ADDITIONAL CLIMATE CHANGE PROGRAMS TAKING PLACE IN VERMONT IN 2008

Climate education programs will be introduced at several science centers around the state of Vermont thanks to a one year grant from the Sustainable Communities Program of the Vermont Community Foundation.

The New England Science Center Collaborative received a grant to develop programs on climate change with ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center, Fairbanks Museum and Planetarium, Montshire Museum of Science, and the Vermont Institute of Natural Science. A particular goal is to develop citizen science projects and offer training programs on climate change that are relevant to their institutions.

NESCC will work with the participating science centers to develop an activity that visitors can do on the campuses of their facilities. These activities may be as simple as recording when fall foliage peaks, the first snow falls, maple sap starts to run, or specific species of migratory birds arrive that can be compared with similar observations in archival records. Most activities will be an extension of ongoing citizen science projects that the centers have been conducting for years.

In addition, this project will offer professional development opportunities for the staffs of the science centers to become more comfortable with the topic of climate change and how it is, or will be, affecting Vermont. Stay tuned for more information about the events and trainings that we are coordinating at these Vermont Centers.