The Watch. News You Can Use From NOAA Planet Stewards -24 May 2021

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News you can use from NOAA Planet Stewards 

“There is symbolic as well as actual beauty in the migration of the birds, the ebb and flow of the tides, the folded bud ready for the spring. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature - the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after the winter.”

― Rachel Carson, The Sense of Wonder

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$5,000 toward Planet Stewardship -  Apply by June 6th! 

Are you an formal or informal educator focused on building science literacy so your students, of any age, can understand concepts in ocean, atmospheric, and Earth science? Would $5,000 help you to realize these goals? Applications are available now through June 6th from the NOAA Planet Stewards Program.

If you're interested but not sure about your project, numerous resources are available to help you develop and deliver wonderful and worthwhile projects. Check out everything you could need here and be sure to apply by June 6th! You'll be glad you did!

Need some inspiration?

Read how NOAA Planet Stewards educators Lauren Fosbenner is sequestering carbon and carrying out habitat restoration in Pennsylvania, and how Matt Strand and his students have formed the Colorado Coralition and are restoring corals on the Florida Keys!


 
Summer Workshop Opportunities from Planet Stewards

  • July 5-29th

    Community Resilience to Climate Change: A Virtual Workshop for formal and informal educators working with Middle and High School-aged students – but all are welcome

    This is a self-paced virtual workshop for all educators on climate change impacts to human and natural communities, and the actions you can take to build resilient communities in light of these impacts. Find out more here and register.
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  • August 17-19th

    THE TIME IS HERE TO GET OUT, LEARN, INTERACT & EXPLORE!

    Climate Justice: Exploring the Science of Climate Change in Your Classroom Workshop. Find out more here and pre-register.

    NOAA Planet Stewards and the Detroit Zoological Society are hosting a three-day workshop for educators to explore how global climate change is affecting the metro Detroit region, and how they can engage their students in taking action to address this global phenomena.

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Announcing Next Season's Planet Stewards Bookclub

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Get a head start on your summer reading! NOAA Planet Stewards has just announced our full Book Club reading list for the 2021-2022 academic year. Brush up on your knowledge of climate change and what we can do to mitigate its impacts, learn more about our relationship with food and what we can do to  treat both our bodies and our planet better, and find some inspirational books to engage your students in the coming year! Check out the books to begin  next September here.


This has been a stressful year for all of us.

For everyone needing to unplug and let your mind wander a bit,

try our newest favorite website "tree fm" and tune in to forests around the world!


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I. Celebrate the Ocean! Join NOAA for National Ocean Month

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Join NOAA all June

for National Ocean Month

and NOAA's 30 Days of the Ocean. 

Check out a new theme every week!

 

Listen Now! The NOAA Ocean Podcast:   Connecting the Dots with Modeling (Part One)

What do harmful algal blooms, dust from the Saharan desert, and hurricanes have in common? They're all pieces of the puzzle that modeling puts together to give us the big picture when it comes to studying and understanding our ocean and coasts. In part one of this two-part episode, we take a deep dive into why modeling is important, what kind of data is provided, and how collaboration with stakeholders strengthens our knowledge base. Listen to the podcast.

Listen Now! Traveling Turtles: Rescue and Rehabilitation of Cold Stunned Sea Turtles Story Map

Cold stunning is a natural phenomenon on Cape Cod. However, the number of turtles that strand each year has been steadily increasing in recent decades. This story map tells the story of sea turtles that cold-stun on Cape Cod, their journey through rehabilitation, their release back into the wild, and the partners who help them.

On Tuesday, June 8, 4pm ET:  NOAA Ocean Today presents: 

How to Help Whales, A World Ocean Day Watch Party

Join Ocean Today host Symone Barkley on an incredible journey into the ocean, up in the air, on the shore as she watches whales migrate along our coasts. Learn how NOAA is tracking whales and what you can do to help using citizen science! Using the Whale Alert and Ocean Alert apps, you can help ships steer clear of migrating whales and report entangled whales. For more information and to register: https://www.facebook.com/events/ 2963236203951124/

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II. Vote! for the "The Oscars for Public Service" Finalists

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Did you know: NOAA has 3 finalists for the prestigious 2021 Service to America Medals, AKA The Sammies.

