Tri-Agency Coordination: Challenges and Successes in Creating a Community of Practice among Climate Change Education Principal Investigators funded by NASA, NOAA, and NSF
Abstract
The effort needed for comprehensive climate change education is far greater than any one institution, education sector, or even federal agency can handle. Recognizing a need to synergistically combine efforts, NSF, NASA, and NOAA have created a collaborative community of their climate change education principal investigators (PIs) through tri-agency coordination. The goals of this tri-agency collaboration are to leverage existing resources, minimize duplicate efforts, and facilitate communication among this emergent community of scientists and educators. NASA, NOAA, and NSF work together to strategically coordinate and support a portfolio of projects focused on climate literacy and education in formal and informal learning environments. The activities of the tri-agency collaboration, including annual meetings for PIs, a catalog of the agencies collective investments in climate change education and the ongoing development of a nascent common evaluation framework, have created a strong national network for effectively engaging diverse audiences with the principles of climate literacy (see Eos Vol. 92, No. 24, 14 June 2011). Last year, after 3 years of active collaboration, similar programs underway at other U.S. Global Change Research Program agencies: the EPA, National Institutes for Environmental Health Sciences, and USDA, were engaged in the collaboration. And, in an attempt to understand the interests of the private sector in this arena, conversations have begun with private philanthropic organizations. This year, as many of the funded projects are maturing, the PI meeting will have a focus on bringing this community together to create a science-theme based tangible outcome that can move the field of climate change education forward. Additional outcomes from this PI meeting will be presented as well as the challenges that were encountered in bringing together institutions with diverse missions, and approaches developed to ensure all parties feel they're benefiting from the collaboration.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2013
- Bibcode:
- 2013AGUFMED13G..01S
- Keywords:
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- 0800 EDUCATION;
- 1600 GLOBAL CHANGE;
- 6300 POLICY SCIENCES