Tracking Project Sponsor:
The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk

Celebrates the living creatures of Long Island Sound
This well-loved, family-friendly destination, visited by 500,000 people each year, offers a variety of fun, educational experiences in intimate settings. People learn about the web of life and are inspired to appreciate and protect Long Island Sound.

• Encounters with animals native to Long Island Sound, assisted by friendly human interpreters, educate visitors about the Sound and its rich ecosystem.
• Personal connections are made to the Aquarium’s mission, and the mission’s appeal is extended to different audiences by the IMAX Theater, the changing exhibit space, an active boat-building shop and the research vessel Oceanic.
• Set in a refurbished 1860s factory on the mouth of the Norwalk River, the building and its location remind visitors of past human and industrial uses of Long Island Sound while also placing them on the shoreline of the ecosystem that is the Aquarium’s focus.

An educational leader in the tri-state area
More than 155,000 children and teachers each year experience The Maritime Aquarium’s informal and formal education programs. Nearly half of those schoolchildren—70,000 a year—participate in formal programs either in the Aquarium and its science labs, aboard the Aquarium’s research vessel or at their schools. The hands-on, experience-based learning reinforces national science standards and the Connecticut Science Framework. More than 60 programs provide students with exciting access to live animals, unique tools (for boat-building, science-inquiry, etc.) and real-life experiences, including field research.

Contributes much more than $40 million to the Connecticut economy
The public/private partnership that created The Maritime Aquarium more than 16 years ago has met its goals. The Aquarium has become an economic engine for the city, resulting in the revitalization of the economically distressed historic Norwalk waterfront.

Quality visitor experience at the Gateway to New England
Visitors from every state come to The Maritime Aquarium to be entertained and to learn about the marine life in Long Island Sound. Almost 60 percent of visitors each year have been here before, a testament to the value they place on the Aquarium.

For more information visit: The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk

Sponsored Turtles:
Caribbean Leatherback Tracking & Conservation Project
   • Rickie (2006)

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