The Darwin Day Program serves to improve the public understanding of the evolutionary sciences and the life and work of Charles Darwin while working to bridge the gap between science and society.

To accomplish this goal, the program has the following objectives:

• To improve student education and educator resources;
• To facilitate interaction between the public and the scientific community;
• To promote participation and interest in science; and
• To decrease the prevalence and adverse effect of misinformation.

There are two main focal points within the Darwin Day Program that support the objectives:

• Educational Outreach: Year-round educational outreach efforts under the project heading of "Evolving Awareness" and;
• Social Outreach: Annual events and celebrations, around the world, on or near February 12th - Darwin Day.

The Darwin Day Program aims to increase the number of people and places celebrating Darwin Day on or near Charles Darwin's birth date of February 12th. We achieve this aim by the following activities:

• To encourage organizations, community groups and student clubs to host an event or activity for Darwin Day;
• To encourage schools, classrooms, educators and students to recognize and celebrate Darwin Day by organizing special activities and extracurricular events;
• To encourage faculty, college and university staff and students to host a Darwin Day exhibit and/or event in February of each year;
• To encourage libraries and bookstores to display a Darwin Day exhibit in February of each year;
• To encourage natural history museums, science centers, zoos, arboretums, and similar institutions to include a special exhibit commemorating Darwin Day.
• To encourage the media to recognize Darwin Day and promote the event on local, national and global levels;
• To encourage youth centers, cafes, clubs, and other social gathering areas to participate in Darwin Day;
• To encourage individuals to observe Darwin Day through social activities and to participate in educational outreach projects.

The Darwin Day Program aims to educate others about the life and work of Charles Darwin, the importance that the science of evolution has upon our understanding, and the central role that science plays within civilization. We encourage and promote the following activities towards this endeavor:

• To explore the life and work of Charles Darwin and his influence upon the world. To examine evolutionary thought before and after Darwin, how his ideas have developed over the centuries and how his life and work compare to the larger pursuit of science and the role of the scientist within society;
• To explore the life and work of people like Thomas Henry Huxley, who was known as "the people's scientist" and "Darwin's Bulldog", and to recognize the men and women who have and continue to contribute to the study of evolution and humankind;
• To offer material and resources for educational outreach efforts;
• To dispel the myths and misinformation spread about Charles Darwin and the science of evolution and to combat the anti- and pseudoscientific movements active today.

The Darwin Day Program will attempt to champion science in conjunction with the arts and to promote and advance public appreciation of interdisciplinary studies by the following activities:

• To "humanize" science by showing how it serves as a tool in all realms of life and is a process in which we all participate;
• To complement the work of others in promoting, defending, and advancing science education;
• To recognize and celebrate the role of science in the arts and humanities.

For general information about the Darwin Day Program, please feel free to contact us.