1998 Year of the Ocean Marine Education U.S.A.: An Overview 



National Weather Service does an outstanding job of meeting its informal marine education 

 responsibilities. 



The National Sea Grant College Program in NOAA's Oceanic and Atmospheric Research 

 Division supports informal education through its local programs in 30 coastal and Great Lake 

 states and Puerto Rico. In Fiscal Year 1997, Sea Grant funds six special informal education 

 projects for $486,000. Most of its activities in this area are carried out by marine educators and 

 marine advisors through local marine extension programs. The activities are diverse and range 

 from teacher workshops to boater education and safe handling of seafood. Some of the activities 

 are community-based efforts such as beach clean-ups. Others are national in scope such as 

 MarinaNet, which provides information and education to marina owners and operators, and the 

 Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point system, which provides Food and Drug 

 Administration-approved safe handling techniques to people in the seafood industry. Testimony 

 in Congress at the recent Sea Grant reauthorization hearings and a recent study by the National 

 Research Council endorse the success and high quality of these efforts. 



The National Marine Sanctuaries Program and the National Estuarine Research Reserves 

 System in NOAA's National Ocean Service also have informal marine education responsibilities. 

 One of their mandates is "resource protection through enhanced public awareness, understanding, 

 appreciation, and wise use of the coastal and marine environments." There are presently 12 

 sanctuaries and 22 estuarine reserves. Sanctuaries has been granted special authority to organize 

 "friends" groups to help support local sanctuaries. Sanctuaries and Reserves both have education 

 visitor centers for the public and school children. They provide supplemental school curricular 

 activities, sponsor nature walks, and publish informative newsletters. These activities are limited 

 in scope but highly successful and effective at their local sites. 



Coastal America is a partnership of representatives of eleven federal agencies including 

 NOAA, the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Army Corps of 

 Engineers, and the Department of the Interior. Their activity in informal marine education is to 

 designate Coastal Ecosystem Learning Centers at various aquaria and to provide appropriate 

 enrichment materials from each participating agency at the Centers. This is a new effort and only 

 five learning centers, such as at the New England Aquarium, are functioning. It shows great 

 potential for disseminating materials from diverse agencies. Also, Coastal America offers an 

 opportunity to coordinate informal marine education activities among the partnering agencies. 



The Smithsonian Institution has a long record of high quality informal education. Each of 

 the Smithsonian museums has its own education program. None of the museums is specifically 

 marine oriented, although the Museum of Natural History has many marine exhibits including 

 special displays, and a traveling exhibit and documentary movie for "1997, International Year of 

 the Coral Reef." Their outreach effort on coral reefs has reached millions of Americans during 

 the past year. Their magazine, The Smithsonian, sometimes carries marine-related articles and 

 has substantial public circulation. The Smithsonian also has another traveling exhibit called 

 "Project Ocean Planet Awareness." 



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