Homer, Alaska, has been taking action to reduce climate change for almost a decade. As the ten-year anniversary of their first plan looms on the horizon, the community is engaging in conversations about adaptation.

In this activity, students analyze a graph of carbon dioxide concentrations at Mauna Loa Observatory and answer a series of questions based on the graph.

In this activity, students will examine the three main factors that disrupt corals. Students will use a Geographic Information System (GIS) tool to evaluate threats on coral reefs, explain how certain fishing practices, pollution, and climate change can damage coral ecosystems, and describe the predicted consequences for coral reefs.

In this problem-based learning (PBL) activity, students take on the role of a student research scientist and explore the role of solar energy in determining climate. Students conduct experiments to determine the role of albedo in surface warming by investigating the temperature of a variety of surfaces in the environment. The activity should be conducted on a sunny day. Materials required for the investigation include thermometers and paper cups. The lesson is supported by teacher notes, answer key, glossary and an appendix with information about using PBL in the classroom. This is the first of three activities in Investigating the Climate System: Energy, a Balancing Act.

In this unit, students engage in lessons where they develop some basic background knowledge about climate change drawing on research from scientists around the world. They will begin to develop key ideas that climate change is happening, we can observe it and it is a global problem. Students also begin to understand some of the lines of climate change evidence. More fundamentally, Unit 1 explores the relationship between climate and life, helping students explain the difference between weather and climate.

In this unit, students explore 150+ years of scientific work, an interdisciplinary body of knowledge that contributed to the discovery of global warming. Students will develop a qualitative and quantitative sense about how Earth’s global mean temperature has changed over the Industrial Era and its relationship global carbon dioxide levels.

Students explore how solar radiation, Earth's surface and oceans, and greenhouse gases interact to cause global warming. They can change variables to determine how much greenhouse gas emissions might need to fall to mitigate the temperature increase.

Climate scientists project that future climate conditions will result in increased risk of wildfire across much of the Southwest. Although fires are a natural part of Southern California landscapes, efforts by SDG&E and their partners may help minimize the impacts of future fires.

Property owners in New Jersey can check their vulnerability to sea level rise and storm surge using an interactive mapping tool—the NJ Flood Mapper. Here's how one restaurant owner used results from the tool in his long-term planning.

Students construct a model of a contour map and then use the model to study changes in water levels and land elevations to better understand the impact of sea level rise on a coastal river basin area.

In this lesson, students investigate how increased temperatures will hasten the melting of ice in the environment, contributing to a rise in sea level and subsequent flooding of coastal areas.

Students collect evidence to develop an argument that responds to the question What causes Greenland's ice to quake? Exploration begins by using Google Earth to examine the physical features of a Greenland's continental glacier. Next, students examine the spatial and temporal distribution of a set of Greenland icequakes that occurred between 1993 - 2010. Finally this data is compared to monthly and annual mean air temperatures in Greenland.

Students will describe how climate change is affecting sea ice, vegetation, and glaciers in the Arctic region, explain how changes in the Arctic climate can produce global impacts, and will be able to provide three examples of such impacts. Students will also explain how a given impact resulting from climate change may be considered ?positive? as well as ?negative?, and will be able to provide at least one example of each. Students will work in collaborative groups to research this issue and gather information to participate in a large-group discussion. In an optional extension activity, students create a photocube display with images of the Arctic region.

In this lesson, students gain climate literacy through exploration of common climate-change terms and calculate their own potential carbon dioxide contributions.

In this lesson, students will learn about the environmental, economic, and political issues surrounding global climate change policy.

This video discusses how the Arctic region can be both an early indicator of the climate of the rest of the Earth and a driver for weather patterns across the globe.

This multimedia resource, part of the NC Science Now series, describes how climatologists at the National Climatic Data Center in Asheville analyze weather data to explain the unusual winter of 2013-2014 and to forecast how a warming planet will affect climate in the future. The difference between weather and climate is discussed. Components of this resource include a video and a related blog article. Links to these components are provided on the page under the heading "UNC-TV Media."

This is a comprehensive encyclopedia entry that contains information about marine ecosystems, ocean zones, ocean currents, marine resources, and environmental issues associated with oceans. Text for this entry is appropriate for the middle and high school grade levels.