Our Mission

Our mission is to provide the citizens and children of Northern California with a community-gathering institution to “Explore, Celebrate, and Conserve” the stunning biological, geological, and natural heritage of Northern California. We combine the resources of the entire region and California State University, Chico to provide an educational and culturally enriching site where families, school classes, clubs, and friends can gather for a variety of activities:

• To learn about the natural history of Northern California, past and present
• To compare Northern California’s habitats with others in North America and the world
• To explore interactions between our region’s environment and the people who live here, including the original Native Americans
• To participate in the exhilaration of “doing science”
• To learn about our region’s critical habitats and then visit the habitats on field trips