The goal of this funding opportunity is for communities to have sufficient collective environmental literacy to take actions that build resilience to extreme weather and climate change in ways that contribute to community health, social cohesion, and socio-economic equity. These communities will be composed of children, youth, and adults who participate in formal and/or informal education experiences that develop their knowledge, skills, and confidence to: 1) reason about the ways that human and natural systems interact globally and locally, including the acknowledgement of disproportionately distributed vulnerabilities; 2) participate in civic processes; and 3) incorporate scientific information, cultural knowledge, and diverse community values. Efforts to build environmental literacy should ultimately aim to reduce risks from current and future environmental hazards through climate-smart and inclusive decision making and long-term stewardship of healthy ecosystems, all the while promoting a low-carbon economy.
