Promoting Professional Development and Best Practice in EE
2018 Conference: Spokane, Washington
Building Leadership for Environmental Literacy
Strategies for building leadership and infrastructure to further EE on the state and provincial levels, and for advancing efforts to motivate the public to take informed actions on environmental and other civic issues
Sessions appropriate to this strand provide training in such areas as:
- Diversifying and strengthening the field of EE
- Strengthening organizations that deliver and coordinate EE, especially on the local, state, and regional levels
- Cultivating and supporting leadership in EE
- Providing career pathways that promote diverse EE workforces, including trade skills for green careers and opportunities in community colleges
- Building our capacity to deliver effective, relevant environmental education for and with diverse audiences
- Setting, achieving, and maintaining professional standards of excellence
Strand Leader
Connecting with Nature
Cultivating partnerships and providing universally accessible outdoor education experiences that connect people of all ages and backgrounds to nature
Sessions appropriate to this strand address such topics as:
- Early childhood environmental education and nature preschools
- Creating and using parks and other green learning spaces in urban, suburban, and rural areas
- Overcoming challenges associated with getting students and young children outside
- Outdoor programs that promote physical or spiritual health and wellness
- Developing outdoor programs that are inclusive and relevant to all audiences and provide equitable access for all
- Outdoor programs that build a sense of place and cultural relevancy in urban, suburban, and rural communities
Strand Leader
Conservation and Environmental Education
Achieving conservation goals through education, communication, social marketing, and ecotourism strategies, including public participation in scientific research (PPSR) and place-based community action
Sessions appropriate to this strand address such topics as:
- Integrating education strategies into the broader practice of conservation
- Increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion in the conservation movement
- Current research and case studies on behavior change as it relates to conservation education
- Successful tools, approaches, and educator preparation for bringing PPSR (citizen science) into the classroom or community improvement projects
- Successful collaborations between conservation educators and practitioners in all settings, from rural to suburban to urban, as well as wild spaces, public lands, and beyond
- Education strategies for addressing specific issues such as climate change, energy, water, biodiversity, ocean conservation, and food systems
Strand Leader
Educating for Sustainable Communities
Creating sustainable, equitable, and resilient communities through partnership building, informed civic engagement and personal decision making, systems thinking, connecting community and environment, and understanding historical impacts on communities of color
Sessions appropriate to this strand address such topics as:
- The role of environmental education in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals
- Achieving environmental integrity, social equity, environmental justice, and economic prosperity through education and authentic engagement of historically underrepresented communities
- Incorporating culturally rooted practices into our work and understanding how people from different backgrounds relate to, engage with, and care about the environment in urban, suburban, and rural communities
- Grassroots partnerships for community improvement; characteristics of successful community action projects
- Strategies, tools, and training for addressing controversial issues and finding common ground
- Education and engagement to build more resilient communities and address climate change
Strand Leader
Green Schools and Career-Connected Learning
Using environmental education to transform education, enhance student achievement, preparing students for green careers, conserve resources, support national and international education trends, link schools and communities, and build support for environmental education in formal education.
Sessions appropriate to this strand address such topics as:
- Green Schools as a pathway to service learning, student leadership, civic engagement, outdoor learning, and other effective education practices
- Exemplary initiatives for greening the campus and the curriculum, including school learning gardens and landscapes, facilities management practices, district and administrative commitments, and student involvement
- Advancing the Green Schools movement worldwide, including Green Ribbon and other recognition programs
- Promoting interdisciplinary instruction
- Integrating EE into preservice teacher preparation and inservice professional development
Strand Leader
Linking Research and Practice to Increase Impact
Using research to inform how we design, develop, refine, and promote environmental education programs for maximum effectiveness, and using practice to inform research
Sessions appropriate to this strand address such topics as:
- Cutting-edge research that is important and relevant to all environmental educators
- Connecting research and practice: applying what we know to what we do
- Strategies for evaluating and improving environmental education programs
- Using research results to influence decision makers and demonstrate the value of EE
- Developing shared outcomes that allow us to better measure our collective impact
- Research and case studies about the benefits and challenges of learning and teaching in outdoor settings and in a culturally relevant context
Strand Leader

Affiliates' Dinner
Tuesday, October 9, 2018, 7:00pm to 9:30pm
$37
Join Affiliate leaders for a networking dinner at Luigi's Itallian Restaurant, within easy walking distance of the Spokane Convention Center. The Italian buffet includes a choice of three entrees, salad, dessert, and non-alcoholic beverages. Alcoholic beverages can be purchased separately. Price includes tax and tip.
New this year: Pre-registration and pre-payment is required.
No cancellations or refunds after September 25.

