Take Action: Tell Congress you support NOAA’s Environmental Literacy Programming! This year, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA’s) Office of Education and Sustainable Development (OESD) is again in jeopardy of losing its funding for environmental literacy programming. Yet, the disheartening reality is that the ocean and atmospheric literacy gap is increasing—even at the very moment in time when we need it to be decreasing. As a recent national survey indicates, the American public has only a superficial awareness of the importance of the ocean and atmosphere to their daily lives, let alone its importance to all life on the planet.   For instance, nearly 75 percent mistakenly believe that forests—rather than oceans—are the major source of oxygen on the planet; and 40 percent are unaware of the essential role oceans play in regulating climate and atmosphere. Please take a quick moment to send your support for this important funding to your elected representatives. Let your Senators and Congressman know you support NOAA’s Environmental Literacy Program and that it should be fully funded at $12 million. Please feel free to add your own words to the message below!

September 02, 2010 Subject: As someone who cares deeply about environmental literacy, I am writing to respectfully request that you support funding for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA’s) Office of Education and Sustainable Development, including its Environmental Literacy Grants Program, in the amount of $12 million. In the two previous years, these funds have been vital to advancing ocean and atmospheric literacy in the United States, a major goal of both the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy Report and the President’s U.S. Ocean Action Plan. An interested, engaged public is needed to successfully address increasingly complex ocean- and coastal-related issues, balance the use and conservation of marine resources, and realize future benefits from the ocean. It is crucial to include this funding in the FY 2007 Commerce, Justice and Science appropriations bill so the OESD will be able to continue its work for another year. As one of only two federal grant-making programs identified specifically for environmental literacy, this funding is extremely important to our community and will enable us to establish and grow critical education programs. Thank you for your consideration of this request. We will add your signature from the information you provide.		First Name* Last Name* Email* Street* Street 2 City* State/Province* Select a state Alabama Alaska American Samoa Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware D.C. Florida Georgia Guam Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Northern Mariana Islands Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virgin Islands Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Armed Forces (the) Americas Armed Forces Europe Armed Forces Pacific Alberta British Columbia Manitoba Newfoundland New Brunswick Nova Scotia Northwest Territories Nunavut Ontario Prince Edward Island Quebec Saskatchewan Yukon Territory Other Zip/Postal Code* Send an Email Add me to the following list(s): Comprehensive Google