Presentations

A recent Brookings Institute report calls for a new educational approach—the new green learning agenda—to educate and engage people through climate action projects in their homes, schools, and communities.  Place-based education is a useful strategy for this agenda and can help advance climate adaptation and resilience.

For example, presentations in this strand might focus on:  

• Helping learners understand the basics of climate science
• Communicating with young people—or helping them communicate with others—about climate change 
• Creating local awareness of the impacts of climate change
• Building climate resilience in schools and communities

Place-based education is a powerful way to explore and address ecological and social justice,  including topics such as democracy, diversity, interdependence, ecojustice, equity, inclusion, disability justice and rights, indigenous approaches to place-based education, and youth voice.

For example, presentations in this strand might focus on:  

• Fostering learners’ racial and cultural identities through place-based education 
• Using place-based education to address challenges facing impoverished or marginalized communities
• Creating access to place-based and outdoor experiences for people with disabilities
• Exploring the intersections of ecological and social justice in the context of place 

Effective place-based education often features certain elements, strategies, and tools that help engage learners with their peers, their places, and their communities.  

For example, presentations in this strand might focus on:  

• Recognizing or documenting the benefits of place-based education for students, schools, and communities
• Highlighting instructional strategies that support place-based education (e.g., using inquiry; encouraging students’ voice and choice)
• Developing school-community partnerships  
• Sharing ideas/processes for planning, implementing, and/or assessing place-based education efforts and projects