This newsletter details the use of symbols as a visual language. Symbols are useful for depicting unequivocal messages that transcend cultures, languages and times. The use of symbols to construct conceptual diagrams ('thought drawings') can be an effective tool for science communication and problem solving. Conceptual diagrams help to clarify thinking and provide a communication interface between scientists and non-scientists.

The South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative (South Atlantic LCC) is a partnership of federal, state, and private organizations dedicated to conserving a landscape capable of sustaining the nation’s natural and cultural resources for current and future generations. The primary objective of this project was to develop a short synthesis report assessing 11 habitats, using a variety of ecological indicators.

The America's Watershed Initiative Report Card project continued with regional workshops for the Missouri River Basin, held in Rapid City, South Dakota, May 22–23, 2014 and in Kansas City, Missouri, August 26, 2014. At the workshop, stakeholders and experts from social, economic, and environmental sectors identified easily understood and transparent ways to measure status and trends for the Missouri River Basin in relation to six broad goals.