Midway Atoll as an Introduction to Papahanaumokuakea

Educators and community leaders discuss the importance of Midway Atoll as an educational outlet to describe the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument.

Earth Day - 40th Anniversary

8 Ways to Get Outside, Reduce Your Waste and Have Fun!

This year marks the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day (April 22nd). It’s a time to support the environment and this year’s theme of “a billion acts of green.” You don’t have to be an eco-guru to care about nature. Start with a few simple “green” activities, including spending more time outdoors to jump start your spring!

Get Outside

1. Help to get 100,000 kids outside – Join the Be Out There™ movement and sign the pledge to spend time outside with the kids in your life. Get started with the activities listed below and then find more at the Be Out There website.

2. Cultivate your child’s green thumb – Garden with your children and encourage them to lead upkeep of the plants.

3. Play good old-fashioned games – Get nostalgic with these 8 outdoor games you’ll love.

4. Watch for feathered friends in your yard – Then share your sightings and stories online.

Reduce Your Waste

5. Talk to your kids about climate change – Help your children understand global warming and build a foundation of skills that will allow them to appreciate nature. You can calculate your carbon footprint together.

6. Conserve energy at home – Turn off lights when you’re not using them, air dry your clothes, and use small appliances over larger ones.

7. Compost your kitchen scraps – It reduces waste and makes “liquid gold” nourishment for your garden or potted plants.

8. Walk, ride your bike or carpool to school or work – Consider alternative transportation to get where you need to go.

Get 'em Outside video

The No Child Left Inside Coalition has put together a video about the importance of getting students outside to learn. The video is also about celebrating environmental education and its impact on children's learning, health and leadership.

Visit http://www.nclicoalition.org to increase environmental education opportunities at your school.

"The Story of Stuff"

This video has been circulating around the internet for quite some time, but it is especially appropriate this month; Earth Month.  

Learn about where "stuff" comes from and where it goes after we throw it out... it's a lot more complicated than it seems.

Check it out!

Online EE Courses Available This Summer and Fall

Online Environmental Education Courses offered through the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point

Environmental Education and Training Partnership (EETAP) and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point offer four online courses for students and professionals in the field of environmental education.  

Registration deadline for Summer 2010 courses is  May 1st. For registration details, including tuition rates, visit: www.uwsp.edu/natres/eetap/index.aspx

Making EE Relevant for Culturally Diverse Audiences
This course is designed to provide participants with the basic knowledge and skills needed to make EE relevant to culturally diverse audiences. Through this course you will broaden your perspective of EE to encompass interests and issues of concern to culturally diverse audiences, assess barriers to participation among these audiences, and appraise the role and significance of building relationships and partnerships with members of an audience you intend to work with in the future. As part of this course you will adapt a component of your program to make it more relevant for a culturally diverse audience of your choice. 

Leadership Development in Natural Resources: Strategic Planning and Implementation
Learn how to develop successful strategic planning and implementation models, processes and techniques. Emphasis will be placed on managing the strategic planning process to build the capacity of organizations to provide effective environmental education programs. Course participants will also have an opportunity for individual consultation time with the course instructor to discuss specific issues/questions they might have regarding strategic planning. This new course has been designed for environmental educators, natural resource professionals and graduate students who are currently involved in a strategic planning process or may become involved in one in the future.

Fundamentals of Environmental Education
Gain a foundational knowledge of environmental education and learn how to incorporate quality EE into your instruction. Participants discuss the history and goals of EE, develop an understanding of the professional roles and instructional methods of environmental educators, and interact with other educators from across the country.

Applied Environmental Education Program Evaluation
Learn to evaluate environmental education and outreach programs by designing evaluation tools such as questionnaires, observation forms, and interview and focus group guides. This course was designed for environmental educators, natural resource professionals, and graduate students who can apply the tools they develop to a specific
education program or research study.

Certification
The Fundamentals of EE and the Applied EE Program Evaluation online courses have been designed to address the competencies for professional environmental educators identified by the North American Association for Environmental Education. To find out more information about how these courses can provide the professional development needed by those seeking certification, click here.

Course Structure 
All of EETAP's online courses are semi-synchronous. Semi-synchronous refers to the course structure, as each course is offered 100% online. Students start, end and progress through the course together.  However, there are no designated times that students must be logged into the course. There are specific deadlines on assignments within each section, but students are able to work on the assignments any time before the due dates.  

To register for summer 2010 courses please contact Jessica Tomaszewski: jtomasze@uwsp.edu or 715-346-3854.

A Teacher's Guide to Navigating Change - Updated Curriculum available now!

The NEW Teacher's Guide to Navigating Change- a standards based, grade 4-5 curriculum is now available!

Visit: www.hawaiianatolls.org/teachers/NavChange.php to download the entire curriculum.