Hosted by the Partnership for Public Service, the Sammies are popularly known as the “Oscars of public service.” Get to know NOAA's 3 scientists who were nominated. PLUS: Show your support for our nominees' outstanding achievements in public service by voting in the People’s Choice Awards - Do it NOW!
The People's Choice winners will be announced in July and Sammie winners will be announced in fall.

A big congratulations to NOAA nominees, Jay Barlow, Mark Eakin and Kenneth Graham!


 III. Voices from Florida's Changing Coral Reefs

Combining Oral Histories with Data Visualization: Change in the Florida Reef Tract

As part of a NOAA Heritage Project, NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) partnered with many organizations to create an audio and visual retrospective of the Florida Reef Tract over the last few decades. NCEI staff conducted interviews to collect accounts from scientists, divers, and others with firsthand knowledge of how reef conditions have changed in Florida. These interviews were combined with visualizations and maps to form a human-centered and approachable retrospective of Florida's reefs over time presented as an ESRI Story Map.

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IV. People's Voice Webby Award Winner!: NOAA's Sanctuaries 360° Explore the Blue

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NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries Sanctuaries 360°: Explore the Blue video series has won a People’s Voice Webby Award in the “Virtual and Remote - Science & Education” category.

A Webby Award is like an “Academy Award” for digital media and is presented by the International Academy of the Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS). It is the leading international award honoring excellence on the internet.

Sanctuaries 360°: Stories from the Blue video series has also won Awards of Excellence for the 2021 Communicator Awards in the “Online Video” category. The Stories from the Blue series, part of the Earth is Blue campaign, celebrates the people at the center of national marine sanctuaries and marine national monuments. Read all about it!

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10 yrs

2 June 2021, 3 - 4 pm ET: 

10 years of ocean acidification science: Reflections & opportunities

In 2009, the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act called for a program within NOAA to monitor, research and understand the impacts of ocean acidification to better prepare society. This presentation, will reflect on the important questions and information we had ten years ago, what we've learned, and where we're going with our NOAA partners. Register & join us!

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3 June 2021, 1 – 2 pm ET:

Collaborations across NOAA: An overview of the Weather Prediction Center and the National Water Center

Have you ever wondered how NOAA offices work together during extreme events? Tune in and learn about how the Weather Prediction Center (WPC) and the National Water Center (NWC) collaborate with the National Hurricane Center on issuing rainfall forecasts and messaging during hurricane events. Register here.


Educator opportunities

Tuesday, 25 May 2021, from 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. ET

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Teachers and professionals will discuss how the scientifically complex topic of climate change can be taught in classrooms and how these lessons can be reinforced by community action and parental support. Join us for this special webinar brought to us by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Additional details about the webinar will be posted on the Office of Environmental Education's website as they become available. Register here today.


Become an Ocean Guardian School and Educator

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Attention K-12 teachers:

Promote watershed and ocean stewardship
in your school or local community by becoming a
NOAA Ocean Guardian School

Eligibility:

PARTICIPATION WITHOUT FUNDING: Any school (PreK-12) in the United States may apply to participate in the Ocean Guardian School program without funding.

PARTICIPATION WITH FUNDING: Grant amounts range from $1,000 - $4,000 per school depending on the program region and funding year. Any school (PreK-12) from the following locations may apply for an Ocean Guardian School grant:

  • CALIFORNIA counties: Mendocino, Humboldt, Del Norte, Sonoma, Marin, San Francisco, Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, Monterey, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura
  • WASHINGTON counties: Clallam, Jefferson, Grays Harbor and Pacific
  • OREGON counties: Clatsop, Tillamook, Lincoln, Lane, Douglas, Coos and Curry
  • TEXAS counties: Galveston and Harris
  • FLORIDA county: Monroe
  • HAWAII

For application information, go to the Ocean Guardian School website.

