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Please see EPA's Climate Change site for current information on climate change and global warming. EPA no longer updates EPA's Global Warming Site, but is maintaining this archive for historical purposes. Thank you for visiting the archive of EPA's Global Warming Site.
Interesting International Outreach Activities
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Here is a sampling of some interesting outreach initiatives that have been conducted or that are planned in and among various countries throughout the world.
Australia
The Global Warming Cool It  brochure and website describe methods for reducing household emissions.
The Airwatch program is a hands-on monitoring program for primary and secondary schools sponsored by Environment Australia. The program comes with a kit that allows participants to measure local air quality. Students measure and identify atmospheric particulates, and gases such as nitrogen dioxide and ozone. They also assess visual air quality and the meteorological factors that control the mixing and transport of pollutants. Using survey techniques students discover connections that link air quality to community behavior. Class activities allow students to investigate other pollutants such as carbon monoxide and dioxide and sulfur dioxide. Topical issues such as smoky vehicles, public transportation, car usage, wood heaters and others are also discussed. Airwatch enables students to explore the causes of air pollution and teaches them how (new link) they can help improve air quality. Teachers are sent a curriculum manual containing a host of experiments and activities that guides them through air monitoring and its related issues.
Canada
The Canadian Climate Change Education Program is a comprehensive package of instructional resources on climate change that will be used by Canadian secondary school teachers and students. The program will address the basic concepts of global climate change and the associated scientific, political, economic, social, national and international issues. It will encourage critical thinking by students to develop strategies to respond to climate change. It will be available in French and English and will include videos, transparencies and teacher's resource guide to a Web site and CDROM.
In Quebec, a series of two-minute Bilingual Television Clips on the various aspects of climate change including science and technology developments will be created for television networks, speciality cable and community stations. Over a three-year period, the clips are expected to reach eight million Canadians weekly.
To learn more about Canada's 150+ outreach initiatives, search its Climate Change Action Fund Outreach Program Database.
GLOBE
The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment Program, initiated in 1994 by former United States Vice President Al Gore, is a worldwide project under which students measure and monitor the quality of the environment under the supervision of specialized teachers. Observations are sent to the coordination office in Washington, DC where they are fed through a special computer and then disseminated to researchers worldwide. Altogether 10,000 schools in over 95 countries are participating in the GLOBE project. GLOBE helps to increase the environmental awareness of all individuals while increasing scientific understanding of the earth.
New Zealand
The New Zealand Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) has been involved in numerous information, training and promotion initiatives on smart energy use. For example, in March 2001, EECA exhibited green home ideas at a the Otago House and Garden Show. It featured guidance on energy efficient home design, insulation, solar systems, efficient heating and renewable energy options.
Norway
In 1990, the Norwegian Government established CICERO, the Center for International Climate and Environmental Research. Its purpose is two fold:
- To develop the research basis for initiatives in national and international policy.
- To keep politicians, government, business, educational systems, media, the public and the international community informed about the development of
international climate policy.
The center seeks to engage the public into the debate on climate issues. It publishes a newsletter four times a year that is circulated among governmental
ministries, the business sector, research institutions and schools. The newsletter focuses on international climate policy and research findings.
CICERO also arranges a Climate Forum that attracts representatives from industry as well as government and researchers. Information on climate change
is disseminated at the forum and the latest on international climate research and policies is discussed. Lastly, CICERO's website includes numerous articles on climate change science and policy and is updated daily with news items from around the world.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
The Ministry of Health and the Environment in conjunction with the Ministry of Education and the Lions Club South organized the 1999 Secondary Schools Public Speaking Competition. In the finals, participants were asked to speak on the impact of sea level rise on St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG). Four hundred people attended the event and it was broadcast to an estimated 60,000 viewers on local television and radio. The event served to heighten interest in climate change as evidenced by the increased requests for information once it was over.
Sweden
The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency produced a climate change study kit for students in grades 6-9 and high school as well as for educators. The kit, titled "Imagine the weather in 25 years…" contained a video, fact sheets and rules for a simulation game concerning negotiations for a protocol to the UNFCCC. By December of 1996, 700 study kits had been distributed to the country's 900 secondary schools.
United Kingdom
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has a Global Warming Education Site that contains online mini-lessons and activities for children ages 7-11 and 12-16 in addition to teacher resources and activities.
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