The Youth Science Institute (YSI) is a 501(c)(3), non-profit organization whose mission is "to inspire enthusiasm for science and a love of learning". It fulfills its mission by offering hands-on, nature-based, science education to children, families, and the general public. It offers School and Group Programs, Summer Science Camps, weekend Science Safaris, and annual community events. Many of our programs include live animals and nature hikes. Each year, it delivers inquiry-based life, physical, earth, and social science to nearly 30,000 pre-K to sixth-grade students. Since its founding in 1953, it has served hundreds of thousands of children.

YSI maintains three Science and Nature Centers, where it delivers its hands-on science and experiential environmental education programs: Alum Rock Park, San Jose, CA; Sanborn County Park, Saratoga, CA; and Vasona Lake County Park, Los Gatos, CA. Each Center has unique artifacts, collections, and resources that connect the public with nature while teaching science.