Picture your community—its busy areas, neighborhoods, parks, and water sources such as lakes or streams. Now imagine your community the year you were born. What animals and plants lived there? Do they still live there? What about 50 or 100 years ago?

A habitat is a place within an ecosystem where a plant or animal lives. Living things have evolved to thrive in their native habitat, with a particular landscape, climate, dominant vegetation, and water source. When a habitat becomes polluted, overtaken by invasive non-native species, broken into small pockets by highways or subdivisions, or degraded by other sources of rapid change, many species will not be able to adapt. Habitat destruction is causing countless plants and animals to drastically decline in number, some to the point of extinction.

Environmental engineers reverse the process of habitat loss by working with biologists, ecologists, conservationists, geologists, and many other kinds of scientists to restore habitat. The work requires a deep knowledge of the ecology and natural history of a particular environment, as well as the ability to think
ahead and plan for future potential threats to a habitat’s well-being.

Your STEM Project:

Plan the restoration of a degraded habitat in your community so that it benefits native plants and animals.

Download Instructions & Project Management Templates

Challenge Instructions

Restore a Habitat Project Challenge

Project Management Templates (Word version)

Research Resources

Academic Standards & UN Sustainable Development Goals

This project meets the following Next Gen Science Standards:

HS-LS2-7 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

Design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing the impacts of human activities on the environment and biodiversity.

HS-ESS3-2 Earth and Human Activity

Evaluate competing design solutions for developing, managing, and utilizing energy and mineral resources based on cost-benefit ratios.

HS-ETS1-2 Engineering Design

Design a solution to a complex real-world problem by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable problems that can be solved through engineering.

This project is aligned with the following United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals:

Goal 15: Life on Earth

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91 Comments

John Paul Jones on March 26, 2023 at 1:10 am

This is really good! I appreciate your approach to STEM studies.
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Phobe Boutte on October 10, 2023 at 8:55 am

Great STEM enrichment.
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Michelle McDaniel on October 25, 2023 at 11:37 am

Good
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Danielle Williams on October 28, 2023 at 6:15 am

I’m planning on utilizing it this spring. I want to find a middle school version or modify as well
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Nina Gilstrap on October 31, 2023 at 6:53 am

Looking at it when I have time. Trying to figure out how to download
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Lisa on November 12, 2023 at 11:17 pm

I love all the possible connections a project like this could create. Can’t wait to see more of what you do!
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Katrina West on November 14, 2023 at 10:46 am

Love the efforts to clean up, anywhere any time! Thank you
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Eileen on November 15, 2023 at 12:59 am

8-9th grade any many activities
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Angelica Rodriguez on November 27, 2023 at 5:40 pm

This is the wonderful activities for the estudents, and STEAM plans
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Susan on February 1, 2024 at 11:48 pm

Anxious to try it
Reply
eri on February 4, 2024 at 11:14 pm

sgj416@gmail.com
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This activity was developed through the support of the Project Management Institute Educational Foundation. More Activities from Project Management Institute Educational Foundation

DiscoverE helps create activities like this around Design Challenge, Green & Climate for children in High School to help prepare them for STEM careers in fields like Agriculture & Biosystems or Environmental or Project Management.

Restore a Habitat Challenge

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