Smithsonian Science Education Center (SSEC)

🌏 Creating a more sustainable future begins with education! A new study by the Smithsonian and Gallup revealed that K-12 educators want to incorporate sustainability topics like clean water and biodiversity into their lessons but face obstacles. Learn how cultural institutions like the Smithsonian can help in our report "Educating for Sustainable Development: Opportunities for Progress in the U.S." To read the report, visit: https://lnkd.in/eKU5mAjB

⏳The deadline for the Climate Action Academy has been extended to August 4th at 11:59 PM ET! Apply: s.si.edu/Academy-CA

A new paper led by the Smithsonian Science Education Center, titled "The Network for Emergent Socio-Scientific Thinking (NESST): Collaboration for a shared transformative future through STEM Education," proposes a new type of impact network—an emergent network, housed at the Smithsonian Science Education Center. Using the lens of complexity theory and its concept of emergence, NESST can help individuals and organizations address the biggest global issues of our time as outlined by the UN Sustainable Development Goals. This paper describes the Smithsonian's Network for Emergent Socio-Scientific Thinking (NESST) as one example of an emergent network. Find our published paper in the link below and learn more about NESST here: ssec.si.edu/nesst

Space fans, meet Deadheads 💫💀 Or perhaps you’ve already met. While Dead & Company performed at the Sphere in Las Vegas, images inspired by nebulas and exploded stars captured by our Chandra X-ray Observatory lit up the largest spherical structure in the world. The idea was born after percussionist Mickey Hart both saw and heard the Chandra X-ray Observatory’s data translated into stunning visuals and mind-bending sounds through a process called sonification. At the Dead & Company’s concerts, Earthlings not only danced along to the music, but also to the dazzling view of scientific data from some of the highest-energy regions of our Universe! This year, we’re celebrating the 25th anniversary of Chandra’s deployment by Space Shuttle Columbia, where it just keeps truckin’ on, more than a third of the way to the Moon. Learn more: bit.ly/3Ws9s1g #Chandra25 #CosmicJourney

Free Professional Development from the Smithsonian: The Climate Action Academy is an in-depth virtual training for educators with students ages 11-18 worldwide on a transdisciplinary, hands-on approach to sustainable development education on climate issues. Taking place throughout August, in this training educators will:  🎨 Learn how a wide range of climate topics intersect with science, art, and sustainability, and investigate how your community communicates about climate  🔍 Gain an understanding of how to facilitate inclusive, student-led STEAM investigations and action-taking around complex global issues 📣 Hear from climate change experts 🌐 Develop an action plan for implementing the guide in their community and classroom context  🏆 Receive a professional development certificate Classroom teachers as well as informal educators are welcome! Apply by August 2nd at 11:59 PM ET: s.si.edu/Academy-CA

Educators, learn how to collaborate with your students to take climate action through systems thinking, climate data, and artistic expression! 🎨 Details: s.si.edu/Academy-CA Led by Smithsonian educators and featuring climate action experts, this free 12-hour virtual professional development academy is an in-depth training on the key activities and resources within the Smithsonian Science for Global Goals community research guide "Climate Action! How can we mitigate human impacts on the atmosphere?" By attending this training, educators will: - Learn how a wide range of climate topics intersect with science, art, and sustainability, and investigate how your community communicates about climate  - Gain an understanding of how to facilitate inclusive, student-led, STEAM investigations and action-taking around complex global issues - Develop an action plan for implementing the guide in your context  This virtual academy is open to classroom teachers, informal educators, and community members who work with students aged 11-18 worldwide. The academy will be held Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from August 6–15th from 11 AM– 1 PM ET, with an additional Academy reconvening on August 21st. Apply by Friday, August 2, 2024 at 11:59 PM! Learn more: s.si.edu/Academy-CA Apply: s.si.edu/CA-Academy-Form Browse the guide: ssec.si.edu/climate-action

