March 23, 1980 - Present
Audubon Louisiana Nature Center is a cherished community resource. Located adjacent to Joe Brown Park in New Orleans East on 86 acres of hardwood bottomland forest, its creation was a project of the Junior League of Greater New Orleans, opening March 23, 1980. Providing vital environmental education programming, it quickly grew to become a source of community pride.
In 1994, the Nature Center merged with Audubon Nature Institute, allowing it to focus on its core mission of offering hands-on opportunities to appreciate the significance of Louisiana’s unique ecosystems. Each year, the nature center hosted over 40,000 guests on site and touched an additional 45,000 more people at schools, state parks and festivals. Hurricane Katrina in 2005 flooded the Nature Center grounds, essentially destroying the facility. As the surrounding neighborhood regained its footing after the devastation of the storm, Audubon continued moving the rebuilding process forward with officials and other interested parties to determine next steps.
With construction completed, the Nature Center reopened on October 6, 2017 with modern buildings, beautiful nature trails and new programs celebrating the wonders of nature. Now the next chapter begins for Audubon Louisiana Nature Center and the community it serves. Interactive and engaging, the all-new, state-of-the-art Nature Center features fun educational exhibits, a planetarium, classroom pavilions, and boardwalk trails with unique opportunities to experience the quiet and enriching beauty of the great outdoors.