The Teacher's Guide to Navigating Change is a five part, Hawaii DOE Standards (HCPS 3) aligned curriculum for grades 4-5. The guide includes five units that are designed to help students explore their relationships to the environment and ways that they can “navigate change” in their own communities.

The instructional activities focus on Hawaii DOE science, social studies, and language arts standards as well as Na Honua Mauli Ola, guidelines for culturally healthy and responsive learning environments in Hawaii that were develoed by the Native Hawaiian Education Council in partnership with the Ka Haka `Ula O Ke`elikolani, College of Hawaiian Language, UH-Hilo.

Volunteer Opportunities

This page will be updated as volunteer opportunity info becomes available. Stay tuned!

On Oahu:
What: Makiki Watershed Awareness Initiative needs volunteers to help clean up and care for Makiki stream.

When: Every last Saturday of the month from 9am to 2pm.
Join the Oahu Na Ala Hele Trails and Access Program and Hawaii Nature Center in removing invasive plants, building trails and bridges, planting native plants and working as a team to improve Makiki Valley. Click here for more info.

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Help keep Ka'ena beautiful!
Location: Ka'ena State Park
Groups: Friends of Ka'ena
Activities: Volunteer activities such as trash cleanups, vegetation restoration, cultural site protection, interpretation, and education. 
Contact: Josh Heimowitz, (808) 637-4615, friends@friendsofkaena.org
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Care for Kawai Nui marsh!
Location: Na Pohaku, Kawai Nui State Park Reserve
Groups: ‘Ahahui Malama I Ka Lokahi
Activities: Workdays for site maintenance, tours, educational groups, restoration of the cultural landscape.
Contact: Chuck Burrows, (808) 595-3922, chuckb@hawaii.rr.com

If you know of other volunteer opportunities, we'd love to hear about them. Leave a comment below!

Recovery Youth Conservation Corps Day of Service on Maui

On Monday, February 15th from 9:30 to 3:30, forty-five Recovery Youth Conservation Corps (RYCC) AmeriCorps members worked together during a day of service restoring Kanaha Pond on Maui.  Throughout the day, RYCC members removed invasive plants, planted native plants, and removed debris from the surrounding area. 

Click here to see the front page story in the Maui News!

Kanaha Pond is a 234-acre wetland adjacent to industrial buildings, commercial centers, and the airport in Kahului.  Despite these challenges, Kanaha pond is extremely productive and home to three endangered Hawaiian birds: Hawaiian coot ('alae ke'oke'o), Hawaiian stilt (ae'o), and Hawaiian duck (koloa maoli). 

Over 80 species of migratory shorebirds, waterbirds, and ducks frequent the pond. Native plants including makaloa and kaluha, species favored by Hawaiians for matmaking, are also found at Kanaha.

To find out more about the Youth Conservation Corps program and other ways to get involved, visit the DOFAW website here.

Celebrate World Wetlands Day - Saturday February 6th 2010

You are invited to a World Wetlands Day celebration 

in Kailua, Oahu on Saturday, February 6th 2010!

This event is free and open to the public, and this year, the festivities will take place in the covered parking structure at the Kailua Long's Drugstore. The day will begin at 8:30 am with pule and continue until 2:00pm.

Take a free guided tour of the Kawainui and Hamakua Marsh complex, browse interactive exhibits in the covered parking structure, listen to music by Hawaii Loa, or take a stroll through the marsh and experience the natural beauty of the wetlands right near Kailua town!
 
Several federally-listed endangered bird species live in Kawainui and Hamakua marshes.
While visiting, keep an eye out for the Hawaiian stilt; ae'o (pictured above), Hawaiian moorhen; 'alae 'ula (a black bird with a red shield above its beak), and Hawaiian coot; 'alae ke'oke'o (a black bird with a white shield and beak). Click the above links for more info and photos.

Did you know that Kawainui Marsh was designated a "Ramsar Wetland of International Importance" in 2005? To read more about what this means, visit the Ramsar webpage here.

Hope to see you in Kailua on Saturday, February 6th!

My Hawaii Story Project Writing Contest Now Open for Submissions

The following information comes from the Hawaii Conservation Alliance webpage:

For the past three years the My Hawai'i Story Project, a middle school environmental writing contest, has touched the lives of nearly 2,000 students throughout the state. The 25 poems, essays, and stories published in each year's anthology engage the reader with inspiring, thoughtful, and diverse narratives.   

Now entering its fourth year, this unique statewide outreach program has provided students the opportunity to develop their writing skills while also fostering environmental literacy in those who will be responsible for the future stewardship of these islands.

"My Hawai'i is a perfect venue for students to express their knowledge and pride in their homeland, the aina..."

"...Students write with an awareness and truth that paints vivid pictures in the minds of readers..."

