Center for Urban Habitats

Piedmont Discovery Center is an organization dedicated to advancing biodiversity education and conservation in Virginia’s Piedmont Ecoregion. Through place-based learning, scientific inquiry, research, and partnerships, it helps people understand the plants, animals, habitats, and ecological relationships found in local landscapes.

Its services include designing and restoring native plant communities for public and private clients, conducting biological surveys and natural-resource assessments, and supporting research and regional conservation projects. The Center also connects local native-plant growers with its conservation nursery network, which grows approximately 50,000 plants and makes surplus plants available to the public during the season.

Education is central to its work. The organization creates publications, exhibits, presentations, training, and custom interactive web maps that share information about local ecosystems. It also offers ecology consulting, natural-history expeditions, and trail design and installation that integrates cultural and natural features while encouraging learning and minimizing environmental impact. Across these projects, Piedmont Discovery Center aims to foster ecological literacy and inspire communities to value and care for the biodiversity around them.