VA No Child Left Inside Update
The VANCLI working group is in conversation with Pam Northam’s office and several of the Secretarial level offices to discuss moving environmental education forward in the state. Elevating the attention of these officials to what is already happening in the state and what the needs are to ensure that quality environmental education (EE) is available to students across the commonwealth is the priority. At present, a request for two state level positions to coordinate EE efforts is on the table. This is not included in the state budget at this time. Several organizations, including the VA Soil and Water Conservation Districts, have this in their legislative agenda for the upcoming sessions. Please let your delegate know that this is a priority for you.
One avenue being discussed is providing senior elected officials a list of various EE events happening next spring across the state so they can attend some of the events to see the wonderful work that is already being done and the positive impact this is having on our youth. We already have our SEAS event on the list. If you have events that you would like to highlight, please send the information to Elaine Tholen at Elaine@tholen.us. The event does not need to be large. We just want to highlight impactful work with students or teacher professional development. ...
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Save the Date for Student Environmental Action Showcase (SEAS) 2019!
Tuesday, April 23
Join us during Earth Week 2019 for our 9th SEAS event. The 2019 Showcase will be even bigger than before as we forge new partnerships and collaborations with efforts such as the National Wildlife Federation’s Young Reporters for the Environment and the Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District’s Envirothon. We are also expanding our program with the Audubon Naturalist Society to have students interact with elected officials and others in power in order to further the projects they are working on and to promote civic action.
We owe a huge thank you to the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia Environment Fund for already stepping up to partially fund SEAS this year. CFNV's support and continued support over the years from organizations such as the Fairfax County Federation of Teachers allows us to reach more and more students each year. We still need funds for 2019 so please consider making a donation at www.novaoutside.org or if you know of an organization we should reach out to please contact Kurt Moser at ecomoser@gmail.com.
Please note other exciting SEAS news!! We are changing the name of SEAS to the Student vs. the School Environmental Action Showcase to recognize the shift we are seeing in our region to even more student advocacy and voice. As our efforts have matured over the years, we are seeing our students stepping up to take on larger projects and projects that have community and civic value. In addition, we want to encourage after school clubs, scout troops and home school children to participate in SEAS. ...
Young Reporters for the Environment
Deadline: February 22, 2019
Students between the ages of 11 and 19 are invited to participate in the Young Reporters for the Environment (YRE) competition. YRE asks students to investigate environmental issues and propose solutions through journalism using strategies in writing, photography, and videography to tell their story. The deadline to apply for the 2019 competition is February 22, 2019.https://www.nwf.org/Eco-Schools-USA/About/Take-Action/Young-Reporters-for-the-Environment-USA ...
Virginia Association for Environmental Education (VAEE) Conference 2019
February 7 and 8, 2019
Mark your calendars now for the VAEE conference to be held February 7 and 8, 2019 at the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens in Richmond. Full information will be available on the VAEE website soon. There will be pre-conference workshops and many interesting breakout sessions. This is a nice chance to hear about programs from around the state.
The Environmental Educator Certification for VA will be kicked off at the conference. A 6-hour professional development course will be offered at the conference for the first cohort of professionals to go through this certification. The certification will require approximately 6 hours of online study, 28 hours of in-person classes, and 90 hours of self-directed learning and a capstone project. This work can be done over a 3-year period. The first cohort will be finalizing all the details as they go through the process. The VA certification will be recognized by the North American Association of Environmental Education (NAAEE). Currently only three other states have programs that are recognized by NAAEE. ...
