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Student Resources

STUDENTS: Make sure to check the COMPETITION tab for project ideas and examples submitted by past winners!

National Organizations

Check out these national organizations to learn about environmental issues facing our nation and the world.

• Defenders of Wildlife
• Discover the Forest
• Environmental Education for Kids
• Environmental Organizations Directory
• Environmental Working Group
• Generation Genius – Intro to Climate Change
• Green Schoolyards America
• Kids Saving Energy – U.S. Department of Energy
• Leave No Trace
• NASA Climate Kids
• National Geographic for Kids
• National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
• National Park Trust
• National Wildlife Federation
• One Planet One Future
• Recycle City
• Understanding Climate Change
• United States Environmental Protection Agency
• US. Energy Information Administration
• U.S. Green Building Council
• Water Sense
• World Wildlife Fund 
  

New Jersey & Climate Change Resources

These websites will provide information about environmental issues in New Jersey with a focus on climate change.

• NJ Department of Environmental Protection
• Climate Reality Action Fund
• Sustainable Jersey Schools
• Climate Kids
• Kids Against Climate Change
• Skeptical Science

Colorado and Smart City Resources:

These websites will provide information about environmental issues in Colorado and the Smart City in Denver.

• Colorado Renewable Energy Society
• Audubon Society of Greater Denver
• Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
• City and County of Denver
• Colorado Smart Cities Alliance
• Denver Urban Gardens
• Smart Cities Connect Media and Research

YouTube Videos:

• Energy Conservation vs. Energy Efficiency
• Kids Academy – Saving Earth’s Resources | How to Conserve Natural Resources: Water, Air, and Land
• Mark Rober – This Robot Eats Trash
• Mark Rober – Using Drones to Plant 20,000,000 Trees
• MrBeast – I Cleaned the World’s Dirtiest Beach
• The Infographics Show – Removing 30,000,000 Pounds of Trash Will Actually Have This Impact
• WWF International – How To Save Our Planet

TED Talks

TED Talks are short, powerful talks that are designed to spread big ideas. Check out these talks related to environmental issues:

• TED Ed – Environmental Science
• TED Talks – The Disarming Case to Act Right Now on Climate Change
• TED Talks – Sustainability by Design
• TED Talks – The End of Oil? 
• TED Talks – How Pollution is Changing the Oceans 
• TED Talks – Can Clouds Buy Us More Time to Solve Climate Change?

Books & Magazines

Want to read more about environmental issues? These informational texts and fiction books are a great place to start.

Informational Texts

• It’s Getting Hot in Here: The Past, Present, and Future of Climate Change by Bridget Heos
• Plants Vs. Meats: The Health, History, and Ethics of What We Eat by Meredith Sayles Hughes
• The Story of Seeds: From Mendels Garden to your Plate, and How There’s More of Less to Eat Around the World by Nancy F. Castaldo
• Eyes Wide Open: Going Behind the Environmental Headlines by Paul Fleischman
• Unstoppable: Harnessing Science to Change the World by Bill Nye
• Climate Changed: A Personal Journey Through the Science by Philippe Squarzoni
• Moonbird: A Year on the Wind With the Great Survivor B95 by Phillip M. Hoose
• World Without Fish: How Could We Let This Happen? by Mark Kurlansky
• We Are the Weather Makers: The History of Climate Change by Sally M. Walker
• The Green Teen: The Eco-friendly Teens Guide to Saving the Planet by Jenn Savedge

Fiction

• Fuzzy Mud by Louis Sachar
• Threatened by Eliot Schrefer
• The Story of Owen: Dragon Slayer of Trondheim by E. K. Johnston
• Skink No Surrender by Carl Hiaasen
• Endangered by Eliot Schrefer
• Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi
• Wolves, Boys, & Other Things That Might Kill Me by Kristen Chandler
• Empty by Suzanne Weyn
• The Carbon Diaries 2015 by Saci Lloyd
• The Law of Ueki by Tsubasa Fukuchi
• Boys, Bears, and A Serious Pair of Hiking Boots by Abby McDonald
• The Wild Robot by Peter Brown

Key Vocabulary

As you define an environmental issue, create actions to help solve the issue, apply actions in your community and evaluate the results, there will be key vocabulary terms with which you may want to be familiar. Use the list below as a resource.

(HOT TIP: When you are exploring various resources, be sure to stop and look up the definitions of words that are unfamiliar to you. This will help you to better understand what you are reading, viewing and hearing.)

BIODIVERSITY

The variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat or ecosystem.

BIOSPHERE

A narrow zone of the earth where land, water, and air interact with each other to support life.

CONSERVATION

The protection and preservation of natural environments and resources.

ECOSYSTEM

The complex system of relationships between living things and their
environment.

ENDANGERED SPECIES

Animals or plants in danger of becoming extinct or disappearing in the
near future.

ENERGY-EFFICIENT

Aable to use less energy (esp. of vehicles, appliances, buildings, etc.).

HYDROPONICS

The process of growing plants in sand, gravel, or liquid, with added nutrients
but without soil.

POLLUTANT

A substance or material that damages the natural environment.

PRESERVE

To keep something in its original state.

PROTECT

To keep from harm.

RECYCLE

To convert waste into reusable material.

RENEWABLE

Can be used without running out (i.e. energy sources like solar and
wind).

RENEWABLES

Forms of energy that can be replaced naturally, such as hydro-electricity,
solar energy and wind power. 

SUSTAINABILITY

Able to meet needs without compromising the ability of future generations
to meet their own needs. 

The resources listed on this STUDENT RESOURCES page are just a starting point. Be sure to use your creativity and problem solving skills to find additional resources that may be helpful.