The Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center pioneered Bird Friendly Coffee in the 1990s. Bird Friendly habitat ensures a mix of foliage cover, tree height, and biodiversity that creates quality habitat for birds and other wildlife. Certification provides farmers with a premium for their products, and because of stringent growing standards, the Bird Friendly program is also a critical asset in fighting climate change. Today 5,100 Bird Friendly farmers in 11 countries grow 34M lbs. of organic coffee.

Smithsonian’s Agua Salud Project identifies ways to effectively restore tropical forest within the Panama Canal Watershed that has been degraded through agricultural use. By examining the hydrological, carbon storage, and biodiversity-related goods and services these tropical forests provide, we determine the best ways to restore and enhance tropical forests. Research findings help policymakers identify strategies to better manage water for local populations and mitigate risks to infrastructure.

Mangroves, marshes, and seagrasses—coastal ecosystems that play a critical role in supporting biodiversity—also act as “blue carbon” reservoirs, removing carbon from our atmosphere and oceans. Smithsonian scientists worked with Abu Dhabi’s Ministry of Environment to quantify the amount of carbon stored in coastal ecosystems. Scientists and student volunteers learned to collect plant and soil samples to measure carbon content, and to calculate the total amount of carbon stored countrywide.

Smithsonian cheetah biologist Adrienne Crosier works with the Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia from her lab at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, VA. With her partners, she studies how cheetahs reproduce in order to create new technologies to improve cheetah reproduction in human care. As a result of this work, there are now hundreds of samples of genetic material banked to help restore cheetahs to the wild and reintroduce genetic diversity to their population.

The Smithsonian’s Tree Banding Project, a citizen science program engaging elementary and secondary school students, is a global observatory collecting tree growth data using simple, inexpensive metal bands called dendrometers. In 2013, two middle schools in Gabon joined the global network as an outreach of the Smithsonian’s ForestGEO network. Empowering students helps build capacity for science in Gabon and deepens knowledge of global and local climate patterns for use in future research.

Teeming with fish, crustaceans, birds and other sea life, the Gulf of Panama is a marine treasure. Nearly 1,000 humpback whales convene annually from as far south as Antarctica to breed and give birth. The area is also one of the great shipping passages of the world. The volume of ships and concentration of whales inevitably leads to collisions. Marine biologist Hector M. Guzman used satellite-positioning tags to track whales and developed a “Traffic Separation Scheme,” decreasing close-calls.

Relying on decades of Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute study, Panama has designated 54% of its oceans as marine protected areas. Expansion of Cordillera de Coiba in 2021 and Banco Volcán in 2023 protects vast deep-sea mountain ecosystems—buffering climate change and safeguarding high value fishing stocks. This nurtures sustainable resources for local Caribbean and Pacific coastal communities while maintaining connectivity of migratory routes for oceanic and marine-coastal species.

In 2011, Smithsonian paleontologists traveled to Cerro Ballena, or “whale hill”, a site preserving millions of years old fossil remains of a mass stranding of more than 40 whales and other marine mammals. Analysis points to an algal bloom as the culprit. With 3D scanning technology, our scientists were able to preserve the Cerro Ballena site in its original context. Now these 3D models are available to all as we can continue to study how ancient climate change affected marine biodiversity.

The thousands of individuals behind the Smithsonian’s international projects are scientists, educators, curators, technology specialists, and experts of many kind. Our projects foster international collaboration, whether helping to save endangered species, improving museum design, or rescuing and restoring priceless art. Thank you for learning how our people make a meaningful difference in the world. To dive deeper, please visit our website.