Building a Stronger and More Inclusive Movement
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 12:00pm
$15
Equity, diversity, and inclusion work is a rewarding, iterative process that includes building awareness, gathering information, developing visions, planning, and action. This workshop offers a safer space for deep learning, honest exploration, open dialogue, and exploration of dimensions of equity, diversity, and inclusion in our lives, our relationships, and our work. This workshop is partially supported by ee360.

Building Equitable Partnerships with Underserved Communities to Implement Environmental Education
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 12:00pm
$55
Through humor, the arts, and storytelling we will explore the role of partnerships in the implementation of equitable environmental education projects in underserved communities. Based on community-based participatory research by communities historically excluded from the sciences this workshop will uncover barriers and opportunities for achieving real impact in practice.

Diving Into Water Issues: Create Your Own Deliberation Guide
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 4:30pm
$75
CANCELED: Use the new Environmental Issues Forums publication, Let’s Talk About Water, to create your own issue guide for public or classroom deliberation. You’ll also learn how to apply this “issue framing” process to other problems, and use Let's Talk About Water as an educational tool.

Environmental Ethics as Everyday Action
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 12:00pm
$35
Environmental ethics is a process requiring ongoing attention, and such values-deliberations should be part of environmental education leadership. Together in this session, participants will engage in pedagogical dialogue and activities focusing on ethical aspects of people with environment relations, with the aim of fostering sustainable communities and developing global citizens.

NAAEE Affiliates' Workshop
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 4:30pm
$48 - For Affiliate Staff and Board Members/Leaders
Join other leaders of NAAEE's affiliates—the 56 state, regional, and provincial associations that support EE professionals and organizations throughout North America. Focusing on building capacity, sharing successful practices, and learning innovative strategies, the workshop will help affiliates' staff and board members raise their impact on EE in their state and region.

Refuge Explorations
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 12:30pm
Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge, Cheney
$65
The Channeled Scablands—Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge's predominate ecosystem—are called one of the seven wonders of Washington state. Join refuge staff on a hike exploring this unique wetlands habitat, which is home to more than 200 bird species. You'll also participate in a hands-on aquatic macroinvertebrate investigation and learn about the refuge's educational programs.

Ridges to Rivers: Extremes of the Pacific Northwest
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 4:00pm
Mt. Spokane State Park, Mead and Riverside State Park, Spokane
$115
Experience Washington's rich cultural and natural history in the state's two largest state parks. Start with a guided hike along the heavily forested trails of Mount Spokane and end the day with a visit to the Spokane House Interpretive Center in Riverside State Park. Learn the story of Eastern Washington's early fur trade and the changes it brought to the lives of the Spokane-area Native Americans.

Spokane Riverside by Boat and Boot
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 4:00pm
Spokane River and Riverside State Park, Spokane
$140
Start your day on the water, floating down the spectacular Spokane River from Spokane Falls into Washington's second-largest state park, Riverside State Park, with Spokane's Riverkeeper, Jerry White. Then, for a different perspective, strap on your boots and hike along some of the most beautiful and dramatic sections of the river with naturalist/author Jack Nisbet.

Teaching Instructors to Use Evidence & Explanations
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 12:00pm
$35
When outdoor science is taught as discovering mysteries around us, and attempting to explain them, it ignites curiosity about interacting with nature. We’ll model how to teach instructors to lead inquiry outdoors, to evaluate strength of evidence, and how teaching language of science can contribute to social justice.

Teaching Instructors to Use Evidence and Explorations
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 12:00pm
$35
When outdoor science is taught as discovering mysteries around us, and attempting to explain them, it ignites curiosity about interacting with nature. We’ll model how to teach instructors to lead inquiry outdoors, to evaluate strength of evidence and how teaching language of science can contribute to social justice.

The GLOBE Program and Eco-Schools: Intersections in Science and Sustainability
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 12:00pm
$60
Hear from a local school who is driving school sustainability by doing science through The GLOBE Program. Learn about GLOBE science and Eco-Schools at this interactive presentation. Conduct a GLOBE field investigation using the Eco-Schools Watersheds audit and develop an action plan to engage the entire school community.

