Discover PEEC
PEEC’s Mission
PEEC advances:
ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION
SUSTAINABLE LIVING
& APPRECIATION FOR NATURE THROUGH HANDS-ON EXPERIENCE IN A NATIONAL PARK
The Pocono Environmental Education Center (PEEC) is a private, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and the education partner of the National Park Service in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. For over 50 years, PEEC has successfully cultivated an appreciation and love of nature in the tens of thousands of annual visitors, which include school groups, informal learning groups, families, adult learners, professionals, and the general public. PEEC’s residential environmental education campus is located in Dingmans Ferry, Pike County, PA, within the heart of the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. PEEC is an exceptional place for customized field trips and retreats for schools, groups, and families. PEEC is also open to the public; our program calendar has something for everyone and our hiking trails are free and available year-round.
Find us on YouTube!
PEEC People
Meet Our StaffJoin PEEC’s Team!
Join PEEC’s TeamLand Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that PEEC is located in Lenapehoking – the ancestral lands of the Lenape people. We recognize the Lenape people as the original inhabitants and stewards of this place, honor their continued relationship with the land, and express our gratitude for their past, present, and future role as the caretakers. We take responsibility to better honor and represent the Native people of this land in the stories we tell, to provide platforms for Native voices, and to continue to work toward repair and justice while remaining curious and humble.
DEIJ Statement
PEEC always has, and always will be, committed to addressing inequality through our mission of providing equitable environmental education experiences to all, especially the thousands of young people who do not have ready access to the natural world. We remain committed to listening to the needs of the communities we serve and educate. Only by coming together, and providing all visitors meaningful opportunities for shared experiences, can we achieve lasting, positive impact on each other and the environment.
History
“PEEC’s campus is the ultimate example of adaptive and innovative reuse. The Center has its origins as an old Poconos honeymoon resort that was seized under eminent domain, as part of the ill-fated Delaware River Tocks Island Dam Project. In 1972 PEEC’s cabins and public buildings were repurposed as a residential environmental education center. Subsequent replacement and refurbishment of buildings has created a campus that combines the environmental best practices of the new and the creative reimagining of the old.”
– PEEC Former Executive Director Jeff Rosalsky
Commentary: PEEC – Engaging Young Scientists, Sustainability in Action
– Journal of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science, December 2013
Read about the history of PEEC in an excerpt from:
“It Began 40 Years Ago” A Sense of Place,
PEEC 40th Anniversary Book, 1972-2012
View the former Honeymoon Haven Campus Map.
Sustainability
“For a sustainable future, we have to understand that the structure and design of our planet require that we operate within natural ‘laws’ and principles, rather than attempt to overcome them. We have to see that ‘it’s all connected’, and that systems thinking requires us to think about our choices and actions over time. We need to understand that the pursuit of self-interest is best served through the development of mutually beneficial relationships. And we have to believe we are all responsible, and that intergenerational leadership and collective action are required. Everything we do and everything we don’t do makes a difference.”
– Jamie Cloud, The Cloud Institute
PEEC’s Dining Hall / Visitor Activity Center – Sustainable Design Features