Outreach Programs
The main purpose of the Lund Club outreach program is to educate our
community about insects and related arthropods. Members of the Lund Club donate hundreds of hours of their time
presenting outreaches to surrounding communities. The Lund Club also maintains a sizable collection
of representative live and preserved insects and arthropods. Members bring these displays to local
schools and events upon request.
Children, as well as their parents and teachers, are given an
opportunity to interact with the insects and arthropods in the hopes of
dispelling any misconceptions and to learn about the importance of insects to
virtually every ecosystem. Besides
local school outreaches, members participating also volunteer at various
large-scale annual events, most notably, Insectival
at the Georgia State Botanical Garden, an Insect Zoo in conjunction with the Georgia State
Science Fair, South Campus Tailgate, and several events at Sandy Creek Nature
Center. Since September 2002, Lund Club members have
brought our outreach programs to more than 5000 spectators. Our outreach programs have generated
positive community publicity for the University
of Georgia and the
Department of Entomology.
For an outreach request form,
please click here.
***PLEASE NOTE***
ALLOW AT LEAST
3 WEEKS NOTICE FOR OUTREACH REQUESTS!
The UGA Entomology OUTREACH is a program designed to educate
the young and old about insects and other arthropods. Living insects,
centipedes, millipedes, scorpions, and spiders, as well as museum specimens
from Georgia
and other parts of the world, are brought to schools, libraries, organizations,
or community centers for interactive display. The hands-on approach to
learning makes this program very exciting. We hope that we can teach
people how important insects are in our lives.
Although a very small percent of insects are harmful to
humans by spreading disease, infecting our homes and eating our crops and
stored food, most insects are actually harmless or beneficial. Insects
are responsible for pollinating many important food crops as well as the flowers
in our gardens. They decompose dead plant and animal material, which
helps to recycle nutrients back into the environment. The burrowing and
tunneling activity of many insects aerates and mixes the soil. Insects
are very important food for wildlife and even for people in many countries
outside of North America and Europe.
Insect products like honey, wax, silk, shellac, and dye are commercially
important in some countries. Additionally, some insects have been very
important in the development of basic tools for genetic and other scientific
research. Without insects, the earth as we know it
would not survive!