Join us on Monday, February 7 at 8pm ET to discuss:

Our Changing Menu: Climate Change and the Foods We Love and Need

by Michael Hoffmann, Carrie Koplinka-Loehr,
and Danielle Eiseman

(The authors will be joining the event. Don't miss it!)  
All Are welcome! Discussion questions will be posted prior to the meeting on our Website.

To join the discussion Dial 866-662-7513 (toll free) then use the pass code 1170791#. Learn more here and see our entire lineup for the rest of the 2021-2022 academic year.

To inspire engagement with your students, check out Kids Against Climate Change. A website created by kids - and their teacher (A NOAA Planet Steward... of course), for kids ...and teachers. Read what kids know about climate change, what they (and you!) can do about about it to feel more empowered and make a real difference.

This site is one of Kottie Christie-Blick's passion projects. Kottie is a long time NOAA Planet Steward and elementary school educator with over 30 years in the classroom. Kottie offers professional development to educators across the country and via an online course she teaches through the University of San Diego, Teaching Climate Change in the NGSS Classroom.

Ten-years ago teaching climate change was considered edgy, or even subversive. With introduction of the NGSS, it’s become an important conversation in science classes. For educators there's a lot of change happening very quickly in ways we're unevenly prepared for. How can educators prepare students for the future they will inherit? In this presentation Dr. Krista Hiser, a communications professor, and Dr. Wendy Kuntz, an ecology professor from the University of Hawaii address the most important climate science concepts to teach and why; effective interdisciplinary course design; NGSS in terms of higher education, and more!  Watch the webinar here.

If you're looking for terrific educational resources or ideas to plug into your academic planning, check out archived issues of The Watch! Our team has reviewed all content for use by formal and informal educators working to increase their own ocean, climate, and environmental awareness and that of their students and audiences.

If you have an item you'd like to share with our education community, email us at: oceanserviceseducation@noaa.gov. Be sure to include:

• Event/Item announcement title
• Date and time if applicable
• One paragraph description
• Clear thumbnail image
• Link for more information

To answer the question “How does pollution impact the ocean and what can we do about it?” NOAA experts often need to conduct research that advances our knowledge of marine pollution science. This blog highlights 12 scientific articles about research advancing pollution response and assessment published in Fiscal Year 2021.

In FY21, the Office of Response & Restoration made significant updates to its environmental sensitivity index (ESI) maps for two critical links in the Great Lakes region—the St. Marys and St. Lawrence rivers. ESI maps and data are a NOAA product that provide a concise summary of coastal resources at risk if an oil or chemical spill occurs nearby. Read more here.

NOAA and the State of Connecticut designated a new national estuarine research reserve in Long Island Sound! Research reserves are designated to protect a section of an estuary and provide a living laboratory to explore and understand important areas where rivers meet the sea, promoting understanding and informed management of coastal habitats. Learn more about the new Connecticut Estuarine Research Reserve here.

Climate change emerged in recent decades as a theory and is now a broadly acknowledged phenomenon with impacts demonstrated around the world. In the not-so-distant future, climate change is projected to profoundly impact coastal and marine ecosystems on a global, regional, and local scale threatening physical, social, economic, and environmental well-being. 

Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary and Feiro Marine Life Center invite you to join a discussion with Dr. Zachary Cannizzo on the current & future impacts of climate change on OCNMS and surrounding areas.

Register for the webinar here.

Over the last 50 years, sufficient quantities of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases have trapped heat in our atmosphere and affected the global climate. The overall health effects of a changing climate are overwhelmingly negative, damaging many of the resources that are social and environmental determinants of health - clean air, safe drinking water, sufficient food and secure shelter.

This webinar will explore the interconnectedness of climate change and health, environmental injustice, and what can be done to combat these issues. Register here.

The effects of intensifying global changes are here: wildfires, warming and acidifying oceans, sea level rise, and extreme weather events. The causes of global change and the mechanisms for mitigating future consequences are complex, and we need innovative scientists, engineers, and informed citizens to understand and how to respond to these challenges.

Participate in activities and discussion exploring UC Berkeley's Understanding Global Change tools that allow you to engage students in the three dimensions of the NGSS by visualizing the Earth system and paths to a resilient future. The webinar is free, but registration is required. Please visit this link for webinar registration.

The American Geosciences Institute's Center for Geoscience and Society, the National Association of Geoscience Teachers, and the National Earth Science Teachers Association support the implementation of the Earth and space science Next Generation Science Standards. 

Every month the Cornell Lab of Ornithology offers free webinars for K-12 educators that provide background content, highlight new and relevant educational resources, and allow discussion for successful implementation. Each webinar is roughly 50 minutes long with 10 minutes allocated for questions. Access all archived webinars through K–12 Education Cornell Lab's YouTube channel. You can also receive letters of completion or Continuing Education Units. Register for the webinars here.

