RECIPE: Research, Education and Community
Involvement Program for the Environment
Our goal is to develop a systematic approach for initiating, tracking, and completing Science projects that will satisfy the mission of Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy to establish a center of excellence for restoring and sustaining native habitat, and for documenting ongoing changes as the habitat improves. This vision became a reality through generous funding by Alcoa Foundation in June 2006. As a result, the Research Education and Community Involvement Program for the Environment or RECIPE, was established.
Through RECIPE, the science program coordinates the development of scientific and management information to be communicated to the restoration community and public at large. The program is intended to reach students from elementary through university level work to foster sound scientific education for youth as well as research opportunities for academia.
A tiered approach, accommodating various skill levels, provides the framework for building a comprehensive science program for the Land Conservancy. Younger students can engage in activities that support on-going restoration tasks or other research projects. Older students have the opportunity to launch their own research projects that carry performance goals commensurate with their level of academic work. All projects involve Land Conservancy staff in a way to build the integrated program of RECIPE.
Attracting quality collaborators is important for meeting the Land Conservancy’s mission of excellence for its native habitat restoration and sustenance program. An active outreach program solicits students and researchers from local schools for the RECIPE program. Prospective candidates may peruse the types of projects offered and apply for an internship or research project on-line.
Communicating the results of the science projects is essential for meeting the Land Conservancy’s mission and integral with RECIPE. In keeping with the goal of excellence, scientific rigor for reporting will be established, but is applied within context of the tiered structure to meet the abilities of all participants. Younger students and interns will focus on the learning experience and less on reporting, whereas older students and Land Conservancy staff will direct their efforts toward participation in scientific conferences and/or publishing in peer-reviewed journals.
RECIPE Science Research
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RECIPE is generously funded by Alcoa Foundation |
