and the following Connecticut Science Centers

Over the past three years, Connecticut has made tremendous progress in addressing the issue of climate change. However, most of this action hascome from adults. The goal of the CT Solutions to Climate Change competition is to engage a geographically, economically and culturally diverse range of CT students in an issue that has profound significance for them, to facilitate their understanding of climate science and current and proposed solutions, and to support them in taking action and creating successful local solutions to global climate change.

To achieve this goal the Connecticut Science Center Collaborative worked to provide science education and resources for an annual competition for Connecticut young people to create local solutions to climate change. A pilot competition during 2006-07 laid the groundwork for institutionalizing an annual competition that will support implementation of the CT Climate Change Action Plan and engage future generations in this issue.

The Objectives for the contest's first year included:

· Student Engagement: Foster an understanding of the science of climate change and engage and empower students to create local solutions to climate change.

· Sound Science and Alignment with State Core Science Curriculum Framework: Provide students and teachers with educational content and resources on the science of climate change and real-life applications of “science and its role in society”[1] that fulfill 9^th grade and other appropriate CT Core Science standards. Both educational resources provided by the program and student's work on solutions projects will support standards.

· Community Engagement: Involve community members and organizations in supporting the competition and in participating/collaborating in student-created solutions projects; local science centers as hosts and resource and education providers; students as participants; community leaders as judges; families as resources, supporters and visitors to science centers; local and statewide media as they cover events and winners; and local businesses as sponsors, thereby increasing awareness of climate change solutions in local communities.

· Capacity Building for Science Centers: Build the capacity of Connecticut's science centers in the following ways:

o Build the professional capacity of science centers to provide climate change education and programming, and integrate climate change into mission and work.

o Help establish the CT Science Center Collaborative as a reliable and valuable resource for educating the public about climate change science and solutions.

· Solutions and Messaging: Gain insights into student-developed solutions to climate change and appropriate messaging for children on climate change awareness. Learn from students what solutions and messages work with their peer group. Empower young people as the providers of solutions and messengers; use their messages to reach their generation.

· Public Awareness: Generate media attention of climate change solutions.

 

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[1]Core Science Curriculum Framework: An Invitation for Students and Teachers to Explore Science and Its Role in Society. Content Standards and Expected Performances, Core Science for Grades 9 – 10. CT State Department of Education. Approved October 2004 (edited January 2005).