Mammoth Cave National Park was founded to preserve the cave systems, a portion of the Green and Nolin Rivers, and the rugged hills, valleys and forested ecosystems of the park.
The Mammoth Cave International Center for Science and Learning (MCICSL) is a cooperative venture of Mammoth Cave National Park and Western Kentucky University. Funding, logistical support, and governance of MCICSL are shared equally by both entities. MCICSL is part of a national network of research learning centers located within the National Park Service.
The goals of MCICSL and the other research learning centers are to:
- Facilitate the use of parks for scientific inquiry.
- Support science-informed decision making.
- Communicate the relevance of and provide access to knowledge gained through scientific research.
- Promote science literacy and resource stewardship.
Specific ways that MCICSL accomplishes these goals include:
- Coordinating scientific research and research permitting at Mammoth Cave National Park,
- Assisting researchers with arranging research logistics in the park,
- Participating in research projects,
- Serving as a scientific consultant,
- Presenting at scientific and educational conferences,
- Providing written internal and external research summaries,
- Hosting teacher training workshops,
- Offering public workshops on research occurring within the park,
- Coordinating or co-coordinating research-based internships, and
- Teaching high school and college groups about current research issues and providing them with hands-on experiences.
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