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 Powdermill is Alive!
Powdermill Nature Reserve, the biological research station
of the Carnegie
Museum of Natural History, has been dedicated
to its mission of research, education, and preservation
for over 50 years. It is a place for scientists, for students,
and for families who are interested in the natural world,
and it is home to the one of the longest continually running
bird
banding stations in the United States. A wide variety
of public education programs are regularly offered to children
and adults at the Powdermill Nature Reserve headquarters building.
Researchers from around the world conduct diverse long-
and short-term scientific studies in herpetology, botany,
invertebrate zoology, and ornithology at Powdermill.
A growing
future is developing for Powdermill as, thanks to the generosity
of countless supporters and a major
grant from the Richard King Mellon
Foundation, the nature center underwent a 10,000 square
foot expansion. With the latest in sustainable design technology,
the new headquarters building provides two classrooms,
greatly improved exhibits, necessary administrative space,
and, the reason behind it all, comfortable indoor restrooms.
Besides enhancing programming opportunities, the expansion
includes event rental spaces, the capability to host special
museum exhibits, and, with the marsh
machine wastewater treatment greenhouse, is an educational
showcase of environmentally sensitive design. Now showing
in the special exhibits gallery is the work of acclaimed
nature photographer Don
Robinson.
Another
exciting component of the nature center expansion is the
2007 Solar Decathlon
house, which combines the talents of students from
Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh.
After the competition in Washington, D.C., the solar
house was transported to Powdermill where it was re-constructed
and will serve as an exhibit of the latest in “green” architecture
and engineering.
The
new Powdermill headquarters opened to the public on Sunday,
December 2, 2007.
Click here to see
photos from the opening event!
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