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}} Chippewa Nature Center (CNC) is both a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational organization and a protected wildlife area in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, encompassing over of forest, rivers and wetlands. Located in Midland County, they are one of the largest and most prominent private non-profit nature centers in the United States. ==History== The Midland Nature Club began discussions about the need for a local nature center in 1963. The following year, the club reached out to the Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation for support of a separate nature center. The foundation owned a 198-acre parcel where the Pine River joined the Chippewa River that would be an ideal location. The new organization was granted a ten-year lease for the land, which was later expanded to include eight other properties as new programs were added by the center.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.chippewanaturecenter.org/cnchistory.htm )〕 A Nature Day Camp was offered in the summer of 1966 and is the center's longest running program. A Nature Study Building, designed by architect Alden B. Dow, was dedicated in 1967 and serves as the home of the day camp program. During 1968, the CNC and Midland Public Schools joined forces to develop the Cooperative Environmental Education Program. Gradually, adult and family programs were created, which required more facility than the one building. Planning began, and the Dow Chemical Company Foundation gave $1 million for that purpose. Ground was broken in 1973, and eighteen months later, the ''Interpretive Building'' was dedicated. The structure contained a wildlife viewing area, classrooms, an auditorium and space for exhibits and offices. It was renamed the ''Visitor Center'' years later.〔 When the property lease ended in 1975, the land was given to the CNC by the Herbert and Grace Dow Foundation. Through the years, the center has received generous support from members of the community and area foundations, which allowed the CNC to grow and expand its curriculum of nature and environmental programs.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Chippewa Nature Center」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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