Inspiring the next generation of environmental stewards
By Kendall Sternberg, University Communications
Cooper Center educator Joshua Tashoff points out a verdin nest to students during a desert walk. Spherical in design, verdins build multiple nests for different purposes, such as roosting or raising their young. Verdins are native to the Sonoran Desert and found year-round throughout Tucson.
Tawni Eakman/Office of Sustainability
Tucked into the Tucson Mountains west of campus, the Cooper Center for Environmental Learning has served as an entry point to discovering the Sonoran Desert for generations of Tucson-area students.
Three students document the desert landcape with binoculars and cameras during their trip to the Cooper Center.
Cooper Center
Tucson Unified School District opened the center over 60 years ago. In 2008, TUSD partnered with the University of Arizona College of Education to operate the center and expand environmental education opportunities for local students.
Since then, the center has advanced the university's commitment to community engagement, one of the university’s strategic imperatives, by creating opportunities for young students to explore science and nature through hands-on learning experiences.
Every year, over 3,000 students participate in the center’s programs encouraging curiosity, scientific exploration and stewardship of the Sonoran Desert. For many participants, a visit to the center provides their first opportunity to engage directly with desert ecology.
From campus to the community
Colin Waite, director of the Cooper Center, has championed its mission for more than 23 years and helped expand its staff, educational programs and reach to students throughout Southern Arizona.
"Being able to work with the College of Education and across the university has guided best instructional practice for sharing nature with young children,” Waite said. “That's been really exciting!”
Educator Aliya McDonald holds up rocks for students to examine during a nature walk at the center.
Cooper Center
The partnership between the university and TUSD has positioned the Cooper Center as a regional leader in environmental education.
Through its collaboration with the College of Education, the center incorporates research-based instructional practices in environmental and outdoor learning. Its Earthkeepers program has received international recognition for its measurable impact on students' ecological knowledge and environmentally responsible behaviors, and the center was honored with the Distinguished Organization Award from the Arizona Association for Environmental Education in 2022.
"We are building a connection to the university for our local schoolchildren to see that there are opportunities to learn more about the world around us and to create change,” Waite said.
Through guided hikes, wildlife and plant identification activities, ecological investigations and interactive science lessons, Cooper Center educators encourage students to explore the natural world firsthand while building skills in observation, critical thinking and environmental stewardship.
The center also offers online activities and resources for students and their families who aren’t able to visit in person, helping extend environmental learning opportunities to communities throughout Southern Arizona.
"It's really bringing the expertise and the things that make the university great to bear with our local schools,” Waite said.
Supporting a sustainable future
Recent investments from donors have supported the renovation of the center's cabins, including the use of sustainable building materials such as hempcrete blocks and natural, organic finishes.
These improvements and new initiatives are expanding educational opportunities while reflecting the environmental values that are a part of the Cooper Center.
"It's never been more important for kids to get connected to nature," Waite said.
Young visitors at the Cooper Center explore the habitat of native wildlife.
Cooper Center
University employees can get involved by using their paid time off for volunteer services benefit to support projects and events at the Cooper Center.
Support from donors and community partners help fund facility improvements, educational programming and student experiences that might not otherwise be possible.
Whether through financial contributions or volunteer efforts, those investments help the center continue its longstanding mission of connecting young people with nature and fostering a deeper appreciation for Southern Arizona's unique environment.
Early immersive experiences often spark a lifelong curiosity about the natural world and help cultivate the next generation of environmental stewards. For Waite, the greatest measure of success is the lasting impact those experiences can have for students as they discover new interests and possibilities for the future.
"That's the dream, to kind of replace ourselves with these incredible human beings," he said.