Superintendant's Conference Day

Superintendent’s Conference Day
March 26, 2007
Smithtown Central School District

An Inconvenient Truth

The goal of this workshop is to provide faculty and staff of Smithtown with information about global warming. The news is filled with articles every day that link all kinds of environmental issues to global warming. As educators, it is critical that we be informed and have access to information that may help us in several ways. These are:

· A better understanding of the science behind global warming;
· A means of helping our students to understand the science;
· Ideas to empower both ourselves and our students to make a difference.

We did not have the time to view the entire movie. The following is a list of the chapters from the DVD showing you which chapters were skipped. I encourage you to view them!

1. The River


2. Continental Drift


3. Basic Science of Global Warming


4. Global Warming Cartoon


5. Professor Revelle


6. CO2 Measure Since 1958


7. Glaciers Recede


8. Ice Cores


9. CO2 Levels Back 650,000 Years


10. Albert’s Accident -- SKIPPED


11. Rising Temperatures


12. Hurricanes


13. 2000 Election -- SKIPPED


14. Precipitation and Evaporation


15. The Gore Farm -- SKIPPED


16. The Arctic


17. The Ocean Conveyor


18. Resistance to Change -- SKIPPED


19. Troubling Signs


20. Antarctica


21. Sea-Level Rise


22. China -- SKIPPED


23. Population Explosion


24. Old Habits + New Technology


25. Working Tobacco -- SKIPPED


26. Is There A Controversy


27. Science Fraud


28. Balancing the Economy and Environment


29. City by City


30. The Solutions are in our Hands


31. Are We Capable of Doing Great things?


32. Our Only Home
    

Global Warming in the News

Articles on global warming abound. New studies are producing more scientific evidence of global warming. There is discussion about the best course of action for both developed and developing countries, the US in particular, local government's response, and even the response of the business world.

Keeping up with all of this information can be overwhelming. This posting is intended to provide us with a means of sharing articles as we find them.

April 3, 2007, LA Times Justices push EPA to act on car emissions
The court ruling scolds the Bush administration for refusing to regulate greenhouse gases as air pollutants.

April 2, 2007, New York Times: Justices Rule Against Bush Administration on Emissions

April 2, 2007, Environmental Defense: Court Rules 5-4 in Massachusetts versus EPA
Supreme Court finds that the EPA can regulate heat-trapping pollution, putting pressure on Congress to act on global warming

Global Warming Resources

The following are some of the many links concerning global warming. Some of them provide background information while others may have lesson plans and suggestions for what you can do.

An Inconvenient Truth in the Classroom - Excellent lesson plans for the classroom, you need to register, but it is free.

Al Gore's Website - Up to date information and a daily journal.

http://www.climatecrisis.net/takeaction/

Natural Resources Defense Council Global Warming Site - Provides good background information.

10 Things You Can Do - These are from the movie, simple and basic.

EPA site on Climate Change

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) - This is a great source of information and excellent diagrams and graphics.

10 Ways to Go Green at Work - Sierra Club's ideas for greening our work places.

Carbonfund
You can calculate the amount of Carbon that you produce and determine the amount of money you need to donate in order to offset your carbon emissions.

Alliance for Climate Protection

Please add to these!

Welcome

This blog is dedicated for dialogue about the movie 'An Inconvenient Truth' as part of Smithtown Central School District's Superintendent Conference Day. It is part of the For Smithtown Teachers By Smithtown Teachers program. Please enjoy your day and the collaboration amongst your colleagues.