With Dennis Liu, VP of Edcuation, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation

The Half-Earth Mapping to Conserve Biodiversity Design Challenge (half-earthproject.org/half-earth-project-educator-ambassadors/#resources) is a hands-on team-based activity that’s been successfully field-tested by hundreds of faculty and thousands of students, with positive results on engagement, learning, and effective group work. In this workshop we present extensions to the hands-on mapping activity that encourage students to explore the online interactive Half-Earth Map (half-earthproject.org/maps/) and other resources, to build their own understanding of key biodiversity, ecology, and conservation concepts. A guided-inquiry focused on Hummingbirds will be explored during the workshop. The Half-Earth Project data team has mapped the distribution of hummingbird species to an unprecedented 1km resolution. Where in the world are hummingbirds found? In the guided-inquiry, students explore the world’s distribution of hummingbird species. They will compare and contrast the distribution of different hummingbird species to explore why different species live in different places and have such different ranges. Is the resilience of a species dependent on how big its range is? Hummingbirds are masters of flight, able to zoom and hover, and like many birds they are also accomplished long-distance migrators. How does migration effect conservation strategies for a species? A major goal of the hummingbird guided inquiry is to provide an example that students and instructors can use to design their own guided-inquiries to share with the Half-Earth Educator Ambassador peer community (www.half-earthproject.org/half-earth-project-educator-ambassadors). Participants will get copies of maps to take back to their classrooms as well as printed resources that support the hummingbird guided-inquiry.