The Road to NAAEE Higher Education Accreditation: A Map for Success
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 4:30pm
$48
This workshop provides critical information for universities interested in becoming a NAAEE Distinguished College and University Program. It includes in-depth review of standards, strategies for incorporating them into curriculum, sample assessments and models with faculty members who have completed applications. Participants should bring laptops and documents to begin the process. This workshop is partially supported by ee360.

Train-the-Trainer Workshop: NAAEE's EE Guidelines for Community Engagement
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 8:30am to 4:30pm
$48 - By Invitation Only
Participants in this all-day workshop will receive training in the use of NAAEE’s newest Environmental Education Guidelines for Community Engagement and will begin to develop preliminary plans to provide
Guidelines training in their respective regions and professional communities.

Climate Change Community-Level Solutions: Moving from "Me" to "We"
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 1:00pm to 4:30pm
$35
Join the National Network for Ocean and Climate Change Interpretation as we demonstrate how to dive into the most important part of the climate change discussion—solutions! Learn research-based techniques that move concerned citizens from individual actions to community-level solutions that help us solve climate change together.

Designing for Change: Connecting EE Research and Practice
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 1:00pm to 4:30pm
$15
Ever wondered what research suggests about the role of hope in pro-environmental behavior? Or about fostering environmental attitudes? Join us to explore strategies for integrating research findings like these, and others, into your programming using engaging and collaborative activities from design-thinking. We’ll include a train-the-trainer element so you’ll learn how to coach others to incorporate EE research in their programming. This workshop is partially supported by ee360.

Integrating Civic Action into EE: The Earth Force Process
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 1:00pm to 4:30pm
$30
Join Earth Force to learn practical steps to easily incorporate student-led civic action into your organization’s environmental education programming. This workshop provides hands-on training in Earth Force's Community Action & Problem-Solving Process, a six-step framework that combines the best of civic engagement, environmental education, and project-based learning. This workshop is partially supported by ee360.

Moving the Field Forward: Equitable and Inclusive Workforce Development
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 1:00pm to 4:30pm
$35
The Outdoor Educators Institute was developed in 2012, to ensure that young adults from traditionally underrepresented communities had access to employment opportunities in environmental education. We will share our findings, explore challenges and successes, and discuss moving the environmental education field forward, through equitable and inclusive workforce development programs.

Using Citizen Science and Food Webs to Ask Ecological Questions
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 1:00pm to 4:30pm
Scientists in Panama are tracking jaguars and their prey using trail cameras in the tropical rainforest of Darién. Use free resources from HHMI BioInteractive to model how to use food webs, trail camera photos, and real data to make observation and ask testable scientific questions about the Darién ecosystem. Participants are encouraged to bring a laptop or tablet to the session. This workshop is free due to the generous sponsorship of HHMI BioInteractive.

Authors' Corner
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 5:00pm to 6:30pm
$35 for participating authors (sign up online with conference registration)
Authors can interact with conference attendees and promote, sign, and sell their publications in the Authors' Corner. This informal event occurs during the opening reception and is an opportunity to share your recent published works. Participants stop by for casual conversation about your work. Purchase your table by August 24 to be listed in the conference program.
$35 includes table and chairs, sign, and program listing.
Please note that, while sales are encouraged, the Authors' Corner is not generally a high-volume sales event. Authors must provide their own books and handle their own sales.

Opening Reception
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 5:00pm to 6:30pm
Meet new colleagues and greet returning ones as you enjoy hors d'oeuvres and a cash bar, along with the Share Fair, Authors' Corner, and more. Home state highlights this year include live raptors from the Spokane's own West Valley Outdoor Learning Center, and three Karelian Bear Dogs: Jax, Cash, and Indy, and their handlers, Keith Kirsch and Rich Beausoleil. Learn about Washington's unusual and highly successful program, which provides a nonlethal option for handling interactions between wildlife and humans. Immediately following the reception, the conference formally opens. Executive Director Judy Braus will welcome participants and introduce our extraordinary keynote speaker, Brady Walkinshaw.

Share Fair
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 5:00pm to 6:30pm
$35 to host a table (sign up online with conference registration)
At the Share Fair, nonprofit organizations highlight their successful programs and inspiring ideas through tabletop displays, hands-on interaction, and engaging conversations. This event occurs during the opening reception and is an opportunity to share your work with conference attendees. Purchase your table by August 24 to be listed in the conference program.
$35 includes table and chairs, sign, and program listing.

