NOAA’s Office of Education (OEd) has issued a request for applications for projects designed to strengthen the public’s and/or K-12 students’ environmental literacy to improve community resilience to extreme weather events and environmental changes. Successful projects will advance NOAA’s mission and build the environmental literacy necessary for community resilience by focusing on geographic awareness and an understanding of Earth systems and the threats and vulnerabilities that are associated with a community’s location. Eligible applicants are limited to institutions of higher education; other nonprofits, including informal education institutions such as museums, zoos, and aquariums; K-12 public and independent schools and school systems; and state, local and Indian tribal governments in the United States. Proposed projects should be between two and five years in duration and have total budget requests of $250,000 to $500,000 for all years of the project.

What role does climate change play and how can you help your students understand this complex topic? Delaware and Maryland educators are invited to participate in an exciting professional development opportunity designed to help you bring climate change into the classroom. The 2015 MADE CLEAR Climate Science Academy will provide up-to-date science information, model lessons and activities, and practical experience as you prepare to introduce climate change to your students!

Learn about some of the take aways from the NOAA Chesapeake Bay office Citizen Science Workshop Series: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow, held at the NOAA Environmental Science Training Center in Oxford, MD. Learn about the growing field, and how you can apply it to your classroom, and how to sign up for the next workshop in the series.

The Atlanta-based Captain Planet Foundation was founded by Ted Turner in 1991 and now chaired by his daughter Laura Turner Seydel. The Foundation supports high-quality, hands-on environmental stewardship projects that have enabled more than 1.1M youth across the U.S. and around the world make significant environmental improvements to their schools or communities.The Captain Planet Foundation will fund as many projects as its annual resources allow, so apply for a small grant today!

The Chesapeake Bay Trust is proud to announce solicitations for Host Organizations for the 2015-16 Chesapeake Conservation Corps. This program pairs young adults with organizations that provide hands-on environmental, leadership, and technical training opportunities for a one-year term of service. Host Organizations can propose volunteer activites in a wide variety of conservation areas including community engagement and/or K-12 environmental education. Maybe a perfect fit for a environmental education center who may need some extra support for a project, and has an interest in training the next generation of environmental educators.

The Mid-Atlantic Marine Education Association would like to invite formal and non-formal educators from across the region to venture to beautiful Bald Head Island from February 28th-March 1st, 2015. What better place to immerse yourself in environmental education than an island that not only boasts pristine examples of salt marsh, beach, and maritime forest, but is also surrounded by a community that subscribes to sustainable living?

This winter the NOAA Environmental Science Training Center and our partners are offering two professional development workshops for environmental educators in the Chesapeake Bay region. Virginia Weather and Climate Workshop Series, and a Citizen Science Workshop Series. These workshops are designed to bring together experts in the field and environmental educators like yourselves.

Join the Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education (MAEOE) for their 30th annual conference in Ocean City, MD on Feb.5-8th, and meet up with others passionate about promoting environmental actions to improve the health of the schools and communities in which Maryland’s children learn and live. This year MAEOE is providing a multitude of professional development opportunites, and engaging workshops. So don’t miss out and register today!

NOAA’s Climate Steward Education Project (CSEP) provides formal and informal educators with sustained professional development, collaborative tools, and support to build a climate-literate public that is actively engaged in climate stewardship. CSEP also provides support for educators to execute climate stewardship (mitigation or adaptation) projects to increase understanding of climate science, and practical actions to reduce the impact of climate change. The project is part of NOAA’s portfolio of activities to strengthen ocean, climate, and atmospheric science education. Join Us For A Webinar On December 8, 2014 At 7:30 PM Eastern Time to learn more!

Guest Blogger Jennifer Chambers, author of Watershed Adventures of a Water Bottle, writes about Scout the waterbottles next adventure on the Chesapeake Bay with Trash Free Maryland and 5 Gyres. Learn about Scouts experence searching for his plastic peers, manuvering the mantra trawl, and pick up some tips on keeping the Bay trash free! For more from Jennifer check out her blog at http://blog.hikingalong.com/