Encyclopedia of Life Blog

Jon Udell has a great podcast where he interviews Janis Dickinson, who directs the citizen science program at at Cornell’s Laboratory of Ornithology. On his blog Jon writes:

Extracting signal from noise is, of course, one of the classic bread-and-butter activities of information science. What’s fascinating here is the Web 2.0 angle. Birdwatchers are famously passionate data collectors who develop reputations among their peers. When they contribute their data to eBird — and thence to the Avian Knowledge Network — those reputations can begin to be measured, and used to tune the analysis of a large body of contributed data.

These are, of course, issues directly relevant to EOL. Jon has long been interested in integrating information (including digital libraries), social networking, and how people interact with technology. His podcast is a mine of useful information. Click this link to subscribe to it in iTunes.

One reason the Education and Outreach component is so exciting is because the EOL is an incredible platform for creating interest and awareness about the world around us.  It can be leveraged for inspirational, in-depth awareness building and educational experiences as well as be used for practical applications, such as environmental management.  The opportunities for learning, teaching and exploration are vast and limited only by one’s imagination!   

Discussions with teachers in formal and informal education settings so far indicate interest to use EOL as a tool to learn fundamental concepts, such as the scientific method and to enhance the learning related to topics such as evolution, taxonomy, systematics, ecology and extinction.  But that is just the beginning.

There are also more complex or integrated concepts and applications that the EOL will be able to support as it develops over time and accumulates more information on each species page.  Some of these examples include teaching and learning about ecosystem function and the services they provide such as climate regulation and water purification.   Eventually, we hope to develop virtual ecosystems that can be manipulated in a variety of ways so students can test the effects of changes of different types and magnitudes.

Beyond learning possibilities, the EOL will be an important information resource for conservation professionals or environmental managers in governments, corporations or other settings who need to develop management plans or monitor the status of selected species.  Media specialists could use the EOL to fact check their stories, as well as provide links from EOL pages to their stories that will put those species in context of current day issues and news.  The EOL will provide a convenient “one-stop shopping” website of current, authoritative information that can be trusted. 

 Another reason this job is rewarding is due to the partnerships that will grow as EOL starts to grow.  EOL is predicated on collaboration and partnerships.  We understand that EOL content will be richer and a greater diversity of learning and teaching models will be generated through conversations and collaborations with partners and interested members of the public.   Initial audiences Education and Outreach wishes to involve in the development and use of EOL include citizen scientists and hobbyists, educators and learners in formal education institutions (Kindergarten through 12^th grade and college level courses) and informal science education settings (e.g., natural history museums, nature centers, National Parks). 

In addition, Education and Outreach will develop mechanisms to support capacity building of scientists and institutions working on biodiversity and environmental issues in developed and developing countries.  It is expected that all of these audiences will also provide information back into the EOL.  This information could be in the form of observations about a particular species, photographs or sound recordings.  We hope that many of the scientists will volunteer to become curators of species pages and share their knowledge about selected species in their country with the rest of the world. 

If you have specific ideas about how you would use and/or contribute to the EOL, please post them for me and others to see.   I look forward to working with individuals and institutions that bring tremendous skills, interest and innovation to the biodiversity learning space!    

Hello and welcome to the Encyclopedia of Life (EOL) Education and Outreach component!  It is one of the five principal components of the EOL initiative and it is housed at Harvard University’s Museum of Comparative Zoology, located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.    

The purpose of the Education and Outreach component is to make EOL relevant, useable and interesting to a broad range of international audiences.  In addition to EOL being a useful resource about biodiversity for educators, citizen scientists, media providers and others, Education and Outreach also wants people to participate in EOL by providing their own observations, photos, videos, sound recordings and data about species they study.   

Furthermore, models for how to use the EOL as a teaching and learning resource will emerge and be shared on the EOL website.  These will provide examples for others to use and build upon.  Some of these applications can be anticipated now; others will emerge only with increased use over time and with advances in technology and content available through the EOL.  Together, EOL and users will explore and promote new and exciting uses of this extraordinary resource in diverse global settings.   

Over the next 12-18 months the Education and Outreach component will be dedicated to identifying the current and future needs of a number of target audiences.  As we get feedback from people and start dialogues, we hope interest and excitement for EOL will build.  Through discussions, partnerships and input from interested users we expect to develop the resources and support to enable different audiences to use the EOL effectively.  Ongoing evaluation will provide a foundation for future products, activities and outreach.     

This is no small feat and I will need your help!  In fact, if you want to help me right now, please take the User Survey that can be found on the main site.   Your input on this survey will allow us to understand who is currently coming to the EOL website and what they are hoping to get from their visit.  There are only a handful of questions and it should take about 5 – 10 minutes to complete – thanks in advance for your participation! 

A bit about me.  I started in November 2007 as the Education and Outreach Director and am currently the only Education and Outreach staff member.  While I’m the only Education and Outreach staff member, I don’t operate in isolation!  I work regularly with other EOL staff in all the component groups (i.e., Informatics, Biosynthesis Center, Biodiversity Heritage Library and the Species Pages).  And I also work with Steering Committee members and many Institutional Council Members, who are located around the world.   

Prior to joining EOL, I worked at Earthwatch Institute for 10 years as the Chief Scientist of the United States office.  In that role I oversaw and lead the science, education and conversation departments.  I have a doctorate in environmental sciences and have always been interested and dedicated to making science accessible for broad public purposes and to have people share in the joy of scientific discovery. 

I am delighted to hold this exciting post at EOL!  I’m learning a lot about what it takes to create a truly global initiative and how to support and involve people from around the world to teach and learn about biodiversity and all it relates to. 

In my next entry I’ll talk more about the audiences EOL wishes to work with in the near future.