Legislation Document

WHEREAS, National Environmental Education Week is the nation’s largest celebration of environmental education; and

WHEREAS, during National Environmental Education Week educators, students, government agencies, businesses, communities, and nonprofits collaborate to inspire environmental learning and encourage good stewardship of our essential resources of land, air, and water; and

WHEREAS, the field of environmental education raises awareness of the issues impacting the environment on which we all depend, as well as actions we can take to conserve, protect, sustain, and improve it; and

WHEREAS, environmental education offers countless job and volunteer opportunities to engage with individuals and communities to prepare and educate all Americans to address critical environmental challenges of the future; and

WHEREAS, environmental organizations in the State of Delaware such as the Delaware Nature Society, Delaware Center for Inland Bays, the Delaware Chapter of the Sierra Club, the Delaware Audubon Society, and Delaware Invasive Species Council among many other organizations in Delaware play critical roles in educating Delawareans of all ages on environmental issues in Delaware; and

WHEREAS, the Delaware Nature Society offers numerous environmental education programming for primarily students of all ages through their various nature education centers throughout Delaware such as Ashland Nature Center and the DuPont Environmental Education Center, in school programming, summer camps, and field trip experiences connecting students to the beauty and importance of Delaware’s ecosystems; and

WHEREAS, the mission and goal of the Delaware Association for Environmental Education (DAEE) promotes environmental education and meaningful outdoor experiences to create positive community impacts that lead to the conservation and sustainability of Delaware's natural resources by connecting all Delawareans to nature and outdoor experiences; and

WHEREAS, the Delaware Association for Environmental Education (DAEE) provides educational resources for administrators, educators, and citizens on how and where to introduce students of all ages to environmental education and life-changing outdoor experiences that will connect them to nature and instill the importance of conservation; and

WHEREAS, in 2015 Governor Jack Markell and the Delaware Children in Nature partnership (composed of the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, the Delaware Department of Education, and environmental organization) released the Environmental Literacy Plan which defines the need for an environmentally literate community in Delaware, aims to get students and all Delawareans outside for meaningful environmental experiences, and establishes environmental literacy goals at home, work, and school for students and all Delawareans to learn and care about conservation, natural resources, ecosystems, and other environmental topics and issues in Delaware and around the world; and

WHEREAS, the Delaware General Assembly should take the steps to further enhance, promote, and work with environmental partners to promote environmental education to students and all Delawareans across the state to encourage a love of the outdoors and for all Delawareans to become environmental stewards.

NOW, THEREFORE:

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the 152nd General Assembly of the State of Delaware, the Senate concurring therein, that the legislature proclaims April 22 ^nd to 26 ^th , as “National Environmental Education Week” in the State of Delaware, and urges all Delawareans to take part in environmental education efforts all year long to understand how to conserve, protect, and sustain our important ecosystems around Delaware and the world.