Brady Piñero Walkinshaw
Wednesday, October 10, 2018, 7:30pm to 8:30pm
Brady Walkinshaw is the CEO of the Seattle-based Grist media, the leading national environmental media organization. Brady is a former Washington State legislator, and served two terms representing central Seattle, championing housing, mental health, environmental, and criminal justice reforms.

Democracy, Civic Engagement, and Environmental Education
Thursday, October 11, 2018, 11:30am to 12:45pm
David Orr, Paul Sears Distinguished Professor of Environmental Studies & Politics, Emeritus, Oberlin College, will moderate the Thursday Keynote panel on the connections between democracy, civic engagement, and environmental education. This fascinating panel will include noted author and New York Times Columnist Timothy Egan, Kei Kawashima-Ginsberg, the director of CIRCLE at TIsch College of Civic Life at Tufts University, and Janet Tran, the Director of Learning and Leadership for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library Foundation.

Exhibit Fair Luncheon
Thursday, October 11, 2018, 12:45pm to 2:15pm
Included with full conference or Thursday registration (guest tickets, $42)
Chat with exhibitors, review the Poster Presentations, find out what your state Affiliate is up to, bid on a prize auction item, and more—all during the Exhibit Fair luncheon.

Environmental Professionals of Color National Business Meeting
Thursday, October 11, 2018, 3:20pm to 4:00pm
The annual business meeting of the Environmental Professionals of Color (EPOC) is open to all EPOC members and potential members. Participants will build community connections, discuss lessons learned, and identify potential priority areas for the next year. EPOC is a program of the Center for Diversity & the Environment.

HHMI BioInteractive Movie Night
Thursday, October 11, 2018, 5:45pm to 7:00pm
Free
HHMI BioInteractive develops educational films capturing the essence of scientific thinking and the thrill of scientific discovery. Come enjoy some of HHMI's newest films highlighting ecology and conservation biology, and featuring the work of Dr. Manuel Leal, who studies the behavioral ecology of lizards in Puerto Rico. Enjoy light hors d’oeuvres, the screening, and a discussion session with special guests. The event is free but pre-registration is required.

Spokane Suds Stroll
Thursday, October 11, 2018, 7:30pm to 10:00pm
$45
What better way to meet new colleagues than to spend your open evening networking over a few drinks? Join the Suds Stroll and visit three nearby Spokane nightspots to enjoy beer, cocktails, dinner, and great conversation. The venues were selected for their local flavor; some emphasize organic and locally sourced ingredients. Must be 21 or over. Price includes one drink per venue, hearty appetizers, and tax, and tip. All venues are within walking distance.

EE: A Force for the Future
Friday, October 12, 2018, 11:30am to 12:30pm
Centennial Ballroom
From climate resiliency to community engagement, early childhood, media, and networks, this series of flash talks will give you a taste of how these experts are thinking about the next decade and beyond. This series of flash talks will be facilitated by Paul Baribault of Walt Disney Studios. We'll hear from Kevin Chang, Executive Director of Kua’āina Ulu ‘Auamo (KUA), Shaun Martin, Sr. Director for climate change adaptation and resilience at World Wildlife Fund, Sheila Williams Ridge, Director of the Shirley G. Moore Laboratory School at the University of Minnesota, and Jane Wei-Skillern, Senior Fellow at the Haas School of Business at University of California, Berkeley. The session will end with a preview of Disney’s new Disneynature film focused on penguins, with never-before-seen footage!

Annual Gala and Stapp Scholarship Auction
Friday, October 12, 2018, 6:30pm to 9:30pm
Marlin Woldson Theater at the Fox
Included with full conference or Friday registration (guest tickets, $50)
Dust off your flapper duds and grab your party gear. Enter the Roaring ‘20s and ‘30s on Friday, October 12, when you swing into Spokane’s beautiful art deco Martin Woldson Theater at the Fox. Enjoy great food, a live performance by The Good Company, and our fun-filled auction.

Awards Luncheon
Saturday, October 13, 2018, 12:00pm to 2:30pm
Included with full conference or Saturday registration (guest tickets, $42)
The conference culminates with the annual awards ceremony and luncheon featuring the presentation of the Walter E. Jeske Award, NAAEE's highest honor, and an inspiring panel of young leaders selected from NAAEE's "30 under 30."

