II 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1389 

To authorize the National Science Foundation to establish a Climate Change 

Education Program. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 14, 2007 

Mr. OBAMA (for himself, Ms. SNOWE, and Mr. BINGAMAN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 

Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To authorize the National Science Foundation to establish 

a Climate Change Education Program. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Climate Change Edu5 cation Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 

8 (1) greenhouse gases are accumulating in the 

9 atmosphere, causing global temperatures to rise at a 

10 rate that poses a significant threat to the economy 


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1 and security of the United States, to public health 

2 and welfare, and to the global environment; 

3 (2) there is scientific consensus that human ac4 tivities are the major cause of atmospheric green5 house gas accumulation; 

6 (3) mandatory steps will be required to slow or 

7 stop the accumulation of atmospheric greenhouse 

8 gases; 

9 (4) atmospheric greenhouse gases can be sig10 nificantly reduced through conservation, by shifting 

11 to renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, 

12 tidal, and geothermal, and by increasing the effi13 ciency of buildings, including domiciles, and trans14 portation, and by advances in technology; 

15 (5) providing clear information about global 

16 warming, in a variety of forms, can increase under17 standing and encourage individuals and communities 

18 to take action; 

19 (6) implementation of measures that promote 

20 energy efficiency, conservation, and renewable en21 ergy will greatly reduce human impact on the envi22 ronment; and 

23 (7) informing people of new technologies and 

24 programs as they become available will ensure maxVerDate Aug 31 2005 03:23 May 15, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1389.IS S1389

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1 imum understanding and maximum impact of those 

2 measures. 

3 SEC. 3. CLIMATE CHANGE EDUCATION PROGRAM. 

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Director of the National 

5 Science Foundation shall establish a Climate Change Edu6 cation Program to— 

7 (1) broaden the understanding of climate 

8 change, possible long and short-term consequences, 

9 and potential solutions; 

10 (2) apply the latest scientific and technological 

11 discoveries to provide formal and informal learning 

12 opportunities to people of all ages, including those of 

13 diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds; and 

14 (3) emphasize actionable information to help 

15 people understand and to promote implementation of 

16 new technologies, programs, and incentives related 

17 to energy conservation, renewable energy, and green18 house gas reduction. 

19 (b) PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—The Climate Change 

20 Education Program shall include— 

21 (1) a national information campaign to dissemi22 nate information on and promote implementation of 

23 the new technologies, programs, and incentives de24 scribed in subsection (a)(3); and 


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1 (2) a competitive grant program to provide 

2 grants to States, local municipalities, educational in3 stitutions, and other organizations to— 

4 (A) create informal education materials, 

5 exhibits, and multimedia presentations relevant 

6 to climate change and climate science; 

7 (B) develop climate science kindergarten 

8 through grade 12 curriculum and supple9 mentary educational materials; or 

10 (C) publish climate change and climate 

11 science information in print, electronic, and 

12 audio-visual forms. 

13 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 1 year 

14 after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually 

15 thereafter, the Director of the National Science Founda16 tion shall transmit to Congress a report that evaluates the 

17 scientific merits, educational effectiveness, and broader 

18 impacts of activities under this section. 

19 SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

20 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

21 this Act, such sums as may be necessary. 

Æ 


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