"...As a teacher, I am thrilled to be able to provide a real life writing situation that interests my students."  -Marcia Huber, English Teacher Grades 7 & 8, Le Jardin Academy

Deadline for entries: March 11, 5 PM

Winners will be announced May 3

For more information about the 2010 My Hawai'i Story Project, including the online entry form and guidelines, please check out the My Hawai'i page on the Hawaii Conservation Alliance website.


This writing contest is sponsored by the Hawai'i Conservation Alliance and the Pacific Writers' Connection."

"Blue Oceans Day" at the Hawaii State Capital, January 13th, 2010

You are invited to come to the Hawaii State Capital building on January 13th for "Blue Oceans Day,” 11am-3pm on the 4th floor lanai.

Show your support for stronger federal protection of ocean, coast, estuary and Great Lake ecosystems by participating in Blue Oceans Day any way you can.

January 13th at the state capital, there will be door prizes, an "open-mic" for video messages to the president, and informational displays from organizations including: Conservation Council for Hawaii, Eyes on the Reef, Hanalei Watershed Hui, Hawaii Community Stewardship Network E Alu Pu, KAHEA: The Hawaiian Environmental Alliance, Lost Fish Coalition, Marine Conservation Biology Institute, Makai Watch, Malama Hanalei, Malama Haena, Malama Maunalua, Malama Waikiki, NOAA Coral Reefs and Fisheries Local Action Strategy, NOAA Protected Species, Reef Check, Sea Grant, and Surfrider Foundation.

This event is scheduled only weeks before the White House Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force delivers its final recommendations to President Obama.

Participants are encouraged to wear blue shirts and to gather on the capital 4th floor lanai at noon for a group photo to send to President Obama with the message "Malama Our Oceans!" The first 200 people to arrive at the capital will receive free blue shirts featuring cartoon characters Finley and Clawdia the Crab from Jim Toomey's nationally syndicated cartoon strip, "Sherman's Lagoon."

Finley and Clawdia the Crab from "Sherman's Lagoon" by Jim Toomey

Event organizers suggest other ways to get involved on January 13th: 

• Go to school or work in blue (like the Coast Guard) and explain to classmates or co-workers why you are wearing blue on January 13th.
•  Videotape yourself and your friends in blue, post it and send it to wearblueforoceans.org.
• Talk about wearing blue to Oprah, Ellen, Ed Begley, Laird Hamilton and Jack Johnson. 
• Spread the word through twitter, blogs, facebook, emails, action alerts, newsletters, and YouTube.
• Can you think of other ways you can show your support for our oceans?
  

For more about the national effort, visit the "Wear Blue For Oceans" website here.

Like the beach? Help clean it up on Saturday December 12!

The Friends of Kaena invite you to 
Malama Kaena...


By helping with a beach clean-up
Saturday December 12 2009
9am-12pm

Want to help? Meet at YMCA Camp Erdman  69-385 Farrington Hwy.

Come dressed to work outside in hot weather. Don't forget sunscreen and a hat!

Afterwards, join the Friends of Kaena board members for lunch, where they'll discuss plans to further malama Kaena.

The Hawaiian monk seal (Monachus schauinslandi)

can often be seen at the very end of Kaena Point. 

pōhinahina (vitex rotundifolia)
is one of the first plants to colonize coastal dunes, keeping the sand from blowing away. This hardy shrub bears handsome deep blue to purple blossoms that are a favorite of lei makers and growers of Hawaiian plants.
Pōhinahina is a native plant that grows at Kaena Point.

Time For An Environmental Pop Quiz!

Lessons from the Environment:
Test Your Environmental Knowledge!

An environmental awareness quiz, brought to you by the National Environmental Education Foundation. This quiz covers issues that have been discussed in the media. The questions are designed to illustrate how much accurate information people are getting from television, newspapers, magazines, and other sources. Write down your answers and compare them to the correct answers below.

1. There are many different kinds of animals and plants, and they live in many different types of environments. What is the word used to describe this idea? Is it:
a. Multiplicity
b. Biodiversity
c. Socio-economics
d. Evolution
e. Don't know

2. Carbon monoxide is a major contributor to air pollution in the U.S. Which of the following is the biggest source of carbon monoxide? Is it…
a. Factories and businesses
b. People breathing
c. Motor vehicles
d. Trees
e. Don't know

3. How is most of the electricity in the U.S. generated? Is it…
a. By burning oil, coal, and wood
b. With nuclear power
c. Through solar energy
d. At hydro-electric power plants
e. Don't know

4. What is the most common cause of pollution of streams, rivers, and oceans? Is it…
a. Dumping of garbage by cities
b. Surface water running off yards, city streets, paved lots, and farm fields
c. Trash washed into the ocean from beaches
d. Waste dumped by factories
e. Don't know

