Sec. 2. Findings
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Congress makes the following findings: The evidence for human-induced climate change is overwhelming and undeniable. According to the Fifth National Climate Assessment, atmospheric carbon can be significantly reduced through conservation, by shifting to renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, tidal, and geothermal, and by increasing the efficiency of buildings, including domiciles, and transportation. Providing clear information about climate change, in a variety of forms, can remove the fear and the sense of helplessness and encourage individuals and communities to take action.
Implementation of measures that promote energy efficiency, conservation, and renewable energy will greatly reduce human impacts on the environment. Informing people of new technologies and programs as they become available will ensure maximum understanding and maximum effect of those measures. More than 3,500,000 students graduate from high schools and colleges in the United States each year, armed with attitudes, skills, and knowledge about the climate that inform their actions.
The effect on the climate, positive or negative, of each of those 3,500,000 students lasts beyond a lifetime. Those students need to be prepared to implement changes in professional and personal practices, to support and help develop new technology and policy, and to address the coming social and economic challenges and opportunities arising from a changing climate. It has been demonstrated that the people of the United States overwhelmingly support teaching students about the causes, consequences, and potential solutions to climate change in all 50 States and more than 3,000 counties across the United States.
Only 30 percent of middle school science teachers and 45 percent of high school science teachers understand the extent of the scientific consensus on climate change. Section 4002(a) of the America COMPETES Act ( 33 U.S.C. 893a(a) ) requires the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to conduct, develop, support, promote, and coordinate formal and informal educational activities at all levels . The existing Environmental Literacy Program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration was established in 2005 by the Bush administration as a backbone to an agency effort to advance sound environmental education for children and adults.
Expanding the popular Environmental Literacy Program (less than 5 percent of applications in 2020 received funding) to include climate education for professional educators and students is within the established expertise of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and will effectively leverage critical resources for foundational learning and career preparation.
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