by Stephanie Smith
April 24, 2015
A new voluntary education program aimed at increasing environmental literacy was introduced in Virginia on Wednesday.
The Virginia Environmental Literacy Challenge is intended to encourage educators to engage students with the natural world in new and creative ways, by highlighting those who excel in environmental literacy efforts. A series of lesson plans—from habitat construction to recycling projects—will accompany the challenge.
“We need to make sure that our students are graduating with the skills and knowledge they need to protect Virginia’s natural resources,” said Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe in a release. Governor McAuliffe signed the executive order creating the program.
In supporting the outdoor education and sustainability efforts of teachers, administrators and schools, the program will help achieve the environmental literacy goals of the new Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement, signed last year by the Chesapeake Executive Council, the top-level leadership entity for the Chesapeake Bay Program that Governor McAuliffe now chairs.
“Environmental literacy is an important part of the Chesapeake Bay [Watershed] Agreement,” said Molly Ward, Virginia Secretary of Natural Resources and Chair of the Chesapeake Bay Program’s Principals’ Staff Committee. “A systemic approach to environmental literacy will ensure that future generations are prepared to protect and conserve our natural resources.”