Professional Development & Consulting

Place-Based Symposium

2026 Place-Based Education Symposia

The International Online Place-Based Education Symposium will be on Saturday, March 28th, from 8:30 am – 12 pm (Bhutan Standard Time) / Friday, March 27th, from 8:30 pm – 12 am in Wyoming MDT. The theme in 2026 will be Educating for Gross National Happiness. The Request for Proposals will be published in mid-December, and registration will open in early 2026.

International Online Symposium Request for Proposals

Register here!

Teton Science Schools’ Place-Based Education Symposium will be on Friday, April 24th, 2026, from 4:00-8:00 pm at the Jackson Campus. The theme for 2026 will be “Learning With and From Community”. The Request for Proposals will be published in mid-December, and registration will open in early 2026.

Place-Based Education Symposium Request for Proposals

Registration for the Symposia will open by the beginning of February.

Where Place-based ideas come to life

Teton Science Schools’ annual Place-Based Symposium was originally designed to celebrate the place-based work happening across the organization, bringing together our faculty, staff, AmeriCorps, students, and regional community members to share and discuss best practices in local learning and global citizenship.

Since its establishment in 2016, the Place-Based Symposium has evolved into an annual event through which educators and thought leaders from around the world exchange place-based inspired ideas, learnings, and aspirations.

The 10th Annual Place-Based Education Symposium was on April 25th, 2025. 

The theme, “Your Local Science & Global Impact,” invited us to explore how localized learning experiences can resonate globally. 

Attendees were thrilled with the presentations, keynote speaker Dr. Bryan Shuman, and our local students who shared their projects during the Student Family Showcase. Here are some fan favorite projects:

  • Nature Journaling in Place: Middle schoolers wrote from the same “sit spot” every week throughout the year. They asked questions that connected their own backyards to larger ecosystems in the world.

  • H is for Hiss, P is for Purr: An 8-year-old’s passion for cats led her to self-publish a book with proceeds that benefit animal shelters.

  • Self-directed Science Projects: Third graders explored weather patterns and events, including avalanches, droughts, wildfires, and floods. Then they designed creative solutions to combat extreme weather events

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Missed the Last Symposium?

Here is the agenda from the 2025 Place-Based Education Symposium so you can get a sense of the event.

The previous International Online Place-Based Education Symposium was in March 2024, and you can find more information including links to recordings from the 2024 Online Symposium here