The Climate Change Education Act

Federal Policy

The Climate Change Education Act

The Climate Change Education Act

The Climate Change Education Act was initially created by then Senator Barack Obama and Representative Michael Honda in 2007. The Campaign for Environmental Literacy organized stakeholders to push for passage of this bill, and has led the subsequent efforts to reintroduce and pass the bill four times since then.

The Climate Change Education Act creates an Office of Climate Change Education at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and authorizes up to $40 million for that office to make the following four types of grants:

  1. Grants to State educational agencies, in partnership with local educational agencies and local nonprofit organizations, to implement state climate literacy plans for formal and informal climate change education for the purpose of at least one of the following:
    1. Relevant teacher training and professional development,
    2. Changes to relevant subject-area education standards to incorporate key climate principles and concepts
    3. Development of climate change education educational frameworks and model curricula
    4. Creation of applied learning project-based models
    5. Development of career and technical education career tracks for green collar jobs.
  2. Grants to individual colleges and universities as well as partnerships and networks of colleges and universities to support faculty and student teams to develop applied climate research and deliver direct services related to local climate mitigation and adaptation issues to local communities.
  3. Grants to Professional associations and academic disciplinary societies for projects that build capacity at the State and national levels for continuing education by practicing professionals and the general public in green economy fields.
  4. Grants to youth corps organizations to engage in community-based, coastal climate mitigation and adaptation work that includes a substantive educational component.

Read the 2024 bill: Senate Bill S.4177 | House Bill: H.R.7946

Read a short history of the bill.

Senate Sponsors:

Sponsor: Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA]

Senate Cosponsors

  • Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT]*             04/11/2024
  • Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ]*                       04/11/2024
  • Sen. Butler, Laphonza R. [D-CA]*              04/11/2024
  • Sen. Cardin, Benjamin L. [D-MD]*             04/11/2024
  • Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]*                    04/11/2024
  • Sen. Heinrich, Martin [D-NM]*                  04/11/2024
  • Sen. Hirono, Mazie K. [D-HI]*                     04/11/2024
  • Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN]*                    04/11/2024
  • Sen. Lujan, Ben Ray [D-NM]*                      04/11/2024
  • Sen. Menendez, Robert [D-NJ]*                 04/11/2024
  • Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR]*                           04/11/2024
  • Sen. Murphy, Christopher [D-CT]*            04/11/2024
  • Sen. Padilla, Alex [D-CA]*                             04/11/2024
  • Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT]*                     04/11/2024
  • Sen. Smith, Tina [D-MN]*                             04/11/2024
  • Sen. Stabenow, Debbie [D-MI]*                 04/11/2024
  • Sen. Van Hollen, Chris [D-MD]*                 04/11/2024
  • Sen. Warren, Elizabeth [D-MA]*                 04/11/2024
  • Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT]*                           04/11/2024
  • Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR]*                            04/11/2024

House Sponsors:

Sponsor: Rep. Dingell, Debbie [D-MI-12]

House Cosponsors

  • Castor, Kathy [D-FL14]
  • Blumenauer, Earl [D-OR3]
  • Brownley, Julia [D-CA26]
  • Huffman, Jared [D-CA2]
  • Morelle, Joseph [D-NY25]
  • Norton, Eleanor [D-DC] 
  • Panetta, Jimmy [D-CA19] 
  • Pingree, Chellie [D-ME1] 
  • Pressley, Ayanna [D-MA7]

Endorsing Organizations

2023/2024 Endorsing organizations

National Organizations:

Campaign for Environmental Literacy

US Green Building Council Center for Green Schools

National Wildlife Federation

American Federation of Teachers

 

Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education

Captain Planet Foundation

Friends of the Earth

CLEAN (Climate Literacy) Network

ecoAmerica

EarthDay.org

EarthEcho International

EcoRise

George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication

Green Schools National Network

Latino Outdoors

National Aquarium

National Association of Biology Teachers

National Center for Science Education

Project Learning Tree/Sustainable Forestry Initiative

Second Nature

SEI

Sierra Club

State Education and Environment Roundtable

The Wild Center

UndauntedK12

US Partnership for education for sustainable development

Veverka Family Foundation

Wild Rose Education

Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation

State Organizations

Alaska Natural Resources and Outdoor Education Association

Alliance for New Jersey Environmental Education

Arizona Association for Environmental Education

Arizona Wildlife Federation

Arkansas Environmental Education Association

Association for Environmental & Outdoor Education

California Academy of Sciences

Coalition Center for Environmental Sustainability, CC4ES

Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education

Connecticut Outdoor & Environmental Education Association (COEEA)

Environment Council of Rhode Island

Environmental Education Council of Ohio

Environmental Educators of North Carolina

Kansas Association for Conservation and Environmental Education (KACEE)

Kentucky Association For Environmental Education

Maine Environmental Education Association

Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education

Maryland Out of School Time Network

Massachusetts Audubon

Massachusetts Environmental Education Society

Mississippi Environmental Education Alliance (MEEA)

Missouri River Bird Observatory

Mystic Aquarium

Narragansett Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve

New Hampshire Environmental Educators

NH LAKES

NJ Audubon

Northeast Organic Farmers Association of Rhode Island

Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility

Pacific Education Institute

Physicians for Social Responsibility AZ Chapter

Regenerative Psychotherapy PLLC

Rhode Island Environmental Education Association

Roger Williams Park Zoo

Squam Lakes Natural Science Center

Sustainable Jersey

Texas Physicians for Social Responsibility

The Alaska Center Education Fund

Utah Society for Environmental Education

Wisconsin Association for Environmental Education

Wyoming Alliance for Environmental Education

2019/2020 Endorsing organizations

  • Alliance for Climate Education
  • Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education
  • Campaign for Environmental Literacy
  • EarthDay Network
  • National Center for Science Education
  • National Recreation and Park Association
  • National Science Teachers Association
  • National Wildlife Federation
  • North American Association for Environmental Education
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Brief History of the Climate Change Education Act

This bill was initiated by Congressman Michael Honda (D- CA15) in the House in early 2007 (110th Congress) as the Global Warming Education Act. Later in 2007, Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) introduced the same bill in the Senate. It intended to create a new program at the National Science Foundation to fund states, municipalities, educational institutions, and other organizations to create materials, develop K-12 science curriculum and, publish global warming and climate science information.

The bill was re-introduced in 2009 (111th Congress) by Representative Honda, but without a companion bill in the Senate. It was not reintroduced in the 112th Congress. Representative Honda reintroduced it again in 2009 (113th Congress), shifting the program from NSF to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and changing the name to the Climate Change Education Act. He again reintroduced it in 2015 (114th Congress).

Senator Edward Markey (D-MA) took over the Senate leadership of the bill in 2016 (114th Congress), and reintroduced it that year. Senator Markey also introduced the bill as an amendment to the Every Student Succeeds Act in 2015, which was narrowly defeated: 44 to 53.

In 2018, Representative Carol Shea-Porter took over the House leadership when Rep. Honda retired, and reintroduced the bill. Senator Markey reintroduced the bill in 2018 as well.