The 2012 Roger Tory Peterson Nature Education Achievement Awards

Download Nomination Form

The Roger Tory Peterson Institute seeks to honor Roger Tory Peterson (1908-1996), the great nature educator of the 20th century, by discovering and recognizing those who are continuing in his footsteps.

Every community has teachers, naturalists and informal educators who make teaching natural history relevant and exciting to their students. They may work on staff or volunteer at a school, nature center, museum, camp or other place where learning happens. If you know someone like this, we want to know about it!

The Peterson Certificate

Roger Tory Peterson Nature Education Achievement awardees will receive certificates, suitable for framing, to honor the good work they are doing in schools and communities across the country to continue Dr. Peterson's legacy of nature education. The purpose of these awards is to put the spotlight on individuals and their communities in order to stimulate others to improve and expand the quality of nature education programs across the country. Through the RTPI website we will share the "best practices" the awardees are using as well as cultivate networking opportunities to learn from each other.

Peterson Certificate recipients also become eligible for consideration to receive the Blanche Hornbeck Award for nature education excellence. Ms. Hornbeck was the 7th grade teacher who sparked young Roger's interest in nature and encouraged him to pursue his passion for birds and learn all he could about the living world around him. Candidates for this award will come from the pool of educators recognized in the Roger Tory Peterson Nature Education Achievement Awards program.

Qualifications

To be eligible for a Roger Tory Peterson Certificate, the nature educator may be a school faculty member or volunteer, or a staff member or volunteer at a nature center, museum, zoo, or other informal setting such as a religious education program, youth camp or scouting program. In order to receive a Peterson Certificate, the nominee must be able to answer "yes" to each of the following questions:

1. Is the nature education place-based? In other words, does it pertain to the ecology of the place where both the nature educator and students live? We are looking for nominees in the spirit of Roger Tory Peterson, who fostered knowledge of and responsibility for the natural world where we live not some distant or inaccessible place.
2. Is the nature education outdoor-based? In other words, does a substantial amount of teaching and learning occur through interaction between students and the natural environment? We are looking for nominees in the spirit of Dr. Peterson, who promoted learning in the out-of-doors.
3. Is the nature education work innovative? In other words, is it more than applying the many environmental education resources and programs that are readily available? We know that not everyone can come up with a unique idea like the Peterson System for identification, but the work of the nominee should not simply be others' teaching ideas.
4. Is the nature education work current? We are looking for nominees who are presently working to continue Dr. Peterson's nature education legacy - not work that took place and ended sometime in the past.

Nomination Form

Open this Nomination Form to submit a nomination for the 2012 Roger Tory Peterson Nature Education Achievement Awards

Nomination Deadline

The deadline for nomination of 2012 Peterson Certificate awards is April 30, 2012.

Judging

A panel of judges that includes Peterson Institute staff, advisors, and research associates will review the application of each Peterson Certificate nominee.

Notification

The Peterson Institute will notify 2012 Peterson Certificate awardees by June 30, 2012 and will announce the recipients at the Peterson Institute's Annual Meeting in August 2012.