EMU Prof Gets NSF Grant For Climate Change Education

An Eastern Michigan University professor has been awarded a grant of nearly $1 million to promote educational partnerships in the Great Lakes region related to climate change.

Sandra Rutherford, a professor in the department of geography and geology, received the major award from the National Science Foundation for a project titled "Climate Change Education Partnership: The Great Lakes Climate Change Science and Education Systemic Network."

The goal of the project is to establish a coordinated national network of regionally  or thematically based partnerships devoted to increasing educational programs and resources on climate change and its impacts.

This project will integrate institutions and individuals engaged in climate science research and education within the Great Lakes region. The targeted audience includes STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) educators, student teachers, public and business stakeholders and the public.

Said Jack Kay, provost and executive vice president at EMU: "Congratulations to Dr. Rutherford and her team on this most impressive achievement, which will contribute substantially to education about climate change."

Said Rutherford: "Our project team is excited and looking forward to starting work."

By the end of the two-year grant period, investigators will have identified and activated a regional network of climate scientists, learning scientists, and educational researchers and practitioners. This network will develop a regional strategic plan to guide future practices in education and to communicate the broader impacts of climate scientists and learning scientists regionally and nationally.

Rutherford is the lead investigator on the grant, which involves a variety of collaborators and partners, including Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, the College of Exploration of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum, and a consulting faculty member from Ashland College.

The award will start Sept. 15, and last two years. The official amount of the grant is $993,908.

For more information go to The Climate Change Education Partnership – Great Lakes web site at http://greatlakesclimate.org/.

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