It features interpretive exhibits about local plants and animals, an outdoor water feature and play area, a Discovery Room for children, an observation beehive, live animals including an eagle, hawks, owls, snakes, salamanders, turtles, frogs, and toads, a planetarium and observatory.

The center is a facility of Carroll County Recreation & Parks.

Hashawha Environmental Center is home to Carroll County Public Schools Outdoor School, a residential environmental education program open to every sixth-grade student in the county.

The two facilities are located on approximately 320 acres, with more than five miles of multi-use trails, a restored 19th-century cabin, a lake, a pond, and access to both Bear Branch and Big Pipe Creek.

The name "Hashawha" is a Native American word meaning "old fields.