Environmental Education and Public Engagement

Broch cover

The National Great Rivers Research and Education Center (NGRREC) strongly emphasizes education as a part of its mission. The Center’s educational programs and activities are aligned with the Illinois Learning Standards and North American Association for Environmental Education Guidelines for Excellence. NGRREC employs full-time environmental educators responsible for developing and delivering a variety of comprehensive education and outreach programs that target K-12 students, formal and non-formal educators, and the public.

Research findings from NGRREC staff and others help guide the Center’s education programs to increase public understanding of big rivers, their watersheds and floodplains, and the interaction between the rivers and their human, plant, and animal communities. The results are also presented at workshops and symposia on topics including river health, river communities, and ecological restoration.

For more information about education programs, contact Natalie Marioni at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it (618) 468-2783.

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Program Age Spectrum

age spectrum


great river facts

The Missouri-Mississippi River basin has the third largest drainage area in the world (1,247,000 square miles), smaller only than the Amazon River basin in South America and the Congo River basin in Africa (National Geographic Society, 1984).

The Missouri River is about 200 miles longer than the Mississippi River (Walsh, 2003).

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 riverfacts