DLiA stands for Discover Life in America (formally Discover Life in America, Inc.). We’re a small 501(c)(3) non-profit based in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  It is our goal to learn all we can about the unique ecosystem of the Smokies by bringing top researchers into the park.  We also want to do all we can to make this information available to the public through fun educational and citizen science events.

ATBI stands for All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory, an effort managed by DLiA (in coordination with the National Park Service) to identify and monitor all of the estimaged 60,000-80,000 species of life in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The ATBI was initiated on Earth Day in 1998 and has been running for over 20 years. Due in large part to this extensive effort, there are currently over 20,000 species known to the park. You can find the full Park Species Tally here, which we update regularly.

The ATBI is a tremendously large research program, so large that the National Park couldn’t devote the time and resources necessary to start and maintain it. DLiA was founded as a non-profit to secure the funding and organize the scientists to begin this ambitious effort.  DLiA, however, is not limited to those jobs. We also put on educational programs for children and adults examining biodiversity and natural history, we create opportunities for interested folks to go into the park and learn while assisting scientists, and we co-organize the Great Smoky Mountains National Park Science Colloquium, where researchers present scientific findings related to the ATBI.

The ATBI is more than just identifying and counting species of life.  It is about understanding habitats, ecosystems, and relationships between species. We know so little about the web of life, and so many species are disappearing forever. The more we understand about the natural world, the better equipped we are to preserve and maintain it.

If you have some spare time, we love working with volunteers! Check out our volunteer page to read about all the different jobs you can help with. You can also support us just by coming to our upcoming events and having fun! Or, if you’d rather, you can support our work through a tax-deductible contribution. The support us page lists all our options for gift giving.