EE 30 Under 30 Honorees
Saturday, October 13, 2018, 1:30pm to 2:30pm
Join us for one of the conference’s most popular sessions, the annual awards luncheon, to celebrate and learn from inspirational young leaders from around the world! The closing panel will feature four of 2018’s exceptional EE 30 Under 30 finalists, who will share their inspiring stories of leadership.

Urban Kayaks
Sunday, October 14, 2018, 9:00am to 12:00pm
Spokane River: Upriver Dam to Downtown
$65
As city sounds and bird songs serenade, you'll paddle single sit-on-top kayaks from the upriver dam to downtown Spokane. This 3½-mile paddle will take you past towering cottonwood trees, train trestles, and arched bridges—an amazing adventure through the heart of the city. This is mostly a flatwater paddle with two small rapids.

Riverside on Horseback
Sunday, October 14, 2018, 12:15pm to 3:30pm
Riverside State Park Equestrian Area, Spokane
$65
Experience Riverside State Park the way it was viewed by early explorers: on horseback! This two-hour ride with True West will guide you through scenic trails at a leisurely pace that will allow you to enjoy expansive views as well as the native plants and animals of the park's Ponderosa pine forest and open steppe habitats.
Educating for Sustainable Communities
Ecology Project International–Mexico implements a holistic approach that cultivates students’ ability to play an active role in creating sustainable communities. We strengthen students’ capacity for critical thinking through mentorship, environmental education experiences, and project development so they can communicate, develop, and collaborate on projects that address their concerns.
Through a partnership with the Kettering Foundation, NAAEE has been developing materials that foster community level deliberation of critical issues. But, what do you do after a great deliberative discussion? What do we need to do to move towards community based solutions? This presentation introduces a new Extension community engagement program in Florida--Community Voices, Informed Choices (CIVIC). Launched in 2017 as a cross-disciplinary initiative to enable teams of Extension faculty serve as conveners and facilitators of community dialogue, CIVIC aims to strengthen communities' capacity to identify common ground around complex issues such as climate change and sea-level rise and move from deliberation to action.
I will present an analysis of the unspoken role of environmental violence in EE practice, and offer suggestions as to how EE practitioners can deal with environmental violence in their classrooms and/or programming. The term ‘’violence’ has never appeared in the titles or abstracts of NAAEEC conferences over the past seven years, and virtually never appears in our published literature. My theoretical lens is based on the work of Norwegian peace scholar Johan Galtung, who contrasts direct (the outcome of an actor with intent to commit violence), structural (the result of human systems that cause violence either through intent or unintentionally) and cultural violence (the result of social legitimization and justification of direct or structural violence). Environmental educators can address all of these forms of violence through appropriate acts of environmental non-violence, anti-violence, and contra-violence (working to undo violence we all are complicit in).
Calling all Urban Engineers: You are the director of this Anthropo(s)cene! Our citizens need your help designing their future. Your objective is to take ancient wisdom and combine it with cutting-edge ideas to create resilient and adaptable cities! Using tools like systems thinking, causal maps, story chips and hands-on models, your team will define the big ideas, design for a specific geography & climate, test the resiliency of your design and ultimately tell your city story. Our future depends on how we decide to shape it!
This presentation shares research describing features of the learning environment linked to the long-term learning outcome of active citizenship. It tells the story of how the learning environment in a high school integrated studies program contributed to the development of citizens that embrace environmental stewardship and are active contributors to a healthy, sustainable society.
This session discusses “Science Strikes Back” (SSB), an annual, all-ages community science fair held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. SSB increases access to environmental education for diverse students in urban settings through place-based, community-oriented programming. The session will highlight SSB’s successes and suggestions for best practices in environmental education.
This presentation addresses educational processes that have resulted in citizens who embrace environmental stewardship and are active contributors to a healthy, sustainable society. The presentation has been framed around the current research of two integrated curriculum programs that have demonstrated long-term learning outcomes related to active citizenship.
Conservation and Environmental Education
Come to learn about resources related to case study pedagogy. This session will showcase two environmental cases (sea turtle conservation and carbon emissions) used in college-level courses to engage students in learning and practicing analytical skills. Lots of ready-to-use case study collections will be shared!
Join a roundtable discussion about the use of case studies to engage students in practicing data analysis skills. The panelists are participants of the QUBES-SESYNC faculty mentoring network and will guide a lively discussion session about best practices and challenges of the case study approach in teaching college-level environmental courses.
