Smithsonian Education Conference Blog: Climate Change

Smithsonian Education's Online Conference on Climate Change - Encouraging Positive Action

Our second online conference, “Climate Change,” drew more than 3,700 participants in 82 countries and U.S. territories and in all 50 states. The three-day conference approached the subject from a myriad of Smithsonian disciplines, from wildlife management to paleontology to art history. Ten Smithsonian units took part, as well as such organizations as the National Science Foundation, GLOBE, and the Corporation for National and Community Service. The conference also served as a platform for encouraging positive action. Each day, during an afternoon “Response” session, presenters discussed such topics as student conservation and innovation. In addition, “Special Interest” presentations were devoted to portrayals of the environment in art, to service-learning opportunities around the nation, and to programs in which Smithsonian interns work with scientists on matters related to climate change.

Though the live event has passed, it’s not too late to see the show! All of the conference sessions are archived and closed-captioned. Share this information with your friends and join the conversation with Smithsonian scientists and staff through the discussion boards. Visit http://smithsonianeducation.org/climate.

We also encourage you to see how others are taking action by visiting http://blogactionday.org.

Looking for Dialogue but Finding Talk

I’m Jarrid Green, a former Smithsonian intern and recent college graduate from the University of Maryland. Now I am working with conference organizers at the Smithsonian Center for Education and Museum Studies to create dialogue with  an online community of individuals and groups interested in climate change research, but also broader topics such as virtual conferencing, STEM education, the Smithsonian, and others that the conference may raise.  I’m very interested in creating opportunities for students through community engagement, so I’m excited that part of my job here is writing for this new blog, to bring the perspective of a young person to the discussion about climate change.

My job also involves contacting online communities and connecting with them. For the most part, that project seems simple. As I search online I am discovering an increasingly strong usage of social networking tools by educators and a myriad of government agencies and other organizations. Searching for insight into communities of scientists, teachers, and students, I often stumble upon a platform for discussion, or should I say, talk.

There are some communities and blogs, for example, where a published post will generate commentary from followers and some who choose to comment upon the post agree or disagree with one or two people. The information may be republished in other blogs or by other parties, but it all seems to be done in such a very “flash-in-the-pan” way, meaning, overwhelmingly introductory, not processed, reflected upon, or transformed into better or more refined ideas in a way that often happens in person-to-person conversations. Where real conversation actually does occur, it seems to be largely unnoticed by subsequent writers.  Perhaps my conclusions are based on the specific task that I have before me and as a result, my perception is limited. However, I am more than open to someone pointing me in the right direction.