than 85 percent in just the past five years, creating new opportunities for CST faculty to take on today’s toughest scientific challenges.
Department of Earth and Environmental Science
Managing the complex system of land-water-energy resources underpinning our society is the grand challenge of the 21st century. To meet this challenge, the Department of Earth and Environmental Science at Temple University is exploring the interactions between Earth systems and human activities. The department’s research and teaching delves into the interface of the geosphere and hydrosphere in both ancient and modern systems. The department’s goals are to understand natural processes in these systems as well as how they are changed by the expanding impact of human activities through cutting-edge, interdisciplinary research.
Temple Biology Department
The Department of Biology at Temple University is a diverse department that teaches about 1,500 undergraduate majors, runs multiple graduate programs including a Ph.D. program in biology with research emphases in computational evolutionary genomics (computational biology), ecology, neuroscience, and cell/molecular biology. The department has also developed an exciting new PhD in Bioinformatics program with interdisciplinary tracks that span biology, chemistry, and computer science.
iEcoLab
iEcoLab is the Integrative Ecology Lab run jointly by Jocelyn Behm and Matthew Helmus at the Center for Biodiversity in the Biology Department at Temple University. The mission of the iEcoLab is to integrate biodiversity science with human ecology to understand contemporary patterns of biodiversity and its functioning within ecosystems.
Cordes Laboratory
The Cordes Laboratory in the Biology Department at Temple University studies deep-sea corals, cold seeps, seamounts and the deep sea using manned submersibles (HOVs), ROVs, AUVs, CTDs, oceanography, marine aquaria, physiology, phylogenetics, population genetics, RNAseq, community ecology, population ecology, statistical analysis, and predictive habitat modeling. Issues that the lab is tackling include oil and gas industry impacts and management, global ocean change, fisheries management, and biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction.
Landscape Architecture and Horticulture Programs
The Landscape Architecture and Horticulture programs in the Tyler School of Art and Architecture at Temple University share a vision of inspiring the next generation of professionals to lead the transformation of natural and built environments; and creating places that are ecologically sound, socially equitable and resilient, while addressing the challenges of climate change.
Elmwood Park Zoo
The Elmwood Park Zoo was founded in 1924. In 1985, the Norristown Zoological Society became an official non-profit organization and assumed control of Elmwood Park Zoo from the Borough of Norristown. Elmwood Park Zoo is dedicated to providing the community with varied learning experiences that encourage people to play an active role in wildlife and environmental conservation activities. Through the work of its Education Department, the zoo strives to empower its guests with the skills, knowledge and resources that may influence them to lead environmentally healthy lives. The Zoo’s mission is to foster an appreciation for wildlife and the environment that will inspire active participation in conservation. The zoo participates in programs and initiatives that help save wildlife, and it teaches others how they can help prevent species extinction and resource depletion.
Academy of Natural Sciences
Founded in 1812, the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University is a leading natural history museum dedicated to advancing research, education, and public engagement in biodiversity and environmental science. Visitors to the Academy have the opportunity to get face-to-face with towering dinosaurs, meet live animals, and explore a tropical garden filled with live butterflies. The Academy’s collections contain more than 18 million specimens and archival treasures and rate among the world’s most significant in terms of geographic, biological, and historical depth and breadth.
Tri-State Bird Rescue & Research
When native birds have been found injured, orphaned, or ill, the community turns to Tri-State Bird Rescue & Research. TSBR’s professional staff and volunteers provide the best, if not only, chance these animals have to return to the wild. The mission of Tri-State Bird Rescue & Research is to provide professional, compassionate rehabilitation to native injured and orphaned wild birds and contaminated wildlife, and to promote their stewardship through education and humane research.