The Audubon Nature Center was named one of the top five Nature centers prior to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Its assets included three miles of hardwood bottomland forest on an 86-acre site; an Interpretive Center with live animals and wildlife exhibits, a teaching Botany Center/Greenhouse with plants native to Louisiana and the largest planetarium in New Orleans. The Nature Center provided a unique, affordable and convenient learning experience for New Orleans and the surrounding areas.
The desire to establish Friends of Joe W. Brown Memorial Park & Louisiana Nature Center came about as a result of recognizing the need for partnering with the community to preserve and conserve the precious natural resources that exist in Eastern New Orleans. The historic Greenhouse at The Nature Center is just one of those resources.