Environmental Education
San Diego is home to remarkably diverse landscapes and habitat types, and our mild Mediterranean climate makes this an ideal place to recreate outdoors and connect with nature year-round. Unfortunately, not everyone in San Diego County enjoys the same access to these natural spaces.
​
Children who live in San Diego’s “park-poor” neighborhoods suffer physically, psychologically, and academically from a lack of access to green space. Children in these communities also miss out on the opportunity to learn about nature and experience its benefits first-hand.
Numerous studies have shown the more people understand about the environment, the more likely they are to protect it.
The goal of our education program is to ensure as many kids as possible enjoy the opportunity to learn about and personally experience our wild landscapes. This is how EDI builds equity in our communities, and supports the next generation of environmental stewards.
Curriculum-based Programming
EDI está profundamente integrado en los distritos escolares del condado de San Diego, donde los maestros de aula solicitan nuestro apoyo y experiencia para brindar lecciones de educación al aire libre basadas en la ciencia a los estudiantes. Ofrecemos un conjunto de programas educativos que se alinean con los estándares cientÃficos de próxima generación y hacen que los estudiantes participen en experiencias significativas en la naturaleza.
Our Elementary Field Trip programs align with the Next Generation Science Standards and provide hands-on activities that support classroom learning and direct connections with the land.
Field trips take place on conserved lands managed by partner agencies, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, California Department of Wildlife, and Endangered Habitats Conservancy.
Students engage in habitat restoration projects, including planting native grasses, seed collection, and pollinator habitat restoration. Students hike on conserved lands where they learn about the diversity of plants and animals living in San Diego and how our actions can impact the land.
Field trips also give students the opportunity to visit areas of San Diego they rarely, if ever, visit, like the San Diego Bay.
We focus on real-world problems such as water pollution and climate change, and allow students to explore real-world solutions starting in their own backyards and neighborhoods.
