There were some dire predictions this week about the fate of the planet. Dr. Stephen Hawking gave a speech in Hong Kong regarding the possible catastrophies that could soon eliminate the human species. CNN resported that this will be a particularly devestating hurricane season as climate change begins to influence weather patterns all over the world. Then there are the fuel prices and the rising cost of electricity that force us to evaluate our dependence on manufactured energy.
Stressed out yet?
One way we can take charge is by gaining knowledge: only then can we make educated decisions about what can be done. The Digital Library for Earth System Education (DLESE) is a distributed community effort involving educators, students, and scientists working together to improve the quality, quantity, and efficiency of teaching and learning about the Earth system at all levels. The site features access to high-quality collections of educational resources, Earth data sets and imagery, support services to help educators and learners effectively create, use, and share educational resources and communication networks to facilitate interactions and collaborations across all dimensions of Earth system education.
Another interesting resource is Teaching Issues and Experiments in Ecology (TIEE). This is a a peer-reviewed web-based collection of ecological educational materials. TIEE is a resource for faculty who are looking for new ways to reach their students, or who want to learn more about teaching and learning.
And teaching and learning is some powerful stuff.
