Students from the New Lisbon and Nekoosa School Districts took center stage this spring at the GLOBE Student Research Symposium, a hands-on showcase of environmental science research conducted by K-12 students as part of NASA’s Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) program.
The symposium on April 30, 2026 was held at the Upham Woods Outdoor Learning Center in Wisconsin Dells, where students presented poster displays of original research projects they developed, conducted, and analyzed themselves over the course of the program.
The event was a collaboration between the University of Wisconsin–Madison Nelson Institute Center for Climatic Research, Upham Woods Outdoor Learning Center, and the Wisconsin Rural Partnerships Institute (RPI) — a partnership that reflects RPI’s broader mission of connecting rural communities with university resources and hands-on learning opportunities.
Through the GLOBE program, students gained real scientific training and equipment to investigate their local environment across four key areas: the atmosphere (air), hydrosphere (water), pedosphere (soil), and biosphere (life). Rather than simply learning about the scientific method from a textbook, participating students spent months developing their own research questions, collecting field data, and drawing conclusions — the same process professional scientists use every day.
The Symposium gave these young researchers a platform to share their findings with peers, teachers, and science experts, turning months of fieldwork into a celebration of student-driven discovery. For many students, it was their first opportunity to present original research in a public setting, an experience that builds both scientific literacy and confidence.
Events like this highlight the value of place-based, hands-on science education in rural Wisconsin communities — exactly the kind of collaborative, community-rooted programming RPI is proud to help support. Congratulations to all the student researchers on a successful symposium, and thank you to the teachers, families, and partner organizations who made the day possible.