open space authority funds contributed to project
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Children’s Discovery Museum’s “Exploration Portal” (EP) is a nature-themed educational space designed to engage children ages 2-10 and the adults who accompany them in hands-on environmental education. With the location’s adjacency to the Guadalupe River, EP encompasses three intertwined strategies for maximum environmental and educational impacts: 1) an architectural design that improves the health of the Guadalupe River; 2) 8 interactive exhibits that inspire curiosity and help children make discoveries about the natural world along with interpretive signage in English, Spanish and Vietnamese; and 3) a landscaping plan that role models the use of native and/or drought tolerant plants, cultivates biodiversity in the site's riparian environment, and immerses children and adults into the cognitive and physical benefits of a verdant environment.
Bay Area Older Adults Trailblazers is an environmental education walking program that increases access to open spaces for our most vulnerable older adults: visually impaired and blind and widowed. Authority funds will help provide accessible and multisensory learning about nature, to increase environmental stewardship, encourage social engagement and physical activity to improve overall health.
The Authority helped to fund the San Jose Children’s Discovery Museum’s Happy Trails Project, which offers a free, multiple-experience program addressing the lack of opportunities for today’s urban children to connect with nature. Happy Trails blazes a path for diverse, primarily low-income children and families to explore nature's health benefits and natural resources of the Santa Clara Valley through facilitated programming in the Museum's unique outdoor learning environment and nearby Guadalupe River, guided activities and trail hikes at open space preserves, and a fun nature festival.
