Earth Science Week Update, January 2024
Contest Winners from Earth Science Week 2023
AGI received over 300 entries to our 2023 Earth Science Week (ESW) Contests. Submissions were carefully considered in light of the ESW theme, “Geoscience Innovating for Earth and People,” in addition to the specific guidelines for each contest. The 2023 winners are:
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Photo Contest: Shamim Al-Noor of Gazipur, Bangladesh, won first place with “Golden Fiber Processing,” an image of people harvesting jute, a natural, eco-friendly fiber used in innovative ways to make many products. (See image above)
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Visual Arts Contest: Aydin Soner of Columbia, SC, won first place with a colorful depiction of how technology is used to study the Earth in innovative ways.
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Essay Contest: Donovan Fish of Guyton, GA, won first place with an explanation of remote sensing technologies as an innovation that is helping people to better understand Earth processes.
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Video Contest: Toby Leng of Manhasset, NY, won first place with their entry “Ferrofluid: Revolutionizing the Battle Against Plastic Pollution,” in which the dangers of microplastics and a possible clean up solution, ferrofluids, to reduce the microplastics in our oceans and other bodies of water.
Please visit the ESW Contest page to see the winning submissions as well as the finalists for each contest.
Earth Science Week 2024 Theme Announcement
The 2023 Earth Science Week celebration was a big success, and plans are already under way for Earth Science Week 2024 (October 13-19).
We are excited to share with you the 2024 theme, “Earth Science Everywhere”:
Geoscience knowledge, products, and applications can be found in all parts of our lives. The buildings we live in, the products we use, the roads we drive on, the vehicles that get us from place to place, and much more all depend on geoscience in multiple ways. Geoscience helps us understand Earth’s materials and the rapid or long-term changes that can affect many aspects of our lives and communities. By encouraging recognition of the roles the geosciences play across these settings, the theme “Earth Science Everywhere” will highlight connections across disciplines in STEM subjects, the humanities, and others. These connections can be used to help all people understand how geoscience relates to their interests, their communities and their futures.
As we plan for the 2024 celebration, we would like you to consider hosting or attending an event, in addition to helping us spread the word about our ESW Contests, Webinar Series, and Toolkit, which contains an array of educational resources.
Please email resources, events, and/or inquiries to info@earthsciweek.org
Celebrating Earth Science Week Year-Round
AGI has many resources to help you celebrate and learn more about earth science all year round. Check out the monthly activities created by our ESW partners for our 2023-2024 ESW Calendar:
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The January activity from The Geological Society of America is a hands-on way to get students thinking about construction materials and their impact on temperature.
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The February activity from the Minerals Education Coalition has students explore resources to understand mine safety and consider how innovations could further improve safety for people working in mines.
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The March activity from the American Association of Petroleum Geologists has students create maps from different perspectives to then consider how the use of drones is advancing and improving mapping techniques.
The calendar also highlights earth science related days and events, such as:
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January 28, 2024: International Reducing CO2 Emissions Day
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February 11, 2024: International Day of Women and Girls in Science
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March 20-23, 2024: The National Science Teaching Association’s (NSTA) National Conference in Denver, Colorado
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Come see AGI at NSTA! We have five presentations including hands-on workshops, a speed-sharing session, and a poster session in which we will be sharing our educational resources, as well as those created by some of our Earth Science Week partners: the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the U.S. Geological Survey, and the International Ocean Discovery Program.
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On Friday evening (March 22), the National Earth Science Teachers Association (NESTA) will hold their annual “Friends of NESTA Reception” to gather geoscience professionals and to present awards that honor the work of some of its members and geoscience educators, including AGI’s Edward C. Roy Jr. Award For Excellence in K-8 Earth Science Teaching.
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