How do we ensure the future health of the Chesapeake Bay? Our bet is on people. People have the power to change behavior, enact policies and implement everyday practices that protect our natural resources. To empower people to get involved and promote the sustainability of their communities, we need intentional and systemic ways to build a stewardship ethic. How do we build that ethic? By starting early!
“The Trust has several environmental literacy programs,” shared Emily Stransky, Program Manager with the Chesapeake Bay Trust. “We want to give all students the opportunity to have meaningful outdoor environmental education experiences.”
ShoreRivers, a nonprofit on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, engages students on field trips to provide hands-on meaningful experiences with nature at an early age. The “Sturgeon Discovery” field trip is a favorite for staff, teachers and students. Third graders travel to the Oxford Cooperative Laboratory to learn about the fish firsthand.
“This program began seven years ago with a Chesapeake Bay Trust environmental education grant,” shared Suzanne Sullivan, Director of Education with ShoreRivers and a graduate of the Chesapeake Bay Trust Chesapeake Conservation & Climate Corps. “Seven years later, it’s still continuing in partnership with Talbot County Public Schools, Maryland Department of Natural Resources and our friends at NOAA.”
These field trips expose students to their natural surroundings, so they develop a genuine connection to the wildlife, plants and water that we all share a home with.
“If we are going to connect students meaningfully to the environment around them, it’s really important we bring them to places like the Chesapeake Bay and the Oxford Cooperative Lab where they can experience the science that is happening and see some of the critters that are really important here,” said Bart Merrick, Educator Coordinator with the NOAA Environmental Science Training Center.
“It’s amazing to give these kids something about the environment to love, and then they learn how to protect the environment as part of their action project, and that stays with them,” added Morgan Buchanan, Education Programs Coordinator with ShoreRivers and a graduate of the Chesapeake Bay Trust Chesapeake Conservation & Climate Corps. “It’s not just we need to do good for the environment. It’s we love this fish, and we want to do good for it!”
This is the power of exposing students to the environment around them. Students grow as stewards, using their experiences to take meaningful action.
“Environmental literacy for the Chesapeake Bay Trust is really an important aspect of the work that we do,” Emily explained. “The young adults and students and youth that we engage through our environmental literacy programs are going to become the next environmental and climate stewards.”
