Earthwatch Institute

Earthwatch headquarters are in Boston, Massachusetts. They also have offices in Oxford, England; Melbourne, Australia; Gurgaon, India; and Tokyo, Japan.

Earthwatch was started as Educational Expeditions International in 1971 by Bob Citron, who was a Smithsonian Institution employee, and Clarence Truesdale, the superintendent of Vermont public schools. In 1972, Brian A. Rosborough joined Educational Expeditions International as a volunteer and six months later became president of the newly named Earthwatch. The organization quickly expanded, partnering with scientists around the world to confront threats to wildlife and the environment.

Since 1971, Earthwatch has made notable achievements in environmental research and policymaking. These include

Fielding 1,430 research projects in 131 countries and 46 U.S. states, which have yielded over 2,000 peer-reviewed research publications.

Producing research that has informed approximately 1,200 official environmental policies and wildlife management plans at the local, regional, national, and international levels.

Providing Earthwatch projects over 7 years of support, on average, enabling long-term research goals.

Sending more than 200,000 volunteers into the field to support scientists in the field as research assistants.

Earthwatch Australia is a partner in Bush Blitz, operated by Australian Biological Resources Study with co-funding by Bush Blitz founding partner BHP Billiton.

Earthwatch prioritizes support for research projects that align with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

All projects must contribute to one or more of the following SDGs below and incorporate actions "to combat climate change and its impacts." (SDG 13)

In alignment with UN Sustainable Development Goal 15 (Terrestrial Ecosystems) Earthwatch’s Terrestrial Ecosystems Programs focus on the nexus of habitat preservation and restoration, assessing and mitigating the impacts of a changing climate, and the conservation of biodiversity.

In alignment with UN Sustainable Development Goal 14 (Ocean Ecosystems), Earthwatch’s Ocean Ecosystems Programs focus on conserving biodiversity in marine ecosystems, including open oceans, seas, coral reefs, seagrass beds, kelp forests, and coastal areas, including estuaries, mangrove forests, and saltwater marshes.