Applications are now being accepted!


HS Teachers Sought for Field Testing Weather & Climate

Apply by 11 June 2021

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The UCAR Center for Science Education is recruiting high school science teachers to field test and provide feedback about the NGSS-aligned Clouds, Weather, and Climate Teaching Box - a new, week-long curriculum designed to build student understanding of the relationships between weather fronts, clouds, and climate.

If you are a high school science teacher who will be instructing at least one section of a class that includes weather and climate topics during the 2021 fall semester and would like to participate, please complete and submit a Google Form application by June 11, 2021.  Each field test teacher will receive  a $200 stipend. Learn more about this opportunity and sign up here.


Sustainable Communities Teacher Institute for CA Teachers

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Attention California teachers!  A free virtual institute  is being offered live June 21-25, 2021 from 9am–12pm online with afternoon time offered asynchronously. This institute will examine sustainable communities with a social, economic, and spatial justice, and ecological lens. 

The Institute will be followed by 2 additional meetings during the year, and end in a student environmental showcase. Teachers will be supported with resources and opportunities for engagement throughout the year. Join the California Global Education Project at California State University, Long Beach for Teaching for Sustainable Communities: Empowering Eco-literate Global Citizens.

$500 stipend for those who complete the entire program!

Register here!


The Ocean Decade: Creating the Ocean We Want

June 1, 5 - 9 am ET

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The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, in partnership with the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC-UNESCO), will celebrate the High-Level Launch of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development on 1 June 2021 from 5 am to 9 am (ET) in Berlin.

Join us for the virtual launch of the Ocean Decade and to contribute to “Creating the Ocean we want”. For more information go to ocean decade-conference.


Free Online Courses from National Geographic

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Want to take a deeper dive into innovative instructional strategies? Try an online course with a cohort of peers. Empower your learners to make sense of our interconnected world by integrating geographic thinking skills and resources into your instruction in a National Geographic short course! Peruse our courses here and sign up today! New courses begin June 23rd!


Your Invitation to the Explorers Festival

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Every June, National Geographic Explorers from around the world gather at their headquarters; this yearn they will be gathering virtually. National Geographic is extending a special invitation to attend the 2021 Explorers Festival to join scientists, conservationists, fellow educators, storytellers, and supporters to participate in the conversation about innovative planetary stewardship. From June 15-17, listen to dynamic symposium talks, watch film screenings, and enjoy an evening of music, networking, and celebration. Registration closes Friday, May 28. 


American Meteorological Society (AMS) DataStreme Project & Certified AMS Teacher Certification Program  

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The AMS Education Program invites K-12 teachers to enroll in content-rich professional development courses in weather, ocean, and climate science.  With major support from NOAA, the DataStreme Project distance learning courses are available to teachers nationwide:  DataStreme Atmosphere, DataStreme Ocean,and DataStreme Earth's Climate System. The enrollment period for Fall 2021 will open in mid/late Summer 2021To learn more, go to: www.ametsoc.org/DataStreme.

And there's more! Upon successful completion of any two of the five courses offered through the AMS/Cal U partnership or with the Datastreme courses, teachers are eligible to apply to become a Certified AMS Teacher (CAT). This certification is an ideal way to connect to distinguish yourself as a recognized Earth Science education leader. Information needed to learn more about this exciting new microcredential is available HERE.


