CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
CLEAN: The Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network supports educators in building climate literacy as outlined in the U.S. Climate Change Science Program framework, “Essential Principles of Climate Literacy” by providing a collection of educational resources that facilitate learning about climate issues. The CLEAN collection is a free online database of ~1,000 free, peer-reviewed, and ready-to-use educational resources for teaching elementary, middle, high school, and undergraduate students about climate and energy. The collection contains activities, demonstrations, experiments, visualizations, and videos—everything you need to create data-rich and authentic lessons on climate and energy. Climate and energy topics include the climate system, causes of climate change, measuring and modeling climate, impacts of climate change, human responses and solutions to climate change, energy use, mental health, environmental justice, and many more. Resources are rigorously reviewed for scientific accuracy and pedagogic relevancy, making the CLEAN collection of high enough quality to steward the NOAA Teaching Climate database.
This video and accompanying essay review the impacts of rising surface air …
This video and accompanying essay review the impacts of rising surface air temperatures and thawing permafrost on ecosystems, geology, and native populations in Alaska.
One of a suite of online climate interactive simulations, this Greenhouse Gas …
One of a suite of online climate interactive simulations, this Greenhouse Gas Simulator uses the bathtub model to demonstrate how atmospheric concentrations of CO2 will continue to rise unless they are lowered to match the amount of CO2 that can be removed through natural processes.
This climate model simulates the Earth's climate system by allowing users to …
This climate model simulates the Earth's climate system by allowing users to toggle different influences on climate (e.g. oceans, atmospheric gases) based on model version used.
This is Unit 1 of a larger module and centers on the …
This is Unit 1 of a larger module and centers on the fundamental concepts of major storms and community resilience. In this unit, students acquire a vocabulary related to storm systems and risk, engage in practical exercises on event probability and frequency, and complete written activities and oral presentations that reinforce these concepts, using two case studies as examples.
In this learning activity, students analyze an actual dataset of the influence …
In this learning activity, students analyze an actual dataset of the influence of temperature on tree growth. They use mathematical and statistical concepts like slope equations and lines of best fit to determine the relationship. They are then asked to make predictions about future tree growth under different greenhouse gas emissions, interpreting data from climate models to make these predictions.
This activity from the Department of Energy provides background information about solar …
This activity from the Department of Energy provides background information about solar ovens and instructions on building a simple model solar cooker.
In this video, Michael Mann and Peter Ramsdorf explore some of the …
In this video, Michael Mann and Peter Ramsdorf explore some of the information from the 2013 IPCC 5th report in light of public perceptions of climate science.
In this activity, students will learn the difference between sea ice and …
In this activity, students will learn the difference between sea ice and glaciers in relation to sea level rise. They will create and explore topographic maps as a means of studying sea level rise and how it will affect Alaska's coastline.
This is a very simple but effective lesson that engages students with …
This is a very simple but effective lesson that engages students with drawing a map of their local environment, then annotating their map with environmental changes they've observed. The activity taps into higher order thinking because students are synthesizing physical, cultural, environmental, and personal factors and expressing them in a graphical format.
The goal of this assignment is threefold: 1) Reflect on the connection between social and ecological parts of the earth system that we observe in our own lives, 2) Gain experience with mapping change and using maps for sharing both data and personal stories of climate change, and 3) Provide a starting point for gauging our collective experience thinking about climate change.
In this activity students use NASA satellite data to study changes in …
In this activity students use NASA satellite data to study changes in temperature and snow-ice coverage in the South Beaufort Sea, Alaska. They will then correlate the data with USGS ground tracking of polar bears and relate their findings to global change, sea ice changes, and polar bear migration and survival.
In this JAVA-based interactive modeling activity, students are introduced to the concepts …
In this JAVA-based interactive modeling activity, students are introduced to the concepts of mass balance, flow rates, and equilibrium using a simple water bucket model. Students can vary flow rate into the bucket, initial water level in the bucket, and residence time of water in the bucket. After running the model, the bucket's water level as a function of time is presented graphically and in tabular form.
In this activity, students use datasets from both the Northern and Southern …
In this activity, students use datasets from both the Northern and Southern hemispheres to observe seasonal and hemispheric differences in changes to atmospheric C02 release and uptake over time.
Interactive cards with gasses portrayed as super heroes are provided for Water …
Interactive cards with gasses portrayed as super heroes are provided for Water Vapor, Carbon Dioxide, Methane, Ozone, Nitrous Oxide, and Chlorofluorocarbons. On one side of the card is an explanation of how the gas is in its natural form and by clicking on the card, it flips to reveal the impact it has on the atmosphere.
This video is accompanied by supporting materials including background essay and discussion …
This video is accompanied by supporting materials including background essay and discussion questions. The focus is on changes happening to permafrost in the Arctic landscape, with Alaska Native peoples and Western scientists discussing both the causes of thawing and its impact on the ecosystem. The video shows the consequences of erosion, including mudslides and inland lakes being drained of water. An Inuit expresses his uncertainty about the ultimate effect this will have on his community and culture.
This video, from Yale Climate Connections, explores the 2014 melting of the …
This video, from Yale Climate Connections, explores the 2014 melting of the West Antarctic ice sheet that captured headlines. Interviews, animations, and news broadcasts explore what the melting meant for both the future of some of the Antarctic glaciers and sea level rise, and informs the viewer how seafloor terrain influences the speed of ice sheet melt.
Students will learn about the environmental justice movement from the late twentieth …
Students will learn about the environmental justice movement from the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries through reading about key movements in time.
In this activity from NOAA's Okeanos Explorer Education Materials Collection, learners investigate …
In this activity from NOAA's Okeanos Explorer Education Materials Collection, learners investigate how methane hydrates might have been involved with the Cambrian explosion.
This figure shows the various astronomic cycles that influence long-term global climate …
This figure shows the various astronomic cycles that influence long-term global climate cycles (Milankovitch cycles), plotted on the same time scale for easy comparison.
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