Heather Wiggins

Trout Lake Nature Center

Trout Lake Nature Center's Mission: To help create, through education, a sustainable environment where humans and the world of nature coexist in harmony. Trout Lake Nature Center is dedicated to conserving and protecting the natural environment and educating the community about its importance. An educated citizenry that understands our connection to, and interdependence within, the world around us will become a vital force in protecting our water, soils, forests, wetlands, prairies, and our wildlife — our planet's natural resources. TLNC's environmental education begins with our "Nature Sprouts" program for 2- to 5-year-olds and continues through elementary school. Popular monthly Friday Night Naturalist programs, walks guided by subject-matter experts, and a full schedule of special events target older students, adults and families. We believe that environmental education should .... • Be part of every person's education. Developing environmental values, knowledge and skills is a lifelong process ... one which will determine the long-term viability of our planet. • Be innovative, reaching new constituencies, addressing new environmental threats and concerns, and creating learning opportunities that are relevant to our world. • Instill values and attitudes which lead to environmentally sound behavior and actions. • Promote the understanding of ecological concepts and processes. • Be grounded in current environmental research and sound educational theory. • Provide interactive experiences that cause participants to perceive their role as citizens, versus observers, of the natural world. As our impact upon our audiences "at home" increases, we shall continue to work with the City of Eustis and Lake County to expand our environmental education program, using our public parks and facilities to increase the reach to all segments of the community.