Outreach Resources

Botany Outreach Program

These are exciting times for botany in North America. Discoveries of new species continue to be made, and publication of the first ever comprehensive record of the 20,100+ plants of North America north of Mexico is well underway. These are also critical times for North American botany. The loss of biodiversity is a significant concern among scientists and citizens. At the same time, the neglect of plants in formal education alarms many botanists and science educators.

The Flora of North America Association is launching an outreach program, with the aim of advancing botanical knowledge. Our outreach program is just getting off the ground. We aim to develop a series of online resources to improve access to current information on North American plants. Check back regularly for new materials.

Currently, we provide a selection of inquiry-based, standard-aligned lesson plans and fact sheets. These educator resources place information about North American plants in a broad context of how plants interact with their environments and how humans interact with plants. The topics span physiology, ecology, evolution, and conservation. As students discover fun facts and feats of the plants in their neighborhoods and national parks, they will learn core biology concepts and see plant science in action.

Please also visit the outreach and research programs of some of our key partners.

• Botanical Research Institute of Texas
• Intermountain Herbarium, Utah State University
• Missouri Botanical Garden
• The Arboretum at Flagstaff
• The Harvard Herbaria
• The Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation

For more information about our outreach program, contact
Dr. Nancy R. Morin, Vice President for Business and Development
(707) 882-2528; nancy.morin@nau.edu