About Us
We are committed to a future where people and the natural world thrive together. We invite you to discover the story of the Adirondacks, and to explore new ways that people and nature can thrive in the same place.
How to Attract the Next Generation of Adirondack Visitors
How to Attract the Next Generation of Visitors
Findings of 2015 research on travel preferences and perceptions of the Adirondacks among the Millennial Generation, by Schireson Associates with funding provided in part to The Wild Center by Empire State Development’s Market New York program. This PDF presentation may take a minute or more to download.
The Adirondacks & The Next Generation: A Guidebook for Marketing the Adirondacks to Millennials
A digital toolkit produced by The Wild Center and Trampoline Design with practical information on how to implement the finding of the 2015 research on travel preferences and perceptions of the Adirondacks among the Millennial Generation, by Schireson Associates commissioned by The Wild Center.
Our Mission
Ignite an enduring passion for the Adirondacks
where people and nature can thrive together
and set an example for the world.
Ross Whaley on Why The Wild Center
The former president of SUNY ESF speaks about a role for The Wild Center in a more crowded planet.
"It depends on having a knowledge of this interrelationship of people and the carrying capacity of the globe."
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Supporting a Vibrant Economy
In 2017, The Development Corporation conducted a socioeconomic study of the Center’s regional impact across New York State’s seven-county North Country region.
The research found that The Wild Center is a major destination for Adirondack visitors and contributes to increasing the leisure visitor's duration of stay and resulting expenditures.
Although not fully attributable to The Wild Center, tourism spending by Wild Center visitors who came from outside the region resulted in a $22 million impact and supported 299 jobs in 2016.
The Wild Center's $1.2 million in purchases of goods and services from North Country businesses was found to have a total annual economic impact of $2.1 million.
The Wild Center's payroll had a $2.8 million impact in the North Country region in 2016, the result of employee expenditures that stayed in the region and supported local businesses. More than 8 jobs in the region are created or maintained for every FTE position at The Wild Center.
Read The Wild Center's OTTER News
The Wild Center in Brief
The Wild Center is a not-for-profit organization overseen by a Board of Trustees with the assistance of its Advisory Board. The Center is based out of an 115-acre site in Tupper Lake, NY near the geographic center of the Adirondacks.
The region is unique in the world. Surrounded by people, the Adirondacks house great expanses of nature interspersed with small towns and communities. They can be an example for a future where man and the rest of the natural world thrive together.
The Center, dedicated to understanding this rare place, is committed to helping people explore not a small collection, but one that lives and breathes across the entire expanse of the Adirondacks.
The Wild Center is science-based, and its experiences, exhibits and programs are designed to open new ways to look into our relationship with nature.
There may be no more important issue facing humankind than discovering better ways to thrive with the rest of the natural world, and there may be no better place to understand that effort than in the Adirondacks. The Center is a great place to be part of that vital experiment.
What the Press Says
"The wonderful Wild Center..."
"linger in this glorious place..."
"..paradis pour les environmentalistes.."
"stunning..."
"...the place to go.."
"a very interactive place.."
"Stunning state-of the-art museum..."
"Don't miss The Wild Center.."
"You've never seen a museum like this."
"...highlight of your visit..."
Why The Wild Center Mattersk
Philip G. TerrieWe asked Philip G. Terrie, a renowned scholar of the Adirondacks, to mark the 20th anniversary of Betsy Lowe’s idea to establish a natural history museum by contributing his thoughts on the significance of The Wild Center. He replied with this essay.
"In the heart of the Adirondacks, The Wild Center has created a popular destination that tells the story of the region’s unique natural environment. Their success has significantly enhanced the economic vitality of the entire region."
-U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
The History of The Wild Centerk
The idea for The Wild Center was first discussed in August 1998, when a group of friends sat around Betsy Lowe’s cabin on the shores of Long Lake, New York, in the heart of the Adirondack Park. The surrounding forest was scarred by the latest big natural event - an ice storm that coated the Adirondacks and Quebec. The single, seemingly destructive force created a scene of shining beauty. Betsy had supervised a small exhibit on the storm as part of her job at the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and was impressed by the level of interest in the basic exhibits.
k Learning by Doingk
Boundless opportunities await enthusiastic individuals breaking into the field of interpretation, natural history, guiding, animal care and more. Find out more about interns at The Wild Center.