S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         1437
                              2015-2016 Regular Sessions
                                   I N  S E N A T E
                                   January 12, 2015
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  Sen.  PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
         printed to be committed to the Committee on Environmental Conservation
       AN ACT establishing the  New  York  state  environmental  sustainability
         education act
         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the  "New  York
    2  State Environmental Sustainability Education Act".
    3    S 2. Legislative findings. The legislature finds and declares that:
    4    1.  In  recognition  of  the  United  Nations  Decade of Education for
    5  Sustainable Development (2005-2014), as  declared  at  the  Johannesburg
    6  Summit of 2002, New York state deems it imperative to develop and imple-
    7  ment  an  educational  program  geared towards improving the capacity of
    8  people to address environmental issues in the 21st century.
    9    2. Our ability to fulfill our responsibility to equip New York's citi-
   10  zens with the required knowledge, skills, attitudes and values needed to
   11  create a sustainable future and enhance our quality of life  have  never
   12  been more critical.
   13    3.  More  than  any  other time in recent history, New York's citizens
   14  have the capacity to dramatically affect their natural environment,  and
   15  mitigate  and  possibly  reverse  our  society's  negative impact on our
   16  natural surroundings.
   17    4. New technologies and research have  availed  unparalleled  opportu-
   18  nities  for us to develop and protect resources in a manner that enables
   19  people to meet current needs, while also providing  that  future  gener-
   20  ations can meet future needs.
   21    5. To successfully confront these environmental concerns and sensitiv-
   22  ities,  we  must  put  forth a vision of education that seeks to empower
   23  people of all ages to assume responsibility for creating  a  sustainable
   24  future.
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD04887-02-5
       S. 1437                             2
    1    S  3.  Definitions.  For the purposes of this act, the following words
    2  shall have the following meanings:
    3    1. "Sustainability" shall mean development that meets the needs of the
    4  present  without  compromising the ability of future generations to meet
    5  their own needs. Development that occurs  in  such  a  way  ensures  the
    6  capacity of the natural environment to meet present and future needs.
    7    2.    "Education  for sustainability" (EFS) means to promote an under-
    8  standing of the interconnectedness of environment, economy and  society.
    9  EFS  links  this  understanding with inquiry and action to help students
   10  build a healthy future for their communities and  for  the  planet.  EFS
   11  fosters  the  ability to integrate scientific, economic and social know-
   12  ledge and makes education more pertinent to the changing world by moving
   13  beyond institutional boundaries of the  disciplines  and  their  content
   14  bias.  EFS  helps  students identify their role in local communities and
   15  suggests ways to get involved. EFS shall consist of  educational  activ-
   16  ities   and  training  activities  involving  elementary  and  secondary
   17  students (K-12), as such terms are defined in the education law  and  by
   18  environmental education personnel.
   19    S  4. Legislative directives and programs. 1. The department of educa-
   20  tion is hereby required to establish a model program to guide the devel-
   21  opment, implementation and evaluation of a  comprehensive  environmental
   22  sustainability education program to be made available to public schools,
   23  and assist them in developing curricula and training staff to adequately
   24  prepare  students  to  participate  as  active  and involved citizens in
   25  building a sustainable future.
   26    2. The program shall be developed by the department of  education,  in
   27  conjunction  with  the  department  of  environmental  conservation, and
   28  modeled to promote and enhance  an  understanding  of  the  concepts  of
   29  sustainability  and improve understanding of the natural and built envi-
   30  ronment, and the  relationships  between  humans  and  the  environment,
   31  including local and global aspects of environmental problems.
   32    3.  The  education  for sustainability program shall be constructed in
   33  line with the following principles:
   34    a. A program that fosters clear awareness of, and concern for, econom-
   35  ic, social, political and ecological interdependence in all  regions  of
   36  New York, the United States and the world.
   37    b.  One  that endorses an approach to teaching and learning that inte-
   38  grates the goals and benefits of conservation, social justice, renewable
   39  energy, cultural diversity and sustainable development into a vision for
   40  social improvement.
   41    c. One that ensures that students appreciate and respect the intrinsic
   42  value of the whole environment, and develop an ethic of personal respon-
   43  sibility and stewardship towards all aspects of the environment.
   44    d. One that encourages students to participate as active and  involved
   45  citizens in building a sustainable future.
   46    e.  One  that fosters appropriate applications of technology that help
   47  solve, not create, problems.
   48    4. The sustainability education program  shall  include,  but  not  be
   49  limited to, the following specific features:
   50    a.  The  program  shall be designed and tailored appropriately to suit
   51  all age groups covered by the K-12 state curriculum and  the  department
   52  shall design lesson plans and teaching strategies that are age appropri-
   53  ate.   The department of education shall reserve the right to include or
   54  omit certain specified program requirements (listed below in this subdi-
   55  vision) when tailoring the principles of sustainability to be taught  at
       S. 1437                             3
    1  each  grade level, depending on the suitability of the lesson's instruc-
    2  tion at each grade interval.
    3    b.  The program shall specifically enumerate the key topic/issue areas
    4  to be studied, and shall integrate environmental education for sustaina-
    5  bility issues and  topics  into  specific  key  learning  areas/subjects
    6  located  within  the broader curriculum framework such as creative arts,
    7  English, health  and  physical  education,  languages,  mathematics  and
    8  economics,  science and geography, history and studies of society, envi-
    9  ronment and  technology.  The  principles  of  sustainability  shall  be
   10  presented and integrated wherever appropriate.
   11    c.  The  program  shall  promote education for sustainable development
   12  'perspectives' across learning areas to include cross-curricular  units,
   13  complementary   teaching  across  several  subjects,  special  projects,
   14  performances, excursions, and visiting experts.  The  program  may  also
   15  provide  for  collaborative  projects  with  other  schools (locally and
   16  globally) to promote equity, inclusivity, and respect for all people.
   17    d. The program shall raise awareness of the  nature  and  function  of
   18  ecological,  social,  economic  and  political  systems and how they are
   19  interrelated in addressing environmental and sustainability issues.
   20    e. The program shall underscore  the  impact  that  people,  business,
   21  industry  and  government  have  on environments and how the environment
   22  shapes  human  activities,  with  particular  reference  to  unique  and
   23  distinctive  New York heritage traditions and settings, connecting past,
   24  present, and future perspectives and/or impacts.
   25    f. The program shall emphasize the role of cultural, socioeconomic and
   26  political systems in environmental decision-making.
   27    g. The program shall reinforce the value  of  innovative  technologies
   28  with  the  aim  to  produce  places, products and services in a way that
   29  reduces use of non-renewable resources, minimizes environmental  impact,
   30  relates  people with the natural environment, and conveys the importance
   31  of creating and maintaining a sustainable lifestyle.
   32    h. The program shall  include  assessment  strategies  that  emphasize
   33  problem-solving,  teamwork, decision-making, holistic thinking, clarify-
   34  ing and analyzing values and opportunities for action, in order to gauge
   35  and improve the effectiveness and relevance of the program.
   36    S 5. This act shall take effect immediately.