By Anne Mazar
I met the EARTH Limited Executive Director Betsey Brewer at the new EARTH Nature Center located next to Southwick’s Zoo. I was dazzled by the beautiful hand-painted murals of oceans and an African savannah, a giant hanging globe of the earth, and an observation deck with an aerial view of the zoo and open to the nighttime sky. A perfect place for an engaging hands-on classroom experience or special event.
The center will be open to the public for programs and events starting June 12 when it hosts an open house. It will offer immersion learning with animals, health classes, lunch-and-learn programs, and more.
Growing up on her family’s Southwick’s Wild Animal Farm, now Southwick’s Zoo, Brewer always had a love for animals. It wasn’t unusual for her to walk a mountain lion on a leash or raise a menagerie of orphaned animals including kangaroos, parrots, lemurs, a leopard or a giraffe. She currently has two baby owls in her office that look like adorable fluffy stuffed animals.
Betsey’s passion for animals and the environment led her to obtain a master’s in wildlife conservation education. She became Southwick Zoo’s zoological director, however she felt that the missing piece was making a direct connection with the animals at the zoo to their habitats and to environmental issues. She wanted people, especially kids, to have hands-on learning experiences with animals to help them understand the integral relationship that we have with wildlife and why it is critical to protect their habitat.
That desire led Betsey to the launch EARTH Limited in 1999, a nonprofit 501c3 conservation and education organization that works with the zoo. Brewer said, “our mission is to engage, educate, and inspire visitors to appreciate and protect biodiversity and the natural world through immersive, hands-on learning experiences.”
It offers programs such as a junior zookeeping, rhino and sloth encounters, and wild adventure programs. Betsey has told students, “You are all animals,” and that is usually met with a resounding “no!” Then she proceeds to explain the integral relationship of all species, including humans, for all of our survival and for a healthy world.
Now, with a building dedicated to its effort, EARTH will offer more education programs while positioning itself as more of a community asset. The grand opening of the EARTH Nature Center will be Friday, June 12 from 1-3 p.m. To attend, send an RSVP email to earth@earthltd.org.
Some of the upcoming events and programs at the EARTH Nature Center include:
Member Appreciation After-Hours
June 17, 6-8 p.m.
Lunch and Learn: Oceans
June 23, 12-1 pm.
Through the Lens of Tanzania,
July 2, 5-6:30 p.m.
EARTH Fest: Wild Fun for a Wild Cause
July 11, 4-9:30 p.m.
Sip & Paint With a Sloth!
July 31, 6:30-8 p.m.
EARTH Awareness Day
Aug. 1, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Photo top of page: EARTH Limited Executive Director Betsey Brewer at the entrance to the new building located next to Southwick’s Zoo. (Anne Mazar)
Slideshow, left to right: Peanut at 3 months, a cheetah who was orphaned along with his two siblings and raised by Betsey Brewer and staff. He is now grown up and lives with his siblings at Southwick’s Zoo (courtesy EARTH Limited); a mural at EARTH Nature Center, painted by Melissa Stratton, Sarah Egan and Kalle Hill (Anne Mazar); Aerial view from the observation deck at EARTH Nature Center (Anne Mazar).
