caise

Next week, nearly 450 people will converge on Washington, D.C. for the Informal Science Education Summit 2010, organized by CAISE with the support of the National Science Foundation.

The Summit is an opportunity to celebrate the contributions of informal science education, explore emerging issues, and strengthen connections across the broad and diverse community of informal science educators.

Informal science education reaches millions of people every year with an extraordinary array of opportunities to explore, discover, and learn. Whether it’s an awe-inspiring film, a thought-provoking television series, a memorable exhibition, or a summer science camp, informal science education helps people across the lifespan awaken and pursue their interests, build their knowledge, and develop an understanding of the scientific process.

At CAISE, our vision is of an informal science education field recognized for its fundamental contributions to society, a field that contributes significantly to broadening participation in science among citizens of all ages and walks of life—and of a diverse and cohesive informal science education community that is strengthened by rigorous intellectual leadership and active knowledge–building. In that spirit, many people have been working to prepare for this gathering—and in the spirit of participatory learning, there are many ways to get involved—whether you're in Washington for the event or participating in online discussions or following the discussions through this blog and other media.