Successes and innovative educational tools of the National Science Foundation-funded Teaching Environmental Sustainability: Model My Watershed (TES-MMW) project will be showcased. Teachers and students can use a customizable online curriculum, SensorTag environmental sensor, Runoff Simulation, and Model My Watershed GIS to learn about and improve their local watersheds.
Under the U.S. Clean Water Act, more than 7,500 cities have permits for their stormwater systems. The first required component of such an "MS4" (municipal separate storm sewer system) is "education and outreach." Many cities could use more help from professional environmental educators. This is a primer on MS4s. See pdf for full abstract, key slides and fact sheets.
During this session, we will demonstrate how correlating to NGSS and STEM builds environmental literacy that supports both the Service mission and formal and non-formal educators. We’ll also share best practices and examples of curriculum throughout the Service that correlate to STEM and NGSS.
University of Florida IFAS Extension works with partners to engage nontraditional audiences in environmental education and conservation programs such as Extension-led citizen science projects. Several of these programs will be highlighted to show how you can work with your local Extension program on conservation and environmental education.
This poster session was about Digital Observation Technology Skills (DOTS) program, an environmental education approach that engages K-12 students across Wisconsin in water quality monitoring activities. The session highlighted successes and learning opportunities from year one of the project based on evaluation results and discussed their significance for best EE practice.
Green Schools and Career-Connected Learning
Nine grantees across Washington State engaged educators, professionals, and youth in career-related exploration through field STEM experiences, focusing on youth typically under-represented in STEM. This session will share the resulting outcomes, replicable strategies, and useful resources for implementation. Programs include forestry, fishery management, green building, environmental engineering, and water resource management.
Learn about a Green Schools program that partners schools with their local government to increase environmental literacy in the community. It provides educators with resources to connect classroom concepts with the city where students live. Partners will share strategies to increase local environmental education opportunities and offer advice for collaborating with local schools.
The Eastern Washington Forestry Internship program is a partnership between Eastern Washington Workforce Development Council and Stevens County Conservation District to delliver quality FieldSTEM programming to youth at risk. FieldSTEM refers to the process of using STEM principles in environmental science as developed by Dr. Margaret Tudor of Pacific Education Institute. FieldSTEM insists that STEM is possible if not better outdoors because of the connections to the community and opportunities for place based learning that are relevant to the learner. In the case of these internships, many students don't choose college and get stuck in poverty simply because they don't want to leave the area, their families, their community. Creating internships shows these youth the possibilities within forestry and natural resources and provides pathways for them to choose a career with a living wage.
Biomimicry is an approach to innovation that develops sustainable design solutions by studying and applying functional strategies and patterns exhibited in nature. At a time when many students have a fractured relationship to nature, biomimicry-based learning offers a profound shift in how we view and value the natural world and an exciting context for teaching STEM and environmental literacy. This Bright Spot session featured the Biomimicry Youth Design Challenge (YDC), a free project-based learning program hosted by the Biomimicry Institute and pilot tested in spring 2018. The YDC challenges student teams to create biomimetic solutions to a climate change problem. Teachers are provided with a biomimicry design curriculum (co-authored with EcoRise) and a variety of other supports. Visit youthchallenge.biomimicry.org to register and learn more.
Learn how Chewonki leveraged a college level, skills-based workshop to support programming for under-resourced elementary students. Through a collaborative partnership with Unity College, career bound seniors receive authentic program development and teaching experience in the field of wildlife education, broadening the reach of environmental education in a rural community.
Whether we throw it, recycle it, or flush it AWAY, how do we inspire people to think about solid waste? In this hands-on workshop, we will connect participants to proven techniques in teaching about solid waste issues and the importance of saving our natural resources.
Connecting with Nature
Citizen science is a valuable and innovative tool to engage NPA visitors in in situ scientific data collection while at the same time contributes to long-term spatial and temporal scale species monitoring. As part of a National Science Foundation funded project, Para la Naturaleza (PLN) a unit of the Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico developed a new environmental education model to engage citizens to become stewards of nature. Historically, PLN trained environment educators to provide a tour within the NPA that is included information about the cultural, history and conservation value of the place. In recent years, however, PLN made a bold move to provide visitors with citizen science experiences to collect scientific data on biodiversity and state of the environment within the NPA. Here we document the adaptation and the role of environmental educators in providing research collaborators and visitors with relevant logistical and field support.
