Earth Day 2022 Webinars

Earth Day 2022

Celebrating Women in Science Tracking Species

This Earth Day, join the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute and the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center for a three-part virtual program series all about tracking animals! This series, called "Women on the Move: Technology and Animal Tracking," highlights the stories of women in science who save species by using technology to track animals across sea, sky and land.

Designed for grades 3-8 but open to all. All programs include ASL interpretation and live captioning in English and Spanish.

This project received support from the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative.

Format

Programs are free but require registration. All three programs are hosted live via Zoom webinar and are 45 minutes long with an additional 15 minutes for student Q&A. Participants are not visible to the speaker and moderators but are encouraged to engage by answering polls, reacting with emojis and submitting questions in writing through a Q&A.

Virtual Programs

Programs can be watched as a series or as stand-alone programs. All three programs will be recorded and archived on this page.

An aerial shot of a curving shoreline in Curacao with clear blue water and a grassy and sandy landscape

Animal Tracking Part 1: Fish and Whales

April 18 at 1 p.m. ET

Meet Kim Richie and Sarah Mallette, researchers with the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. Learn how they track animals in water — from herring to whales.

Grades: 3-8

Standards: Supports NGSS 3-LS4-4, 3-5-ETS1-1, 3-5-ETS1-2, 3-5-ETS1-3, 4-LS1-1, 4-LS1-2, 5-ESS2-1, 5-ESS3-1, MS-LS2-2, MS-LS2-4, MS-ESS3-3, MS-ESS3-4, MS-ETS1-1, MS-ETS1-2, MS-ETS1-3, MS-ETS1-4

A scientist standing on a grassy island holding a brown pelican under her arm. Birds fly in the background.

Animal Tracking Part 2: Birds

April 20 at 1 p.m. ET

Meet Autumn-Lynn Harrison, Ph.D., scientist at the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center. Learn how she studies bird migration using various devices to track shorebirds and sea birds.

Grades: 3-8

Standards: Supports NGSS 3-LS4-4, 4-LS1-1, 5-ESS3-1, 3-5-ETS1-1, 3-5-ETS1-2, MS-LS2-2

A scimitar-horned oryx wearing a tracking collar

Animal Tracking Part 3: Land Mammals

April 22 at 1 p.m. ET

Meet Melissa Songer, Ph.D., conservation biologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. Learn how she uses tracking information to help scimitar-horned oryx, elephants and more!

Grades: 3-8

Standards: Supports NGSS 3-LS4-4, 5-ESS3-1, 3-5-ETS1-1, 3-5-ETS1-2, MS-LS2-2, MS-ESS3-4