Montgomery’s work featured on Community Projects World Map

Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) has developed a new Community Projects World Map. Montgomery Botanical Center’s Conservation Horticulture Program and the Service Learning Program developed by Miami Dade College’s Institute for Civic Engagement and Democracy are highlighted. Montgomery Botanical Center is one of twelve gardens featured on the Community Projects World Map.

The Conservation Horticulture Fellowships were originally sponsored by the E. O. Dunn Foundation and now are also sponsored by The Batchelor Foundation, Inc. Students residing in Miami-Dade County, often attending Miami Dade College’s horticulture technology program, are selected for the fellowship. Students are taught conservation horticulture – managing living plants to prevent extinction – and the basics of caring for rare plants in the nursery. Conservation Horticulture Fellows gain insight into the field by rotating monthly between horticulture departments while learning to care for plants in the nursery and on the grounds. The photo above shows the 2014-2015 Conservation Horticulture Fellows working with the Cycad Curators.

The service-learning program, developed by Miami Dade College, fosters collaborations between students and local not-for-profit organizations as a component of their coursework. The service-learning program at Montgomery is an introduction to botanic gardens for many students. Though some students are biology and horticulture majors, the majority of students are first and second year students still deciding on majors. This program has the potential to influence young students into selecting STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields such as biology and botany as their majors, contributing to an increase in STEM majors in South Florida.

Montgomery Botanical Center is happy to partner with Miami Dade College in these programs, molding the next generation of conservation horticulturists and botanic garden workers. For more information on the programs at Montgomery Botanical Center, please see the webpage and select the “Community Projects” tab.