Using NASA Data and Tools in the Classroom in our work with teachers, it is clear that they need educational tools to enhance teaching and student understanding of the impacts of climate change on ecosystems. As a result of this need, staff at the Chicago Botanic Garden (CBG) were able to successfully secure funds from NASA to collaborate with teachers in the Chicago area to develop these needed tools. The Climate Change Education Project (CCEP) also utilized a long standing partnership between CBG and BudBurst.

“Gikinoo’wizhiwe Onji Waaban” (Guiding for Tomorrow) or “G-WOW”, the Connect program, and Budburst are partnering for plants. The plants are culturally relevant to the Lake Superior Ojibwe and important indicators of climate change. The G-WOW project’s service learning approach promotes community level action to fight climate change and this model can be adapted to other cultures and locations.

In Hawaiian culture land, sea, sky, and all creatures were meaningfully related. The highest chiefs were tasked with caring for the land (mālama `āina) and protecting it for the common people. Sayings such as "He ali`i ka `āina, he kauwā ke kanaka, The land is a chief, man is its servant" and "I ka nānā no a `ike; By observing one learns" reveal Hawaiians considered themselves as part of and responsible for sustainable social ecosystems. Project BudBurst and the University of Hawai'i-Manoa have launched a collaboration aimed towards making cultural connections to plants and increasing awareness throughout Hawai'i of the role of native plants in sustaining healthy terrestrial ecosystems that in turn protect mauka to makai (ridge to reef) ecosystems.

The National Aquarium inspires and informs millions of guests and provides educational science-based programming to millions more through school and community outreach. As a trusted public platform for the promotion of environmental literacy and stewardship with universal appeal, we fulfill our mission to inspire conservation of the world’s aquatic treasures. We celebrate all natural environments, from the Chesapeake Bay to the world’s coral reefs, and from the ocean’s depths to the tropical rainforest canopy. Through pioneering science, conservation initiatives, educational programming, and advocacy for public policies informed by science, we address issues that challenge global aquatic habitats.

Located in Northern Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, NEON's Domain 05 contains regenerating Northern mesic forests and a mixture of both wooded and open bogs. Land use, specifically forest management, is one of the major science themes this Domain will study.  To view phenocam links, below, select 'view in a new window/tab.'

Located in North Dakota, NEON's Domain 09 (D09) sites, are historically representative of the region and provide meaningful insight into the ecological impact of grazing activities. As there is little urban development in the area, this site can be compared to other grassland sites within the NEON continental design that may receive chemical climate inputs from agronomic practices or nearby growing urban environments. The D09 sites also provide an understanding of tall grass prairie environments and serve as a benchmark for detecting and exploring the causes and consequences of environmental change taking place throughout the grasslands of the Northern Plains Domain, with results relevant to semi-arid grassland ecosystems worldwide.

Sudbury Valley Trustees (SVT) is a regional land trust in Massachusetts, founded in 1953. SVT is dedicated to conserving land and protecting wildlife habitat in the Concord, Assabet and Sudbury river basin for the benefit of present and future generations. This is one of the most scenic, culturally rich, and historically significant regions in the United States. Today, approximately 3,100 members support SVT’s work in 36 different towns in the watershed. SVT is responsible for the protection and care of diverse conservation lands that include wetlands, sensitive habitats, trails and other open spaces including major sanctuaries.

There’s a day’s worth of things to see and do at the 54,000-square-foot Center and on our 81-acre campus. Explore the exhibit halls, meet one of our many animals, take a woodland walk down to the Raquette River, or watch one of our high-definition films. See the planet come alive in Planet Adirondack or watch our river otters do flips at Otter Falls. The museum hosts plenty of hands-on activities and hundreds of live animals from rare native trout, to turtles, snakes, and many other often hard-to-see residents of the woods and waters.

Founded in 1861, North Central College is an independent, comprehensive college of the liberal arts and sciences that offers more than 65 undergraduate majors and graduate programming in six areas. Just 30 minutes from Chicago’s Loop, North Central’s campus is located in the Historic District of Naperville, Illinois. With more than 2,900 undergraduate and graduate students, North Central College is committed to academic excellence; a climate that emphasizes leadership, ethics, values and service; a curriculum that balances job-related knowledge with a liberal arts foundation; and a caring environment with small classes.