S. 4377 — Climate Change Education Act

This section states congressional findings on human-induced climate change and its mitigation through conservation, renewable energy, and efficiency measures; the role of education in encouraging action; public support for teaching climate change causes, consequences, and solutions; teachers' limited understanding of climate science consensus (30% of middle school and 45% of high school science teachers); the annual graduation of over 3.5 million U.S. students needing climate preparation; and NOAA's authority and expertise to expand its Environmental Literacy Program—established in 2005 with a less than 5% application funding rate in 2020—for climate education.

This section defines 10 terms for purposes of the Act: (1) climate change education, as nonformal and formal interdisciplinary learning at all age levels about climate change, adaptation, mitigation, resilience, justice, and their effects on U.S. environmental, energy, social, and economic systems; (2) climate justice, as fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, culture, national origin, or income in climate policies to ensure equal protection from climate change effects; (3) climate literacy, as competence or knowledge of climate change causes, impacts, and solutions; (4) environmental justice, as fair treatment and involvement of all people regardless of race, color, culture, national origin, or income in environmental laws, regulations, and policies for equal protection from hazards and access to agency actions; (5) environmental justice community, as a community with significant representation of communities of color, low-income communities, or Tribal and Indigenous communities experiencing or at risk of disproportionate health or environmental effects; (6) green economy, as an economy improving human well-being, economic performance, and equity by reducing environmental risks and scarcities; (7) institution of higher education, as defined in the Higher Education Act of 1965; (8) local educational agency and State educational agency, as defined in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965; (9) nonformal, as out-of-school educational programming by nonprofit organizations and public agencies; and (10) nonprofit organization, as a tax-exempt organization under the Internal Revenue Code.

This section directs the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to establish, not later than one year after enactment, a Climate Change Education Program within NOAA's Office of Education to (1) increase U.S. climate literacy by broadening understanding of climate change, including its short-term and long-term consequences, disproportionate impacts, and potential solutions; (2) apply NOAA's latest scientific and technological discoveries and assets to provide formal and nonformal learning opportunities for individuals of all ages, including those from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds; and (3) emphasize actionable information to promote new technologies, jobs, career training, programs, and incentives related to climate change, adaptation, mitigation, resilience, climate justice, and environmental justice.

This section directs the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), not later than one year after the date of enactment, to establish a program under the Climate Change Education Program to award grants to or enter cooperative agreements with (1) state educational agencies (in partnership with local educational agencies and local nonprofit organizations) and, subject to subsection (c), local educational agencies to develop and implement climate literacy plans for grades 4 through 12 (aligned with state standards and ensuring high school graduates achieve climate literacy) and related projects such as educator training, integration of climate concepts into standards and curricula, applied project-based learning, and career pathways in climate-related jobs; (2) institutions of higher education and networks thereof to develop applied climate research and deliver community services on local mitigation and adaptation (with priority to scalable, inclusive projects fostering long-term partnerships); (3) professional associations and academic societies to build capacity for continuing education in green economy fields; and (4) youth corps organizations for community-based climate mitigation and adaptation work with substantive educational components. The program requires NOAA to establish communities of practice for each recipient category to accelerate learning. NOAA may not award grants or enter cooperative agreements with local educational agencies under paragraph (1)(a) in any fiscal year unless appropriations for subsection (a) exceed $5 million that year. Amounts appropriated for subsection (a) are allocated (A) 50 percent to paragraph (1), (B) 30 percent to (2), (C) 10 percent to (3), and (D) 10 percent to (4), except if $5 million or less, then 60 percent to (1) and 40 percent to (2); 40 percent of amounts for paragraphs (2) and (4) must go to environmental justice communities. If appropriations for subsection (a) exceed $5 million in a fiscal year, each grant or cooperative agreement under paragraph (1) must provide a minimum of $1 million to the entity that year.

This section directs the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to submit to Congress, not later than two years after enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, a report evaluating the scientific merits, educational effectiveness, and broader effects of activities carried out under this Act.