The Climate and Rural Systems Partnership

Talking about human-caused climate change can be difficult, especially in communities where it feels politicized or socially unsafe. However, starting the conversation is an essential step toward taking the scaled actions we need to tackle this challenge and build sustainable, resilient futures, both in our region and the world. 

The Climate and Rural Systems Partnership (CRSP, pronounced “crisp”) is a collaborative learning-research project that aims to get people talking about climate change in Western Pennsylvania so that, ultimately, we can do something about it. CRSP operates at the intersection of three ideas: 1) museum resources are valuable for understanding environmental change, 2) museums are underserving rural audiences, and 3) complex socio-scientific environmental change topics are deeply connected to social decision-making in rural communities. Over the past four years, the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, together with the University of Pittsburgh, has engaged community partners across rural Western Pennsylvania in a research practice partnership that supports professional networking, reflection and learning about human-caused climate change. Through this partnership we seek to improve methodologies and practices for practitioners to effectively address climate change issues with their audiences, including the museum’s work with its audiences. 

The project is centered at two community hubs: Powdermill Nature Reserve in the Laurel Highlands and Mercer County Conservation District north of Pittsburgh. Community partners across these hubs have included formal and informal educators, conservation practitioners, watershed specialists, land managers, farmers, environmental advocates, recreationists, industry leaders, and scientists. Together, we have explored strategies to overcome social and political barriers to talking about human-caused climate change and encourage conversation about the climate impacts and solutions, both present and future, here in rural Western Pennsylvania.  

CRSP partners: Mercer County Conservation District, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, University of Pittsburgh Center for Learning in Out-of-School Environments, and Powdermill Nature Reserve & Avian Research Center

A cross-disciplinary team leads this learning research project, with scientists and educators at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History providing expertise in ecological and climate science, science communication, and facilitation techniques, researchers from the University of Pittsburgh Center for Learning in Out-of-School Environments (UPCLOSE) providing expertise in learning research and practitioners at Powdermill Nature Reserve and the Mercer County Conservation District providing expertise in environmental education, conservation, and engagement with rural communities. Our collective work supports socially safe, science-based discussions about human-caused climate change and is building regional capacity for information exchange across organizations.