Teachers cite a number of barriers to teaching students outdoors, which can be mitigated through effective inservice professional development in place-based environmental education. Gain insights into one successful program in which teachers integrate watershed-focused outdoor experiences into their curriculum, fostering opportunities to connect children with nature while meeting learning objectives.
Want to build a nature play space, but don’t have loads of money, staff, or space? Learn from North Carolina! We’ll share success stories, tips, and resources from several facilities. We’ll also cover some basics for inclusive design, so everyone can come out and play!
Learn about the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Campbell Creek Science Center’s efforts to welcome and acclimate refugee youth to their new home through a special environmental education program. You’ll also find out about the partnerships that made the program possible and plans for its future.
Linking Research and Practice to Increase Impact
We’ll introduce the NSF-funded Comp Hydro project and demonstrate activities that develop hydrologic and computational knowledge as well as practice through NGSS-aligned instruction. Using the East Helena Superfund Site as a context, students become groundwater scientists, through connected experiences with phenomena, data, and modeling, then develop a plan for remediation of groundwater contamination.
Preparing the next generation of decision-makers to advance climate change solutions is a new imperative of U.S. public education. Delivering effective instruction is a challenge highlighted in recent evaluations of U.S. climate change education. This roundtable highlights experiential climate change curriculum and seeks to foster collaboration between researchers and practitioners.
Is it worth surveying EE researchers across nations? While introducing the results of our pilot test, a group of Japanese, Taiwanese, and Korean researchers is going to discuss the potential of such an international study toward not only increasing research capacities but also promoting communication with practitioners.
Environmental Volunteers’ Educate 4 Action project is improving stewardship education in our curriculum and incorporating best practices for English language learners. Learn more about our journey, the evaluation and research that guide us, our results, and how you can do this too.
Come learn about Rhode Island’s statewide survey of K-12 educators and the successful partnerships that were informed by the results. Development and implementation of the tool will be shared. Consider how to conduct a similar inventory of current practices and leave with access to the survey for your own organization.
As our field evolves and develops amidst a challenging world, rethinking the qualities that educators embody is a meaningful effort. This poster presentation explores a values-based assessment conducted by emerging educators and their instructors, to determine the abilities that are most important to meaningful environmental education.
Building Leadership for Environmental Literacy
Environmental literacy is essential for sustainability, yet its development and definition are often narrow. This session shows the impact of breakthroughs in physics and cultural studies on environmental education. We will explore a new vision for environmental literacy, founded on the strength of diversity and inclusion, with the goal of empowering current and future leaders.
In the past several decades, China campus environmental clubs have sprung up like mushrooms across campuses nationwide. They are recognized as environmental educators on campus. Further, through learning and acting together, club members are immersed in the “environmental education program” of their own club. However, this “environmental education program” is self-taught and totally experiential. Club leaders are challenged as the club grows and the expectations increase, especially in their responsibility for environmental education. Therefore, we, three university students, initiated the Capacity Building Network (CaBuN!) for China Campus Environmental Clubs in April 2018. Our goals are to enhance leadership in China campus environmental clubs, to build awareness of environmental education as a field of study and practice among China campus environmental clubs, and to promote scholarship and entrepreneurship based on China campus environmental clubs.
Finding innovative ways to bring more educators into the field of environmental education. Learn more about how Kentucky has undergone the process of developing an AmeriCorps program to build the capacities of environmental education providers on a statewide scale through unique partnerships.
Freelance educators are uniquely positioned to connect the public to history, culture, and nature in a variety of informal learning environments. The contributions freelance educators make to lifelong learning is unknown. Who are freelance educators? What do they do? How do they create change? These are some of the questions I aim to answer in my investigation, "The Freelance Condition & Lifelong Learning in Communities." Freelance educators working in natural resource fields and environmental education are encouraged to share how they create change in their communities.
Why study composting if I don’t have a backyard? When environmental education lessons fail to reflect diverse student experiences, many participants disengage and their voices are lost in the conservation conversation. In this collaborative roundtable, we’ll share examples and discover strategies for designing more equitable environmental education opportunities for all.