Meet Tiffany, a high school student from Washington, D.C. who knows that if you want to go far, go together – even if you live over 6,000 miles apart! She worked with Hajir from Baghdad, Iraq to explore environmental justice issues in their communities. Together, they're exploring how their schools can build awareness about local sustainability issues as part of the Smithsonian Youth STEM Virtual Exchange, made possible by The Stevens Initiative at the Aspen Institute! Tiffany and Hajir developed their projects using the free Smithsonian Science for Global Goals community research guide "Environmental Justice! How can we create environments that are healthy for everyone?" for ages 11-18. Available in Arabic, Spanish, French, and French Canadian: https://lnkd.in/eTqmRPu4 Learn more about the Smithsonian Youth STEM Virtual Exchange: https://lnkd.in/dqSmSNVP #WorldClassConnection

Premiering today at 12:45 PM ET at the Smithsonian National Education Summit! Register to watch: https://lnkd.in/guYWJppM Event Description: What goes into creating an educational digital experience for youth? At the Smithsonian Science Education Center, our team of artists, developers, and designers start from the ground up to create fun and engaging educational games and simulations for kids of all ages to enhance the experience of discovery-based learning. In this session, you will explore how an idea for a digital experience gets started, how we solve problems to make an educational game fun for students, and how we incorporate STEAM into our learning goals. See the games featured in our flyer here: ssec.si.edu/game-center

Join us July 16th at the Smithsonian National Education Summit for a free virtual panel where three women in various STEM fields will come together to share their unique stories! From the medical, space, and climate resilience fields, they will share their career paths, challenges, and successes, and together will explore how to inspire future generations of women in STEM. Register for the Summit here: https://lnkd.in/guYWJppM 👩🔬 Stories of Women in STEM Tuesday, July 16, 2024 — 2-2:50 p.m. ET Featured SSEC Speaker: Amy D'Amico PhD, Division Director of Professional Services Check out our other sessions at the Smithsonian Education Summit: 🌏 Educating for Sustainable Development: Teachers' Perspectives Tuesday, July 16, 2024 — 1-1:50 p.m. ET Featured SSEC Speaker: Carol O'Donnell EdD, Douglas M. Lapp and Anne B. Keiser Director of the Smithsonian Science Education Center The Smithsonian Science Education Center and Gallup conducted a study of U.S. K-12 teachers and school administrators, and teachers of students in comparable grade levels in Brazil, Canada, France and India, to gauge attitudes toward, and demand for, education and resources related to sustainable development. In this session, you will learn about the major findings of this global survey and will receive free resources from the Smithsonian, NOAA, and the Afterschool Alliance to help educate students--both in school and after school--on sustainable development topics, including clean energy, biodiversity, climate action, and biotechnology. Let's all think globally but act locally! 📱 Think Digitally! Art, Design & Digital Experiences Wednesday, July 17, 2024 — Premieres at 12:45 p.m. ET Featured SSEC Speakers: Digital Team, Smithsonian Science Education Center What goes into creating an educational digital experience for youth? At the Smithsonian Science Education Center our team of artists, developers and designers start from the ground up to create fun and engaging educational games and simulations, for kids of all ages, to enhance the experience of discovery-based learning. In this session, you will explore how an idea for a digital experience gets started, how we solve problems to make an educational game fun for students, and how we incorporate STEAM into our learning goals.

How do you transform a garage into a pollinator garden in Baghdad, Iraq? Can you raise rainbow trout in a classroom in Midwest America? Just ask one of the nearly 200 American and Iraqi students who implemented these ingenious sustainability projects in their communities as part of this year's Smithsonian Youth STEM Exchange. Made possible by The Stevens Initiative at the Aspen Institute and the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the Smithsonian Youth STEM Exchange connects American and Iraqi youth to collaborate on projects that address environmental justice and biodiversity issues. Trained educators use the Smithsonian Science for Global Goals’ Environmental Justice! and Biodiversity! guides to give participants a framework for working with their international peers toward science-focused solutions for a more sustainable world. In partnership with the مركز فضاء العراق للتدريب وتطوير القدرات iraq space center in Baghdad, Iraq, and the Arab American National Museum (AANM) Michigan, United States, this virtual exchange contributes to a global network of young people and educators dedicated to taking action on the biggest global issues of our time. Learn more: s.si.edu/SSEC-Stevens #WorldClassConnection #VirtualExchange