Student opportunities

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During the 2020-2021 school year, NOAA Live! will be on Wednesdays at 4 pm ET and NOAA Live! Alaska will be on Tuesdays at 11 am AKT/3 pm ET (with live American Sign Language interpretation), 

Webinars coming up this week include:

  • TUESDAY, May 25, 3 pm ET: North to the future: Alaskan sharks in a changing ocean

    Scientists at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center conduct research and assess populations of many species of sharks in Alaskan waters. Join them for a discussion of the different sharks found in Alaskan waters, and learn how they use research to conserve and manage the species into the future.

    Register here

  • WEDNESDAY, May 26, 4pm ET,  Fresh Coasts: Where Food Grows Wild on the Water

    Wild rice or manoomin is a Great Lakes aquatic plant that makes our coasts special. Wild rice is a keystone species, both for the ecosystems of the Great Lakes and the people who call this place home. Join NOAA's Office of Coastal Management as they talk about how NOAA helps restore and protect the coastal wetlands where wild rice grows, the importance of wild rice to Great Lakes tribal nations, airborne data collection, and career paths to working with wild rice and Great Lakes.

    Register here

  • TUESDAY, JUNE 1, 3 pm ET: Forecasting the Weather in Southcentral Alaska

Are you interested in observing and predicting the weather? Are you considering a career path in meteorology? Learn about how meteorologists track and forecast the weather in Southcentral Alaska! Presenters will also explore the different services provided by the Alaska Region National Weather Service and share information about possible career paths for future meteorologists.

 

Register here


MyActionsMatter Campaign: Together We Can Change the World!

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The Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) has identified three overarching goals that address three burning environmental problems that face us today—climate change, biodiversity loss, and environmental pollution. These are also the themes of the 2021 Global Action Days campaign. See how you can take part in this campaign and help to Change the World!

Read more >


Ed Resources

Follow that Nutrient Video from KQED Quest

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Take a tour of the ribbons of rivers that crisscross the U.S. and deliver drinking water to over 117 million people every day. Learn how the physical, chemical, and biological systems within watersheds collaborate to create a continuum of resilient interconnected ecosystems. Find out how watersheds spiral nutrients in and out of the river basin, feeding a vast food web in the process. Learn more about this video, including educational resources, from the KQED website; http://ow.ly/vYnqN.  The video can also be found on YouTube here.


Focus on Marine Debris! STEAMSS Curriculum 

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Oregon Sea Grant has created a comprehensive, web-based, Marine Debris Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math, and Social Studies (STEAMSS) Curriculum with support from NOAA's Marine Debris Program. This curriculum integrates the subject areas of STEAMSS, focusing on experiential hands-on activities for students. Educators create in-depth, project based learning (PBL) units, work with teaching partners across disciplines, and find classroom and field experiences that will help students explore the issue and impacts of marine debris, and engage in stewardship actions. Students collect and analyze data, address problems through engineering design, use technology and art to effectively convey stewardship messages, contribute to clean up efforts, and work with community partners. Access the teacher-tested, effective Marine Debris STEAMSS Curriculum here: https://oregoncoaststem.oregonstate.edu/marine-debris-steamss. Check back often for updates.


NOAA's Freely Available Marine Debris Monitoring Toolkit 

 

The Marine Debris Monitoring Toolkit for Educators was created through a collaboration between the NOAA Marine Debris Program (MDP) and the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries. This toolkit provides many useful marine debris resources and adapts the MDP's Marine Debris Monitoring and Assessment Project, a robust citizen science monitoring initiative, for classroom use. The Toolkit is designed to assist teachers in educating their students about marine debris and involving them in marine debris research and outreach. Download the toolkit here to help teach your students about marine debris!

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Climate Generation Shares Resources to Connect, Investigate and Reflect on Climate Change and Extreme Weather

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Share stories of how climate change is impacting communities now, and solutions that people are creating to become climate resilient.

Connect students to extreme weather through math, language arts, and science with real climate data and real stories. 

Investigate the science of extreme weather  and reflect on how you rely on the seasons, weather, and climate and learn about how people and cultures are impacted by the changing climate patterns.


