In fast-growing Salt Lake County (2023 population estimate 1,185,813), it’s easy to forget that nature exists amongst us. ReAwakened Beauty: The Past, Present, and Future of the Joran River offers K-16 students an exciting, new, outdoor-classrooms program that introduces the Jordan River Migratory Bird Reserve (JRMBR), a 132-acre South Jordan site that sheds light on past-damages to the river and current efforts to restore some of its vital natural functions.

CDEA’s Reawakened Beauty outdoor-classrooms program is an outgrowth of its 13-year-old environmental-education program. Developed in 2009, in conjunction with TreeUtah, Utah Audubon Society, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Westminster College Prof. Ty Harrison, the program  originally introduced K-12 students to the human and natural history of the Jordan River, while engaging them in restoration and documentary-arts stye reporting.

Currently, CDEA is partnering with the Utah Reclamation, Mitigation, and Conservation Commission, (https://www.mitigationcommission.gov/ ), the owner of the 132-acre site, to provide K-16 students educational vehicles with which to interact with the site. Three outdoor-classrooms have been placed on the property, and CDEA is developing site engagement activities that range from one- and two-day visits to month-long environmental-education programs that introduce site history and current restoration activities, while involving young people in restoration work and site stewardship.

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