The National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS) is a system of 30 coastal sites, spanning 1.4 million acres in 24 states and Puerto Rico, created to protect and study estuarine ecosystems. Administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA), these sites are living laboratories where scientists and stakeholders collaborate to develop place-based solutions to understand, conserve, and restore coastal areas so they can benefit local communities for generations. They do this through various projects and initiatives related to research, education, coastal training, and stewardship.
Many reserves are very engaged with their local communities through K-12 and public programs, but face challenges related to serving their broader regions/watersheds, engaging underserved communities that may not have support for field trips, and making environmental education inclusive and accessible. The issue of reaching students beyond coastal communities was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Nature centers, reserves, and various marine facilities were closed or slowly reopened in response to government mandates, and many field trips that would have allowed students to experience these areas for themselves were canceled. It is now more important than ever for environmental education to improve and adapt to our changing world. To address this educational gap, a teacher survey was conducted and 43 responses were analyzed to identify best practices for middle school and high school lesson formats and assessment strategies. Based on the feedback from teacher surveys, an introductory podcast series ("NERR or Far: The Reserves Are Where You Are") was created for grades 6-12 on the NERRs of the Southeast, as well as supplemental resources for teachers, including worksheets for the classroom.
These podcast episodes are based on audio recordings of interviews with representatives from 7 NERR sites, including NERR managers, coastal training program coordinators and reserve educators. Podcast content covers coastal ecology, management, anthropology, hazard mitigation and opportunities for public interaction with NERR sites. Once this content was fully curated, this website was created to make the podcast series and teacher resources freely available to the general public. This podcast series will increase access to regional conservation information and foster stewardship of the coastal waters of the southeast US.
Many reserves are very engaged with their local communities through K-12 and public programs, but face challenges related to serving their broader regions/watersheds, engaging underserved communities that may not have support for field trips, and making environmental education inclusive and accessible. The issue of reaching students beyond coastal communities was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Nature centers, reserves, and various marine facilities were closed or slowly reopened in response to government mandates, and many field trips that would have allowed students to experience these areas for themselves were canceled. It is now more important than ever for environmental education to improve and adapt to our changing world. To address this educational gap, a teacher survey was conducted and 43 responses were analyzed to identify best practices for middle school and high school lesson formats and assessment strategies. Based on the feedback from teacher surveys, an introductory podcast series ("NERR or Far: The Reserves Are Where You Are") was created for grades 6-12 on the NERRs of the Southeast, as well as supplemental resources for teachers, including worksheets for the classroom.
These podcast episodes are based on audio recordings of interviews with representatives from 7 NERR sites, including NERR managers, coastal training program coordinators and reserve educators. Podcast content covers coastal ecology, management, anthropology, hazard mitigation and opportunities for public interaction with NERR sites. Once this content was fully curated, this website was created to make the podcast series and teacher resources freely available to the general public. This podcast series will increase access to regional conservation information and foster stewardship of the coastal waters of the southeast US.
March 2023:
Hi there! My name is Kaitlyn Dirr and I'm a senior Biological Sciences major, Marine Science minor at the University of South Carolina. "NERR or Far" was created as a part of my senior thesis project for the Honors College here at U of SC. Beyond the mission of making regional conservation information accessible and fostering environmental stewardship in others, this project was also a way of challenging myself to step outside of my comfort zone and explore my abilities as a communicator in the sciences. So why the NERRS? I've had the pleasure of working with a number of the reserves that are highlighted throughout the series over the course of my college career. I've had the opportunity to help with research related the Zooplankton Time Series of North Inlet (NI-WB NERR), I've led the completion of a study on the seasonal use of gopher tortoise burrows in beach dunes at the GTM NERR, and I served as the Avian Intern for the Rookery Bay NERR in the summer of 2022, where I conducted a disturbance study related to protected seabird nesting colonies. I love the reserve system, and I want to help spread the word about all the great things the NERRs are doing and the numerous opportunities to get involved! |