Bring eight dedicated volunteers to the canyons of Utah to document the region's unparalleled prehistoric rock art and what do you get? Excellent scientific research data and some exceptional on-the-job environmental education.

Over the past three years, nearly 60 volunteers have donated their time, money, and abilities to document more than 100 archaeological sites in the Moab area as part of the Utah Canyons Rock Art Project. As Moab grows in population and popularity as a recreational area, many of the archaeological sites are being severely impacted. Collectively, these sites contain the record of eastern Utah's prehistoric past, and once they are gone, they can never be replaced.

In 1997, the Earthwatch Institute and BLM teamed up to inventory some of the sites, assess the impacts, and devise strategies to protect the resources. The project is being led by Sally J. Cole, rock art specialist, and Jeanne M. Moe, BLM archaeologist and educator.

Earthwatch is an international organization that pairs volunteers who want to participate in scientific research with scientists who need help with research projects. The volunteers pay tuition, which provides field support for the project, and then work under the research directors. Without the hard work and financial support of the Earthwatch volunteers, BLM would not
have been able to undertake this important project and see it to completion.

Many Earthwatch volunteers are school teachers from throughout the United States and other countries. Projects such as the Utah Canyons Rock Art Project give teachers the opportunity to learn firsthand about our public lands and related management issues. Joe McKown, a high school teacher in San Francisco, California, says, "Teachers can transmit their firsthand experience to their students by sharing information about the art itself and by designing projects that teach students about the Native American cultures that created the art. Teachers also help students become more aware of how important it is to protect the natural landscape that is home to the art. As a result, the impact of the Utah Canyons Rock Art Project resonates beyond the teachers' individual experiences to inform and enrich their teaching."

Heidi Kaiter, a middle school science teacher from Boston, Massachusetts, has found that students and parents alike appreciate and respect the fact that teachers have actually participated in research in their field. Heidi plans to use her recent experience to teach dating techniques, such as radiocarbon and tree-ring dating, and their application to archaeology. She is also planning to tie the information in with local land management issues, such as soil erosion at nearby Walden Pond and vandalism of Revolutionary War sites. Upon researching archaeological sites in Massachusetts, Heidi discovered some rock art sites in Dighton Rock State Park, which, she says, ". . . may inspire an after-school field trip with the environmental education club."

With teachers like Heidi and Joe in the classroom, the benefits of the Utah Canyons Rock Art Project will extend far beyond its original goals of basic inventory and management planning. Talented educators can turn scientific research into valuable lessons in history, science, and ethics, and contribute to the long-term protection of our natural resources.

For further information, please contact Jeanne Moe at Bureau of Land Management, Utah State Office, P.O. Box 45155, Salt Lake City, Utah 84145-0155
Telephone (801) 539-4001, e-mail Jeanne_Moe@blm.gov .

You may also wish to visit the following websites:
Bureau of Land Management Utah State Office Environmental Education website
http://www.ut.blm.gov/enviroed/enviroedjob.html

Earthwatch Institute
http://www.earthwatch.org