Manomet will use NOAA funding to boost climate resilience and environmental stewardship in Brockton, Massachusetts, an incredibly diverse but impoverished city and designated Environmental Justice community with a rich history. Brockton is highly vulnerable to flooding, pollution, and water supply disruptions related to climate change. Brockton is also a city with a long history of resilience in the face of economic challenges and a thirst for empowerment and opportunity. Brockton schools were hard-hit by COVID-19, and are facing a critical need for support, resources, and academic enrichment. Manomet believes education is one of the best tools to create long-term change. By increasing access to nature, encouraging students to become environmental stewards through outdoor learning, and building climate resilience literacy, Manomet aims to empower the next generation of conservationists to help solve today’s complex challenges. In partnership with Wildlands Trust, Connecticut Sea Grant, and TERC, Manomet will: 1) develop environmental stewardship by creating outdoor learning spaces on school grounds and providing teachers with curricular tools and training for use; 2) empower elementary students and teachers through outdoor environmental education, engaging in stewardship action to build green infrastructure, and civic engagement, and; 3) build climate resilience literacy in elementary school children, teachers, and community members through education, civic engagement, and collaboration. Brockton Kids Lead the Way envisions elementary students and their teachers as community leaders and ambassadors for environmental stewardship, during a time of increased civic investment and interest across Brockton in green spaces, public health, and community resilience.

The American Meteorological Society (AMS) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) work together to share knowledge and information about weather and climate, ocean, and coasts with educators and students across the country. The goal of this effort is to build a scientifically informed and engaged society and a diverse STEM workforce prepared to respond to environmental hazards. AMS facilitates a national offering of the DataStreme Atmosphere and DataStreme Ocean courses and supports Project ATMOSPHERE leadership training workshops at the National Weather Service Training Center for in-service K-12 educators, with focus on those at schools with considerable numbers of students underrepresented in STEM. By 2023, about 2,100 educators will earn graduate credits through a partnership with California University of Pennsylvania and become confident Earth science educators. These educators are expected to impact more than 20,000 additional educators and several hundred thousand K-12 students.

The "Citizen Science, Civics, and Resilient Communities" (CSCRC) education project led by the Museum of Science, Boston in partnership with Arizona State University and Northeastern University will increase resilience to extreme weather and environmental hazards through citizen-created data, local knowledge, and community values. Building upon previous funding from NOAA in which a set of modules were created and used to engage participants in active learning and resilience planning about four natural hazards (heat waves, sea level rise, extreme precipitation, and drought), the museum and its partners will add participatory citizen science activities selected in close collaboration with resilience planners. This new and expanded project will involve diverse groups of participants at 28 U.S. science centers collecting, analyzing, and sharing data relevant to local resilience planners, learning about vulnerabilities through visualizations of geospatial data and deliberative problem-solving, sharing perspectives about resilience strategies and their societal and environmental trade-offs, formulating community resilience plans, and presenting findings and recommendations to resilience planners and publics. The project aims to formulate a theory of action that sustains engagement and increases environmental literacy among participants, contributes citizen-created data, knowledge, and values to resilience planning, and increases capacity among science centers for including publics in resilience planning and data collection.

WE STAY/Nos Quedamos, Inc. (NQ) is a leader in community-driven, sustainable development in Melrose Commons, a historically marginalized and disinvested community in the South Bronx, NY. Building on our 30-year history of organizing and advocacy for the preservation of open space, environmental health, and social justice, NQ’s NOAA Environmental Literacy Program will empower local youth leaders and organizers to educate and engage their peers, family members, and neighbors in preparation for the effective activation of three Climate Resiliency Hubs (blue/green infrastructure projects currently in development at local Melrose community garden sites). During disturbances, these Hubs will act as community-led crisis coordinating centers, providing access to freshwater and resources such as food, charging stations, and other necessities. In non-crisis times, the Hubs will be centers for community power-building, where residents gain the tools to advocate for long-term climate justice goals. This NOAA-funded program will develop the data, knowledge, talking points, and civic engagement roadmaps required to increase resident involvement in the effective implementation of the Climate Resiliency Hubs and, with support from our project partners at the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance, strengthen community activism and advocacy to ensure that the Hubs provide the greatest possible impact for the community. Our first objective is to increase NQ’s capacity through research and analysis. An Environmental Literacy Program Manager, Climate Resiliency Research Fellow, and 2 Environmental Literacy Youth Leaders will gather and analyze data to support the development and sustainability of NQ’s Climate Resiliency Hubs, to be used for city- and state-level advocacy around climate preparedness policy changes and climate-resilience related funding allocations. The program’s second objective is to improve environmental literacy in the South Bronx community and strengthen organizing and advocacy efforts. Through deep training, the Environmental Literacy Youth Leaders and NQ’s larger cohort of youth organizers will be prepared to conduct community education activities for Melrose residents on key environmental justice indicators and data points. The education content will be integrated into NQ’s roster of public events, such as garden walking tours, festivals, community discussions, etc. The program will conclude with a South Bronx Climate Resiliency Symposium to further galvanize residents and lay the groundwork for continued resilience planning and policy advocacy in the South Bronx. As a result of this program, NQ will build a more confident, engaged, and environmentally literate Melrose Commons that will champion climate resilience throughout the South Bronx.

