Project Duration
2022-2024
Location
Lake County, California
Background
Guided by priorities of Tribes, county and state agencies,
nonprofits, and community groups, this project is gathering,
developing, and sharing environmental education materials to
support youth and others in their own ongoing work to take good
care of Clear Lake and its watersheds. The materials gathered and
developed aim to be inclusive of the whole watershed, accessible
to educators lake-wide, and housed within the community long
term.
The project is gathering existing environmental education
programs and resources that are shared publicly by
community-based partners. Some of these community-based partners
are contributing their feedback and guidance, and we are seeking
input from local organizations at any time. It is also building
off of the
previous findings of the role of environmental education in
Clear Lake from the UC Davis Center for Regional Change.
This project is developing youth community and citizen science
(YCCS) materials to tie together the existing environmental
education programs and resources in Clear Lake we are gathering.
With YCCS, youth contribute to authentic science. We know from
research that YCCS projects can promote stewardship, student
learning, and youth agency, among many other benefits.
Along the way, the project is evaluating our products and
processes and looking for what outcomes are arising that may
inform similar future programming in the Clear Lake region.
This project is a collaboration among Clear Lake community
members, the UC
Davis Center for Regional Change, and the
Blue Ribbon Committee for the Rehabilitation of Clear Lake
(BRC).
This project partners with local communities in multiple
ways:
- Getting to know the community, building relationships,
listening, and asking questions.
- Building from guidance from Tribal Nations and people in ways
that respect Indigenous and local knowledges and sciences.
- Including the diversity of cultures in the region.
- Gathering publicly available information, such as from
websites, social media, news, and publications.
- Asking local organizations and individuals whether and how
they would like to participate.
How can I or my organization participate?
- Fill out
this form and let us know how you’d like to be involved.
- Contact
Sarah Angulo directly to be added to our list of
community members and organizations.
What will happen with the information this project is
gathering?
The information and input we are gathering from community members
is guiding the development of YCCS materials. We are also sharing
what we are finding out with community partners, the BRC and its
subcommittees, and other interested people such as those who are
funded by the BRC on related projects or are seeking to develop
new projects.
We are in the process of determining how and what, if any,
published research may arise from this work to share beyond the
shores of Clear Lake. We welcome input into how we might
collaboratively tell stories about the important learning and
community and citizen science happening at Clear Lake. The
wider world of people who are also caring for their home places
around the region, continent, and planet may want to learn along
with us.
Project Timeline
Year 1 (July 2022 – June 2023)
- Continue building relationships with local individuals,
groups, and organizations, based on earlier work by the Center
for Regional Change and the Blue Ribbon Committee.
- Make an inventory of local environmental literacy and
community and citizen science efforts and resources.
- Document key strengths and goals of environmental education
in the region.
- Draft the educational materials and resources through a
collaborative process, synthesizing the contributions from
multiple community sources plus adding in Youth Community and
Citizen Science components.
- Prepare for piloting the materials through an engagement
process with community partners.
- Collect and document community input (including from youth)
on the development of the educational materials in an ongoing
manner.
Year 2 (July 2023 – June 2024)
- Train a variety of interested, local educators who will pilot
the draft materials in non-formal settings and give us feedback.
(Stipends are available for this step.)
- Revise the materials based on community feedback, including
from youth.
- Share the materials and resources broadly in a format
allowing for updates over time. This includes ensuring that the
materials and resources are community-owned and have support for
maintaining them.
- Evaluate our resources and educational activities and develop
a final report about the project with recommendations for the BRC
and the community on a long-term environmental education and
community and citizen science strategy for Clear Lake.
Funders
California Natural Resources Agency
Partners
UC Davis Center for Regional Change, Blue Ribbon Committee for
the Rehabilitation of Clear Lake
Resources