Mojave Desert Discovery Centers ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION KIOSKS  FOR MOJAVE DESERT VISITORS

In 2000 the Desert Tortoise Preserve Committee launched a Mojave Desert-wide outreach program based on the development of educational kiosks called the Mojave Desert Discovery Centers (MDDC).  The ATM-like kiosks  were designed to be interactive and featured an interactive CD-Rom web site, videotape presentations about the desert and its wildlife, and customized maps and brochures to guide visitors to featured desert attractions. 

• The first phase of this innovative approach to environmental education included three Mojave Desert Discovery Center kiosks throughout the Mojave Desert .  Since their development the Mojave Desert Discovery Centers have traveled the region and were installed in numerous locations including: the California Welcome Center in Barstow , Cottonwood Visitor Center in Joshua Tree National Park , California Living Museum in Bakersfield , Nevada State Museum in Las Vegas , Nevada , and in several libraries throughout California .
• After being deployed for 8 years it is time to bring the Mojave Desert Discovery Centers home to be refurbished and updated with new brochures with current information, customized maps, and displays. 
• Information regarding the updates to the Discovery Centers and the locations of their new installation will be posted to this site.

 

Five years of planning and fund-raising occurred between the initial conception of the Discovery Centers and their initial installation..  Throughout the process the concept of  traditional educational visitor centers evolved into the new approach of using several interpretive kiosks located at high traffic areas that effectively allow the Committee to reach more desert users.  "Unlike traditional visitor center concepts, the Discovery Centers are mobile and can be deployed in areas where recreational visitors congregate," said Preserve Committee contractor Jun Lee.

 

The Mojave Desert Discovery Centers offer a unique way for the Committee to fulfill one of its major goals: to provide information and education to the public on the threatened desert tortoise and its habitat, and on the associated plants and animals that share its desert ecosystem.  It is estimated that more than 300,000 people per year will interact with the Discovery Centers once the have been updated and installed at new locations in Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

The first phase of this program was made possible by a significant contribution from the late Joan Leslie Kelly and the generous support of members of the Desert Tortoise Preserve Committee.  Funding for the updates to the Discovery Centers were made possible by the Desert Legacy Fund Conservation Grant from the Community Foundation which was waarded to the Committee in May of 2008.