Bocas del Toro Research Station - Smithsonian Tropical Research ...

outreach, education, training
Outreach and education at the Bocas del Toro
Research Station spans a range of programs
targeting K-12 students, university undergraduates,
graduate students and young professionals. K-12
education includes visits to local schools, some of
which are in remote mountainous locations, and
student visits to the BRS. The station also offers
a training workshop for local K-12 teachers once
every two years.
More than 190 university undergraduates visited
the station as participants in courses hosted by the
Bocas Research Station (see page 42), and more
than 100 participated as research assistants and
interns in numerous research projects. Our outreach
specialists also reached local undergraduates by
visiting the University of Panama in Changuinola.
Finally, graduate students and young professionals
obtain advanced training at the BRS where they
learn specialized skills for studying biodiversity
from the Training in Tropical Taxonomy program.
These colorful sponge samples form the backbone of the data that
supports the Bocas Biodiversity web page and the Training in
Tropical Taxonomy program.
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Activities at the station also touch the general public
from around the world. Bi-weekly station open houses
received 700 visitors from 20 countries in FY07.
The BRS also has an active web presence. The BRS
Biodiveristy database received 10,000 unique hits during
this two year period. The virtual mangrove walkway
and real-time biological monitoring data are also popular
sites.
Plans for future development of the public programs
include design and construction of an interpretive walk.
The walk will include pond, forest, and mangrove ecosystems
that are present on the BRS property.
Lidia Valencia works with school children from Isla Colon to convey the
importance of coral reef ecosystems. BRS outreach also includes local
teacher training.