National Environmental Education Week will be held April 23rd-29th and is the nation’s largest annual celebration of environmental education. The event brings together educators, students, government agencies, businesses, communities, nonprofit organizations, and others to inspire environmental learning and encourage stewardship of our essential resources: land, air, and water.

Join us for a five-day professional learning adventure on the Chesapeake Bay or one of its tributaries in summer 2018. CBF is offering more than 30 courses that will explore the mountains of Virginia, the rivers of Pennsylvania, the islands of the Bay, and many places in between. Learn how to integrate the environment into your classroom and to help your students achieve environmental literacy success.

This inspiring article by the Washington Post shares how Environmental Literacy Standards have influenced green schools to affect positive change inside and outside the classroom through environmental education.

The Green Schools Conference & Expo (GSCE) is the only national event to bring together all the players involved in making green schools a reality: people who lead, operate, build and teach in U.S. schools. Two days of programming offer inspiring keynote speakers, informative workshops and breakout sessions and the chance to network with colleagues from across the country. This year, GSCE will be hosted in partnership with Rocky Mountain Green, a regional sustainability conference. Early bird registration ends March 2nd.

The Maryland Department Natural Resources invites counties and municipalities to apply for up to $750,000 in matching funds for public outdoor recreation acquisition and development projects through the National Park Service Land and Water Conservation Fund.

Growing Healthy Schools Month celebrates the health of students in public schools throughout the District. During the annual celebration, public schools collaborate with local community based organizations, District government agencies, farmers, athletes, and chefs to coordinate inspiring activities aimed at engaging students with topics concerning nutrition, the environment, and being active.

The National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF) 13th annual National Environmental Education Week (EE Week), sponsored by Samsung, is taking place April 23-29, 2017. Nationwide, environmental education events and projects will take place across the country in classrooms, after-school clubs, parks, aquariums, museums, and other formal and informal educational settings. Join formal and informal educators to celebrate achievements and support ongoing progress.

Jurisdictions in the Chesapeake Bay watershed recognize the importance of green, healthy, and sustainable schools to students, teachers, and the environment. The Green Schools National Network works with thought leaders to gather, synthesize, generate, and report evidence-based resources that include practical tools, news, and commentary for the green, healthy, and sustainable schools community. Their goals align with those in the Sustainable Schools Outcome under the 2014 Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement. The outcome aims to continually increase the number of schools in the region that reduce the impact on their buildings and grounds on their local watershed, environment and human health through best practices, including student-led protection and restoration projects.

The 2015-2016 Bay Barometer, generated by the Chesapeake Bay Program, gives a snapshot of the monitoring that has taken place to indicate the health of the Watershed and intended best management practices for protection and restoration moving forward.

Do you like catching fish while enjoying a beautiful view of Baltimore’s cityscape and learning about restoration activities currently being implemented in the Inner Harbor? On Friday, October 28th, I had the delight of accompanying Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) and the Baltimore Lab School on CBF’s Snow Goose workboat for a journey down the Patapsco River. CBF’s Baltimore Harbor Program offers kids a unique opportunity to see Baltimore’s Inner Harbor from a different viewpoint. From observing mechanisms that pick up trash to trawling for secret critters that roam the seafloor, we encountered both pleasant and disturbing sites.