Statewide | Humans
Ocean Guardian School Program in Alaska: Inspiring marine stewardship in schools Presenter: Michelle Trifari , michelle.trifari@noaa.gov, Alaska Sea Grant; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Kim Raum-Suryan , kim.raum-suryan@noaa.gov, NOAA Fisheries Jamie Musbach , jamie.musbach@noaa.gov, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Barbara Lake , barb.lake@noaa.gov, NOAA Fisheries The Ocean Guardian School Program is managed by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA’s) Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS) as a commitment to the protection and conservation of local watersheds, the world’s ocean, and special ocean areas, like national marine sanctuaries. Schools commit to and implement a school- or community-based conservation project. Schools can take one of five project pathways, which include 1) 6 R’s – refuse, rethink, reduce, reuse, rot, recycle, 2) Creating schoolyard gardens; 3) Watershed restoration; 4) Reducing marine debris; and 5) Reducing energy use. During the 2018-2019 school year, the National Marine Fisheries Service Alaska Region partnered with ONMS and local schools to pilot this program in Juneau. Since then, the program has grown and expanded to other parts of the state. Thunder Mountain High School, Sayiék-Gastineau Community School, Floyd Dryden Middle School, Montessori Borealis, and Dimond High School all achieved their stewardship goals for the 2021-2022 school year and were recognized as NOAA Ocean Guardian Schools. During the school year, students learned about marine conservation, collected measurable data, and communicated their findings to their school and community. These participating schools reduced single-use plastics, conducted waste audits, collectively spent hundreds of hours cleaning up trash from their communities and beaches, and educated students, teachers, and the community about the impacts of marine debris on watersheds and oceans. Notably, Thunder Mountain High School students conducted a school-wide campaign on recycling education and diverted 15,000 pounds of waste from the landfill. Students attended school board meetings to promote a systematic recycling program for the district. Sayeik Gastineau diverted more than 3,700 pounds of food waste from the landfill by composting. Dimond High School started a school-wide recycling program, distributed reusable water bottles, and cleaned up hundreds of pounds of trash from the community. Six Alaskan schools are participating in the 2022-23 school year. To learn more about the program, see https://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/education/ ocean_guardian/ or contact us. Applications for the 2023-24 school year open in April. Inspiring marine stewardship in schools today will help project our oceans for the future.
Alaska Marine Science Symposium 2023 294
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