Tuesday, January 21st, 8pm Eastern Time

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The next book club in the New Year will discuss The Death and Life of the Great Lakes by Dan Egan. A description of the book is posted on the Planet Stewards’ website. Discussion questions will be posted prior to the meeting.

February and March Book Club books are listed below:

• Feb. 18, Tuesday: Plastic Ocean by Captain Charles Moore
• March 16, Monday: The Big Melt (adult young fiction) by Ned Tillman

This webinar introduces ways to help you create a design atmosphere in with students of all ages, and get started in game design and game challenges that will excite and motivate learners to dig into the Earth sciences.The presenter - Peg Steffen - led an education development team at NOAA's  National Ocean Service that provided web-based products and professional development. Now retired from NOAA, Peg still creates science education programs - as she has for over 30 years - to educators in the US and around the world. Open this webinar and/or the entire treasure trove of Planet Stewards webinars that can be reviewed or accessed here.

Building a Weather-Ready Nation requires more than NOAA alone. It requires t everyone to strengthen our national resilience against extreme weather events. WRN Ambassadors are formally recognized by NOAA as organizations committed to collaborating with NOAA, sharing preparedness messaging in outreach to the public, and serving as examples themselves by implementing resilience best practices. Any organization across academia, government, businesses large and small, non-profit and non-governmental organizations can become WRN Ambassadors. Read the Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador FAQ to learn more about this new initiative and/or download the Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador Brochure.

This online portal makes it easy to view movement and behavior of tagged marine organisms worldwide. Animal telemetry, the science of gathering information on the movement and behavior of marine organisms using animal-borne sensors, or tags, is a rising star in the field of ocean observing. And over time, continuous, long-term observations illustrate not only animal movements but also help us see the signs and understand the effects of changes to the ecosystems they inhabit. Check out NOAA’s US Animal Telemetry Network here.

Geography matters greatly in our everyday lives. Linking maps digitally to information enables us to visualize and understand patterns and relationships around us. Geography Awareness Week has recently passed, but in its honor, NOAA has highlighted various Geographic Information Systems, or GIS, that provide such links for us. These tools help us to build strong and more resilient coastal communities.  Learn more about these tools and their various uses here.

Lara Pagano, a NOAA meteorologist who was born legally blind, held a huge audience rapt at November’s International Association of Emergency Managers’ conference. Lara recalled how, as a frightened 5-year-old, she heard the howl of hurricane winds, but couldn’t understand what was happening because she was unable to see. In opening the session, FEMA’s Aaron Kubey brought Lara’s point home by communicating a life-saving message in sign language, leaving most of the audience similarly in the dark. Lara explained she pursued a career in meteorology because of that 1991 experience during Hurricane Bob. The compelling session delivered a potent punch that’s great to share with your students to remind them that language must fit the needs of every community. If it doesn’t, millions of lives are at risk. Audio link is here: Lara's story; and Lara’s story video link can be viewed here.

The 25th Conference of the Parties (COP25) will be held in Madrid, Spain from December 2nd to the 13th. This COP is also referred to as the blue COP25, since it will include a focus on ocean sustainability and climate change related topics. 

On Saturday the 7th of December, the #VirtualBlueCOP25 will hold a unique 24-hour event all around the world. It will give the opportunity to decision makers, educators, scientists, activists, artists, NGOs and many more to share and take their work to the COP25 from their home country. Additionally, the 24-hour event will provide insights and updates on the international climate-ocean negotiations at COP25 with real-time discussion and analyses among a wide group of participants. Join live on Youtube starting on December 6th, Friday, at 6pm ET (4 am CET). Find the program here or more info about the #VirtualBlueCOP25 project and the upcoming events at virtualbluecop25.org

Sign up now to learn about the value of connecting in-school and out-of-school STEM activities virtually – from the comfort of anywhere! Hear from educators who have implemented successful programs with students at all ages, and explore ways you can connect your learning environment to outside settings. Use the promo code NSTAVC20 for an additional 20% savings on registration costs and take your STEM learning to the next level! An overview can be found here.

Click here if you are interested in presenting,

The American Meteorological Society’s (AMS) Education Program invites K-12 teachers to enroll in weather, ocean, and climate science professional development courses. With major support from the NOAA, DataStreme Project distance learning courses are available to teachers nationwide. DataStreme Atmosphere focuses on the study of key meteorological concepts and dynamic weather events in near real time; DataStreme Ocean addresses the ocean’s physical, chemical, biological, and geological properties and their effects on coastlines, ecosystems, and climate; and DataStreme Earth’s Climate System explores the scientific principles governing the climate system and the ways humans interact in it. Each course is 13-weeks long with Mentor Teams located around the country. Graduate credits are also awarded. Apply today for Spring semester 2020 – Deadline is January 9th, 2020. Learn more here.