5. Which of the following is a renewable resource? Is it…
a. Oil
b. Iron ore
c. Trees
d. Coal
e. Don't know

6. Ozone forms a protective layer in the earth's upper atmosphere. What does ozone protect us from? Is it …
a. Acid rain
b. Global warming
c. Sudden changes in temperature
d. Harmful, cancer-causing sunlight
e. Don't know

7. Where does most of the garbage in the U.S. end up? Is it in…
a. Oceans
b. Incinerators
c. Recycling centers
d. Landfills
e. Don't know

8. What is the name of the primary federal agency that works to protect the environment? Is it the…
a. Environmental Protection Agency (the EPA)
b. Department of Health, Environment, and Safety (the DHES)
c. National Environmental Agency (the NEA)
d. Federal Pollution Control Agency (the FPCA)
e. Don't know

9. Which of the following household wastes is considered hazardous waste? Is it…
a. Plastic packaging
b. Glass
c. Batteries
d. Spoiled food
e. Don't know

10. What is the most common reason that an animal species becomes extinct? Is it because…
a. Pesticides are killing them
b. Their habitats are being destroyed by humans
c. There is too much hunting
d. There are climate changes that affect them
e. Don't know

11. Scientists have not determined the best solution for disposing of nuclear waste. In the U.S., what do we do with it now? Do we…
a. Use it as nuclear fuel
b. Sell it to other countries
c. Dump it in landfills
d. Store and monitor the waste
e. Don't know

12. What is the primary benefit of wetlands? Do they…
a. Promote flooding
b. Help clean the water before it enters lakes, streams, rivers, or oceans
c. Help keep the number of undesirable plants and animals low,
d. Provide good sites for landfills
e. Don't know

Click here to compare your responses to the responses of a random survey of Americans. Click here for a report card on Americans' environmental knowledge.

(Answers: 1. b, 2. c, 3. a, 4. b, 5. c 6. d, 7. d, 8. a, 9. c, 10. b, 11. d, 12.b)

Quiz, answers, and links from the National Environmental Education Foundation website.

October 24th - International Day of Climate Action

350 - The Most Important Number on the Planet?

"Scientists say that 350 parts per million CO2 in the atmosphere is the safe limit for humanity. To Learn more about 350, visit www.350.org."

From the 350.org website: "On October 24th, (the International Day of Climate Change) we need you to organize an action in the place where you live, something that will make that most important number visible to everyone. People in more than 1000 communities and 100 nations around the globe have already announced plans— school children planting 350 trees in Bangledesh, scientists hanging banners saying 350 on the statues on Easter Island, 350 scuba divers diving underwater at the Great Barrier Reef...  At each event, people will gather for a big group photo that somehow depicts 350--and upload that photo to the web 350.org.  As thousands of simultaneous actions take place around the world, we'll link all the pictures together electronically via the web--by the end of the day, we'll have a powerful visual petition linking together the entire planet that we can deliver to the media and world leaders."

Students at Kawainui Marsh in 2008.

Click here to see a map of "350" Actions in Hawaii. Currently there are TWENTY-THREE actions planned in the Hawaiian Islands. Find one near you!

The Kailua 350 event will be one of over 2,000 simultaneous events across the globe - Students are encouraged to meet at Kawainui Marsh on Saturday, where they will form the numbers 350 by standing together in the marsh (knee deep in water) wearing red or pink T-shirts for a photo opportunity. Organizers are looking for as many participants as possible: the more people that stand together, the greater the impact! Wouldn't it be great to have three hundred and fifty people making the numbers 350??

          The site within Kawainui marsh is called Na Pohaku o Hauwahine, and is about a mile in from the Pali/Kapa'a Road intersection. Students are asked to meet there at 9:00am to assemble for the photo shoot at 10:00am. For more about what to wear and what to bring, contact: Contact Chuck "Doc" Burrows (chuckb@hawaii.rr.com) to register for this important event. Read the press release here.

From the 350.org website: "Involve groups that you’re in—everything from your church, mosque or synagogue to your local bicycle group. People want to help, especially if they see the chance for something that might actually matter. This is even more important than changing your lightbulb—this is your chance to help change the way the whole world operates. October 24 comes six weeks before those crucial UN meetings in Copenhagen. It’s a great chance to take a stand—maybe the last great chance, given what the scientists tell us about the momentum of global warming.

Another 350 photo idea.

But it can only happen with the help of a global movement—and it's starting to bubble up everywhere. Farmers in Cameroon, students in China, even World Cup skiers have already helped spread the word about 350. Churches have rung their bells 350 times; Buddhist monks have formed a huge 350 with their bodies against the backdrop of Himalayas. 350 translates across every boundary of language and culture. It's clear and direct, cutting through the static and laying down a firm scientific line.

Kayakers in Portland Oregon.

This is like a final exam for human beings. Can we muster the courage, the commitment, and the creativity to set this earth on a steady course before it's too late? October 24 will be the joyful, powerful day when we prove it's possible." - www.350.org