Thanks to the funding, personnel, and in-kind support of the U.S. Forest Service Department of Agriculture International Programs, Eden Place is able to offer a range of internationally-focused programs.  In particular, we engage the public in preserving local biodiversity and protecting the habitat for migrating species such as the monarch butterfly and migrating bats, birds, and dragonflies.  Eden Place is a participant in MonarchLIVE, an international conservation collaboration amongst researchers and educators in Mexico, the U.S. and Canada that focuses on preserving the habitat of the monarch.  As the official MonarchLIVE conservation site in Illinois, Eden Place implements community events, educational programming, and conservation projects funded by U.S. Forest Service USDA IP.  Some of these efforts include:

We have partnered with local schools such as Hendricks Academy, Parkman Elementary, and Talcott Elementary to bring monarch-focused educational programs into the classroom. We work with local school children to cultivate milkweed (the host plant for the monarch caterpillar) and other native plants and to transplant those plants into Eden Place and local community gardens.  We  also teach students about the life cycle and migration of the monarch, help students raise and release monarchs, and teach them how to grow a butterfly garden.  We focus on providing age-appropriate lessons for K-4 students and service learning opportunities for students in grades 5-8.

We support local residents in becoming “citizen scientists” by making observations of migrating species and tagging monarch butterflies.  We then submit the data to online databases or sharing that data with other local and international communities in order to connect with larger conservation efforts.  Additionally, we teach city dwellers about how they might seek out and enjoy nature recreation activities and we help residents learn how to adopt environmentally friendly practices that will benefit the health of their families, friends and the biodiversity in their own communities.  Through hands-on, outdoor experiences that are both fun and educational, we support youth and families in engaging with topics such as biology, ecology, and horticulture.