The Johnson Education Center - An Innovative and Unique Resource for the Land Preservation Community
A model of adaptive reuse, the Johnson Education Center was created through the renovation of a barn constructed circa 1900, on the lower farm of Princeton’s 275 acre Edgerstoune Estate. The 60-acres surrounding the Johnson Education Center later became the grounds of the Robert Wood Johnson Estate. This land was preserved by D&R Greenway and partners in 2001 and now serves as its central headquarters for land preservation and stewardship work.
The only resource of its kind in the state and one of only two in the country, the Johnson Education Center encompasses the tools, techniques and expertise our public and private partners need to help them preserve as much land as possible, as quickly as possible. The Johnson Education Center provides a focal point for the development of a regional vision for land preservation; a place where municipalities, counties, non-profit organizations and individuals can come together to devise a holistic approach leading to landscape-scale preservation efforts.
Opened in April 2006, the Johnson Education Center serves as a venue for lectures, panel discussions and professional workshops designed to raise awareness about the importance of protecting land and our environment, and the local, regional and even global benefits of doing so. Through activities at the Johnson Education Center, D&R Greenway works to promote a sustainable conservation ethic that results in a public commitment to land preservation.
The indoor and outdoor spaces of the Johnson Education Center are available for rental by non-profit, educational and community groups. The gallery spaces at the Johnson Education Center provide many opportunities for artists of all ages to celebrate the beauty of the natural world.
D&R Greenway strives to reduce, reuse and recycle in all aspects of its operations. Learn about "Green Features" of the Johnson Education Center (Click to open document).
Gardens and Outdoor Spaces
History of Greenway Meadows and the Johnson Education CenterIn 2001, D&R Greenway led the preservation of the 60-acre Robert Wood Johnson
The center is also a venue for professional workshops and public programs covering a range of topics relevant to land preservation and stewardship. D&R Greenway's presenting partners include the Garden State Preservation Trust and the Princeton Environmental Institute. Art inspired by nature is exhibited in the center's Marie L. Matthews Gallery and children's art in the Olivia Rainbow Gallery.
All activities at the center are designed to raise awareness about the importance of protecting land and the local, regional, and even global benefits of doing so. We hope to inspire a conservation ethic that results in an increased public commitment to land preservation and stewardship.
D&R Greenway Land Trust’s mission is to preserve and protect a permanent network of natural lands and open spaces, creating and extending Greenways – unbroken chains of preserved land surrounding stream corridors, headwaters, water recharge areas and significant ecosystems.
Johnson Education Center received the highest award in the Bucks County AIA 2007 Design Awards competition held in September 2007. FORD3 ARCHITECTS was given the 2007 Honor Award for the architecture of the Johnson Education Center. Comments from the jury include: "A well crafted adaptive reuse of the historic barn. The architects went to great pains to work with the existing structure and to expose as much of the existing barn structure as possible while creating new functional spaces. The end result is a project that really fits the site context."