The vision for Base Camp Sarasota is to establish a research and education center offering state-of-the-art laboratory facilities and small conference and environmental education facilities amidst the natural habitat of southwest Florida. The site will feature cutting edge green design and demonstrate a low impact to the landscape.

In addition, Base Camp Sarasota has the following missions:

• To study subtropical ecosystems.
• To train tropical, subtropical and temperate biologists.
• To advise and service local environmental managers.
• To provide scientific, peer-reviewed records of southwest Florida ecosystems.
• To serve as a global model for tropical ecosystems research and their related issues.
• To serve as a catalyst for environmental education regionally and nationally.
• To create a platform of scientific data supporting best land use and sustainable development practices.

Primary goals:

1. Create a world-class field research and biological education center to foster ecological research of the natural systems indicative of the southeastern U.S. and Sarasota County that can also serve as a model for tropical countries.
2. To the extent practicable, assure that built systems associated with the research and education center are a demonstration of a light ecological footprint on the landscape through strategies such as green building practices, Sarasota School of Architecture principles, and life cycle balance considerations.
3. Provide advice on best practices for community education and outreach including the general public, K-12, community colleges, undergraduate and graduate students, political leaders and economic partners.
4. Promote economic development opportunities through application of natural system processes and adaptations to built system designs (i.e. biomimicry*, Land Use Institute).

* Biomimicry is a new science that integrates engineers, biologists, and business by using nature’s models to imitate or take inspiration from these designs and processes to solve human problems.