The Green Strides Webinar Series has promoted over 2,500 sessions that provide free tools to reduce schools' environmental impact and costs, improve health and wellness, and teach effective environmental education. Consult the webinar calendar and submit suggestions for listing additional free, publicly available webinars related to school, district, and postsecondary sustainability to ed.green.ribbon.schools@ed.gov. (Note: all times listed are ET.)

The Presidio Graduate School has a facilitated online course for K-12 educators focused on climate change education. The nine-week teacher professional Development, Teaching Climate Change Essentials, includes a learning module each week plus three live interactive webinars with subject experts in the field of climate action. View course syllabus here.

Teachers can enroll for free by using the Scholarship Code: K12Scholar (Note: Scholarship code is applicable to PD hours and CEU course ONLY). For more information visit the course website here.

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The Presidio Graduate School has launched a new teacher prof. development course: Teaching Extreme Weather. Explore the driving forces behind extreme weather events, specifically those occurring where they live. As part of the course teachers create a lesson or series of lessons focused on extreme weather that align to the Next Generation Science Standards as well as to State Standards for their grade level.

Enrollment is FREE for any teachers wanting to take the course for PD hours or CEUs.

Learn more here. 

The Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) - including computer science, is now accepting nominations! The PAEMST is the highest honor the U.S. government bestows for K–12 mathematics and science teaching, honoring up to 108 teachers each year. Presidential awardees receive a certificate signed by the President; a trip for two to Washington, D.C. to attend recognition events; and $10,000 from the National Science Foundation.

Consider nominating a talented teacher or applying for the award yourself here. This year, teachers in grades K–6 are eligible. Nominations close on January 7. Applications are due by February 6.

NOAA Ocean Exploration is excited to announce that the application for the 2022 Explorer-in-Training Program is now open! Applications are currently being accepted for opportunities from March to September of 2022. Themes include:

• 2 to 4-week expedition-based opportunities(Hydro-
        graphy & Seafloor Mapping)
• 10-week summertime opportunities (Exploration Education, Science Media/Communication)

“She Works Hard For The Honey – So Don’t Waste It!,” a new exhibit about the global effect of food waste and its impact on pollinator populations – bees, birds, butterflies, and bats - is coming to the Coachella Valley in February 2022. The exhibit brings together educators, scientists, artists, and students to explore how pollinators nourish our planet by helping plants to reproduce and create the foods we need to survive. We invite students, schools, clubs, and organizations to submit bee-themed artwork to complement the exhibit. For more information contact: info@scrapgallery.org

College students enrolled in an Earth Science Student Teaching Program qualify for a free membership to the National Earth Science Teachers Association (NESTA)  in their junior or senior year. Students should go to the NESTA website,  and click join in the membership box. Student membership is one of the many choices.

The 2022 Ocean Awareness Contest is a platform for young people to learn about environmental issues through art-making and creative communication, and become advocates for positive change. Its theme, THE FUNNY THING ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE, challenges students to learn about climate change and its impact on the ocean, and to explore new ways, like humor, satire, or kitsch, to communicate the urgency of the climate crisis. 

Visit the website for full details, and be sure to check out Bow Seat’s Resource Studio on methods that break the mold on your typical doom and gloom messaging.

Special Awards:

• The We All Rise Prize  View the 2021 Winners.
• The Voice of the Sea Award –  View Voice of the Sea Award Winners.

There will also be an Educator Innovation Awards. If you bring the Ocean Awareness Contest into your physical or virtual classroom this year, we want to hear from you! Nominate yourself or a colleague for a $750 award. Learn more >

Know the potential warning signs of an incoming tsunami. Learn about the science of these dangerous waves to help you and your community stay safe! Find the resource here.

Click here  if you are a teacher or museum/aquarium/zoo educator to learn more about the OCEAN TODAY FOR TEACHERS. 

STEM Teaching Tools has created a new website portal to support educators in climate change teaching and learning: STEM Teaching Tools Climate Change Portal. Currently, the site includes STEM Teaching Tools on climate, examples of three-dimensional assessments for use across PK-12, and an open graduate course on climate and environmental justice in education. New resources will be added to this portal over time.

The Science is Cool Unconference will feature a special presentation from UrbanHeatATL about the remarkable community science being conducted to understand urban heat islands in the state of Georgia. Hear from Spelman College, Georgia Tech, and how their research is affecting change in Atlanta. Next, hear from Thomas County Schools about students conducting similar research while participating in this nationwide project.

 Register here. Recordings will be available for those that cannot attend live.