The Science Communication Fellowship immerses formal and informal educators in the Nautilus Corps of Exploration and empowers them to bring ocean exploration to a global audience via the Nautilus Live website and live sessions from aboard the ship.Science Communication Fellows then bring their expedition experience back to their classrooms, organizations, and communities centered around their time at sea. Applications are open now! Learn more and apply before January 10, 2020.

HHMI BioInteractive is inviting educators to participate in a three-year professional development Academy to promote and support evidence-based teaching practices that incorporate our classroom resources, approach, and values.

• Up to three years of professional learning and development.
• Full travel and registration support to participate in at least one regional or national science education and/or scientific conference annually during the three-year Academy.
• Participation in a national professional network of expert life science educators.
• Stipend, full travel and registration, and coaching support to present at least once at a national and/or regional meeting.

Visit BioInteractive here for more information and eligibility requirements.

Climate Interactive and the MIT Sloan Sustainability Initiative have just released En-ROADS—a free, online model that explores actions to address climate change. Using this tool individuals can discuss, negotiate, and see the global impacts of efforts to scale up energy efficiency, enact carbon pricing, reduce deforestation, and much more. Accompanying En-ROADS are two new interactive experiences—a workshop and role playing game—for you to discover climate dynamics and foster productive conversations with groups. It’'s well worth your time and provides you with abundant resources to ensure your success.

Register for one of its free webinars from Dec. 3 - 12th to learn more.

The Argonaut expedition is an incredible adventure and can be a life-changing experience for participating students between the ages of 13-17 years old and teachers who have ideally used JASON Learning in an educational setting and exemplify leadership, teamwork, and a love of science. Learn more and/or apply now for one of these coveted spots through the JASON Argonaut Program.  Check out the upcoming trips at https://www.jason.org/argonauts.

The Coastal Climate Risk & Resilience Initiative (C2R2) is an NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) housed within the Institute of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences at Rutgers University, which works with graduate students from across the University to better integrate all the elements of coastal systems and to communicate effectively with coastal stakeholders. They are now accepting applications from prospective M.S. and Ph.D. students interested in working across disciplinary boundaries while building the skills needed to address real-world resilience challenges.

To learn more about the program, please visit their website or contact ferraro@marine.rutgers.edu. Review of applications will begin on January 8, 2020. 

Applications to sail as a paid intern on the Nautilus in 2020 are open now for students! Students can learn more and apply before January 24, 2020 for the Science & Engineering Internship Program. Internships information can be found here. All internships include a paid stipend for participation. Applicants should be enrolled in or recently graduated from a community college, undergraduate or graduate program in ocean science, technology, or related fields

Since its inception in 1992, nearly 400,000 students from across the United States and Canada have participated in the Toshiba/ National Science Teaching Association ExploraVision competition which inspires a lifelong love of science, technology and innovation. A teacher guides their student(s) as they pick a current technology, research it, envision what it might look like in 20 years, and describe the development steps, pros & cons, and obstacles. Click here To download an ExploraVision brochure.

Do you want to attend the #NMEA20 annual conference in Honolulu and could you use some financial assistance to attend? There are currently three different types of scholarships available: 

1. NMEA  member-only scholarships, 
2. Expanding Audiences scholarships, and 
3. Traditional Knowledge scholarships. See our Scholarships page for more information.

 All scholarship nominations and applications are due by February 15, 2020, and applicants are usually notified by mid-March, so that everyone can register by the NMEA annual conference early-bird registration deadline!

NMEA is also pleased to announce Current: The Journal of Marine Education, which is to be relaunched in to its new online, open access format with Ubiquity Press! NMEA’s first online and open access issue (Winter 2020) will be released in the new year. Subscribe here.

It’s all too true. Climate change can feel overwhelming and so complex that you’re tempted to feel powerless. Harvard University’s Climate Optimist publication shifts the focus to provide a monthly dose of good news and helpful tips to help keep us focused on our shared mission to tackle climate change. It reminds us that climate change is real, it’s now, and we have solutions. Learn more about The Climate Optimist and Harvard University’s C-Change program from the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment. Subscribe to The Climate Optimist here.

Educators, government agencies, disaster preparedness groups and individuals can access real-time data to respond to emergencies. Three datasets on Resource Watch can help track the location of fires, smoke and where they might spread. Use these datasets to engage your students in real-life data research and disaster planning. How might your students use these resources? What questions might they be able to answer? Combine these datasets with last month’s Probability of Wildfire Map from NOAA.
Find the datasets from Resource Watch here.