Education Resources
Storm Surge offers climate change videos to local schools.
Storm Surge won a grant in 2019 from New England BioLabs to present programs in schools about climate change and its local impacts. Our group was prepared to engage students in Newburyport classrooms until the COVID-19 pandemic forced us to change our plans. The result was three reusable video presentations that merge climate science and local environmental concerns for use by educators and our community.
Climate Change, It’s Natural & It’s Human
This module shows how Earth’s natural greenhouse gases create climate and make Earth habitable for humans. The video explains how human-induced acceleration of climate warming was caused by increased burning of fossil fuels during the Industrial Revolution. The video ends with discussions about how we can help to reduce our own carbon dioxide emissions and slow the dramatic and dangerous warming effect that will occur if our current outputs continue unchecked. Local historic photos show how Newburyport’s industrial past contributed to global warming.
The Great Marsh, Past and Present
Climate change impacts on The Great Marsh along the Newburyport coastline are presented in two videos. The first, The Great Marsh, Part 1: Past and Present, shows how the marsh was formed following the last glacial retreat. It presents the marsh as an ecological system interacting with the humans, plants, birds and animals who use and experience it.
The Great Marsh, Our Future Together
The Great Marsh, Part 2: Our Future Together, discusses the role the Great Marsh will play for our community as the climate continues to change. After describing the impacts of climate change, including warming air and waters, rising seas, and increased storm frequency and intensity, we show how the Great Marsh may mitigate some of these impacts for our community. The Marsh will serve as a type of green infrastructure absorbing excess water and storing carbon. But unfortunately, the marsh itself is vulnerable to climate changes. The video ends with thoughts about how we can help the marsh.