The Siemens Foundation, an organization focused on supporting educational initiatives in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), partnered with Discovery Education, a leading provider of curriculum-based digital resources for educators and parents, in an effort to improve student achievement in STEM subjects. Students were encouraged to develop solutions to environmental problems in their schools and communities. For educators, the Siemens STEM Academy was launched to provide hands-on and multimedia professional development opportunities empowering teachers to improve STEM education for students nationwide. For this partnership, Web-based programs, webinars and social network promotions were deployed to effectively reach target audiences. "To be successful nowadays, communicators have to come up with new, innovative tools to better inform and engage their audiences,” says Christina Scripps, manager of publicity for Discovery Communications.