Conference Reports

Mid-Atlantic Climate Change Education Conference (MACCEC)

June 28 - July 1, 2021

Youth Event: July 28th;  All Attendees & Educators: July 29th - July 1st, 2021 

Mid Atlantic conference

Join us at MACCEC to learn how educators from across the region are teaching about climate solutions, science, justice and workforce. Over four afternoons (June 28 - July 1), classroom teachers, non-formal educators, and researchers will share best practices, lesson plans, and tools for engaging K-12 students and community members in climate change education and action.

Middle and high school students are invited to register for free and spend the afternoon of June 28th learning from fellow students on climate change solutions. At the end of the afternoon, all conference attendees are invited to attend a student panel where the next generation will share why they are taking action and demanding climate change education.  Student Track Registration for middle and high school students is FREE.

Registration page is here. Register by Friday, June 11 to receive a free conference Warming Stripes sticker.


2021 National Marine Educators (NMEA)

July 14-17, 2021

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Registration is now open for the 2021 National Marine Educators Association Virtual Conference 2021. The conference theme is “Your Connection to Water,” focusing on our personal connection to water, as well as the virtual connection to which we have all become so familiar. The full conference schedule will be posted soon. Registration is $75. Concurrent sessions this year are geared towards both formal and informal audiences, For more information and to register visit: marine-ed.org/conference


Summer Institute for Climate Change Education: A Regrounding in Truth

July 28th - 30th, 2021

Climate Generation

Hosted by Climate Generation in partnership with NOAA’s Climate Program, and The Wild Center’s Youth Climate Program. this Institute will give you the skills, tools, and resources to teach climate change concepts, empower students in all subject areas, and receive on-going support throughout the year. On-screen time will be segmented, with the opportunity to choose which sessions you would like to attend. Scholarships are available!  Learn more and register!


OREGON 2021: Environmental Education Conference

Oregon Env. Education

Oregon's Environmental Education Conference offers an exciting opportunity to connect with others in the environmental and outdoor education field this July. In-person and virtual sessions will be offered. The theme of the conference is Rise to Resilience: How Diversity Builds Strong Communities - how do you build resiliency in your workplace, in those you teach, in the environmental education field, with staff, and in your community.

The number of in-person registrations are being limited. Housing on the Southern Oregon University campus is available for an additional fee ($42 per night) and must be reserved by June 23rd. See the Be A Member pageRegister Today!

Paper: Global Warming’s Six Americas: a review and recommendations for climate change communication

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The Yale Program on Climate Change Communication has just published “Global Warming’s Six Americas: a review and recommendations for climate change communication.

"Global Warming’s Six Americas" analysis segments the U.S. public into six distinct audiences who each respond differently to the issue of climate change including: Alarmed, Concerned, Cautious, Disengaged, Doubtful, and Dismissive.

The article reviews how the Six Americas have changed over time, underlying theory, methodological innovations, and how the framework has informed the decision making of stakeholders .The paper's authors suggest that future research should further develop and investigate the application of the Six Americas within the United States, while also developing tailored segmentations and related tools for other countries.

The paper is free to download through mid June.


Grants

Grants, Scholarships, Awards 

  • Marine Conservation Internship: Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) is seeking applicants for our Fall 2021. This program will start on August 23 and end on December 17. The application deadline is July 5 2021. Please visit www.REEF.org/internship for complete information on how to apply.

  • California Regional Marine Debris Coordinator is sought by Lynker Technologies.  The position will be located in Oakland, CA. Find more information: https://www.lynker.com/careers/

  • Head Environmental Educator: The Delaware Center for the Inland Bays is seeking a full-time Head Environmental Educator to develop and deliver research-based lessons and interactive programs for diverse target audiences across the Inland Bays watershed.The Delaware Center for the Inland Bays is a nonprofit organization established in 1994, and is one of 28 National Estuary Programs. The full position description and application instructions are available at: https://www.inlandbays.org/about/employment/.  

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