Solar One and The Newark Office of Sustainability are launching the Newark Resilient Solar Initiative, which utilizes the construction and deployment of resilient solar systems as a catalyst for education—both in the classroom and in the most vulnerable communities in Newark. The Initiative responds to the need for high quality career and technical education and work-based learning opportunities in Newark Public Schools and community engagement around climate resilience for people in low-income, largely immigrant, and predominantly Black and Latino communities in Newark who are highly vulnerable to flooding and extreme heat. Resilient solar systems, including solar plus battery storage, build community resilience to climate hazards by enabling Newarkers to access electricity during a power outage. The systems will be housed at accessible locations such as community gardens and are built by up to 52 Newark high school interns who receive solar workforce training, strengthening their career readiness and leadership skills. Each resilient solar system is unveiled at a community engagement event that features NOAA assets to build collective environmental literacy, emergency preparedness, and social cohesion in alignment with local resilience goals—reaching up to 200 community members. In addition, The Initiative trains 9 teachers and 800 Newark Public School students in climate literacy and solar workforce training, which can jumpstart a lifelong career in renewable energy, a field with high income potential. The Initiative is guided by an advisory committee composed of community members, community-based organization partners, and environmental justice leaders.

Empowering Rural Youth for Community Climate Resilience in New York State is a three-year project led by The Wild Center in partnership with the Finger Lakes Institute at Hobart and William Smith College and the Alliance for Climate Education, which builds on the achievements of Convening Young Leaders for Climate Resilience, a project previously funded by NOAA. Today’s youth are deeply concerned about the impacts of climate change in their communities and increasingly demand positive action and a role in decision-making. The proposed collaboration will support the development of leadership skills for rural youth by creating programming that demonstrates best practices for students and teachers to engage and partner with local municipalities on climate resilience planning. The project will also increase awareness of the NY State Climate Smart Community (CSC) program, a national model. Over the next 3 years the project will: 1) Develop pathways for young people--specifically in rural areas--to effectively partner with decision-makers in their home communities through partnering with the NY State Climate Smart Community (CSC) program; 2) Increase climate literacy, education and action among high school students through place-based Youth Climate Summits and intensive Youth Climate Leadership Retreats; 3) Increase teacher comprehension and confidence to prioritize climate change education instruction and mentor students; and 4) Formalize the NY State Youth Climate Summit network by establishing a community of practice centered on sharing best practices and actions that align with NY State climate change adaptation and resilience planning. This project aligns with NY State’s climate resiliency planning by building on successful and current partnerships with the NY State Office of Climate Change, NY State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and NOAA’s Climate Program Office to connect project participants with cutting edge science, hazard assessments, and established community climate resilience programs. The project will serve 700-800 high school students, 60-80 high school teachers, and 60 youth leaders in New York State. The project is also designed to reach a much wider audience, including 30 rural decision-makers and community members, as well as 50-60 formal/informal educators. Project documentation includes a Guide to the NY State Climate Smart Community Program for Students and Educators, and a Youth and Local Government for Climate Resilience Workshop Module, which will benefit other Youth Climate Summits and be disseminated through the online toolkit and through the national network of youth climate summits. Additionally, the project will support a community of practice for informal and formal educators across NY State who are working on new and existing Youth Climate Summits to provide the opportunity to align with the CSC program, collaborate on best practices, and co-create strategies for engagement.

With a three-year $450,000 grant from NOAA, the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) and partners will implement Phase II of a climate and resilience education program, The Resilient Schools Consortium: Connecting Schools to Coastal Communities. Building on the previously funded Resilient Schools Consortium (RiSC) Program, (2016 - 2019), NWF will work with 200 students and 10 teachers from eight New York City Department of Education public schools. The students will adopt-a-shoreline in Coney Island, Brooklyn—a frontline community battered by Superstorm Sandy in 2012 and threatened by sea level rise, coastal erosion, and inequitable exposures to flooding. Through field trips to local beaches, community engagement events, dune plantings, and public art installations, this project will connect students—who live or attend school in the Coney Island area—to residents and community partners. Together, they will increase their awareness of future climate impacts and develop strategies for building climate resilience and equitable adaptation to sea level rise. The Phase 1 RiSC curriculum for grades 6-12, designed by NYC STEM teachers, will be streamlined into a one-year product focused on coastal hazards, natural and built solutions that increase ecological resilience, and civic participation. Adaptable by schools in other coastal communities, the curriculum will continue to offer a strong foundation in climate science. Complete with user-friendly slide decks, handouts, and direct links to NOAA resources and digital tools, it will guide teachers and students through project-based activities during the school year. Key program partners, New York Sea Grant, and American Littoral Society (ALS), and advisors from the Science and Resilience Institute at Jamaica Bay (SRIJB) will provide community science expertise and lead shoreline ecology field trips. An “Adopt-a-Shoreline Field Trip Guide” will help students monitor the shoreline. ALS will lead professional development workshops for teachers and dune-planting activities that will increase shoreline resilience. The Coney Island Beautification Project, a core community partner, will lead public engagement and outreach, and recruit residents with historical knowledge of local weather events for student interviews. Students will build sea level rise markers and install them in suitable public spaces. Culminating Open Houses will bring Coney Islanders together to view student work and provide a platform to discuss flood risks and solutions. Knology will evaluate the project’s impact.