carey.peter@cathednet.wa.edu.au
INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF PLANET EARTH 2007-2009 International Polar Year 2007-2008
The International Polar Year is a large scientific programme focused on the Arctic and the Antarctic from March 2007 to March 2009.
A concerted worldwide effort is underway to plan scientific and educational activities for the upcoming International Polar Year (IPY). Scheduled to officially begin in March 2007, IPY promises to advance our understanding of how the Earth's remote polar regions impact global climate systems, to bring about fundamental advances in many areas of science, and to fire the enthusiasm of young men and women for future careers in science and engineering. The vision for U.S. participation in IPY was formulated by the U.S. National Committee for IPY, established by the Polar Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Articulated in A Vision for the International Polar Year 2007-2008, the Committee identified seven recommendations for the U.S. science community and agencies to address during IPY. The U.S. IPY effort should:
The International Council for Science (ICSU) in conjunction with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) formally established an International Polar Year in 2007-2008, the 125th anniversary of the first polar year and the 50th anniversary of the International Geophysical Year. ICSU/WMO formed an International Planning Group to facilitate the development of an IPY program and to provide project integration where appropriate. To date, more 50 nations have made a commitment to support the IPY science goals. The IPY "year" actually will extend from March 1, 2007, until March 1, 2009, to allow researchers to conduct two annual observing cycles in each polar region, particularly in the isolated parts that are prohibitively cold and dark for roughly six months of the year. All U.S. federal agencies engaged in research and education will participate actively in IPY. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy has identified the National Science Foundation (NSF) as the lead federal agency for coordinating U.S. IPY activities. This site is designed to provide researchers, educators, the news media and the general public with information about federally supported IPY research, expeditions, resources, events and related activities. Reference Sites Australian Government Antarctic Centre http://www.aad.gov.au/default.asp?casid=21915 International Polar Year http://www.us-ipy.gov/index.cfm?id=abo Earth Sciences for Society - an International Year of Planet Earth International Year of Planet Earth International Day for Biological Diversity
This complements the designation of 2007 as the International Polar Year and coincides with UNEPÕS World Environment Day theme of Climate Change. http://www.biodiv.org/programmes/outreach/awareness/biodiv-day-2007.shtml 2006 International Year of Deserts and Desertification Imaging the International Year of Deserts and Desertification The United Nations General Assembly, at its 58th session, adopted resolution A/Res/58/211 which declares 2006 the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. The decision was taken to help prevent the exacerbation of desertification around the globe. The General Assembly invites all countries, international and civil society organizations to celebrate the Year 2006 and to support public awareness activities related to desertification and land degradation. The main objective of the year is to get the message across that desertification is a major threat to humanity, compounded by both climate change and loss of biological diversity. Land degradation affects one third of the planet's land surface and around one billion people in over a hundred countries. While fully addressing the growing threat that desertification represents for mankind, the year also seeks to celebrate the unique ecosystem and cultural diversity of deserts worldwide, therefore establishing a clear difference between the need to protect deserts as unique natural habitat and the fight against desertification as a global sustainable development challenge. As the main agency for the year, the UNCCD Secretariat is launching a unique logo for the year and inviting stakeholders to make use of it. The logo is intended to promote all awareness activities related to the year, as well as to represent the dual issues at stake in one single image: Deserts as natural ecosystems and the issue of desertification as a global problem.
With UNCCD, the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, the international community possesses a key instrument to deliver the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that must be met by 2015. The MDGs are the most comprehensive and ambitious strategy ever put forward to combat global poverty.
Deserts and Desertification - Curriculum Context
Students understand and appreciate the physical, biological and technological world and have the knowledge and skills to make decisions in relation to it (Overarching Learning Outcome 7).
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| 2005 The International Year of Physics The World Year of Physics 2005
The World Year of Physics 2005 plans to bring the excitement of physics to the public and inspire a new generation of scientists. Timed to coincide with the centennial celebration of Albert Einstein's "miraculous year," the World Year of Physics will be coming to YOU before you know it.
The World Year of Physics 2005
The General Assembly of United Nations:
2005 - International Year of Physics, 100th anniversary of Albert Einstein The resolution was approved by acclamation the 10th of June, 2004 http://www.wyp2005.org/internationalyear.html
The World Year of Physics 2005 plans to bring the excitement of physics to the public and inspire a new generation of scientists. Timed to coincide with the centennial celebration of Albert Einstein's "miraculous year," the World Year of Physics will be coming to YOU before you know it.
2005 The International Year of Microcredit
http://www.gdrc.org/icm/iym2005/ In 1998, proclaiming 2005 as the International Year of Microcredit (resolution 53/197 of 15 December), the General Assembly requested that the Year's observance be a special occasion for giving impetus to microcredit programmes throughout the world. The Assembly asked all those involved in poverty eradication to take additional steps to make available credit and related services for self-employment and income-generating activities to an increasing number of people living in poverty. Governments, NGOs, the private sector and the media were invited to highlight the role of microcredit in poverty eradication, its contribution to social development, and its positive impact on the lives of the poor.
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| Earth Sciences for Society - an International Year of Planet Earth 2005 - 2007
http://www.esfs.org/ | http://www.un.org/events/ International Year of Rice 2004 Almost 3,000 million people share the culture, traditions, and untapped potentials of rice. In remote villages of southeast Asia, farmers still compare a grain of rice to a "grain of gold". In modern Japan, people see rice as the very heart of their culture. Along the Senegal River in West Africa, villagers greet guests with specially prepared rice dishes. Wherever rice is grown - in the deltas and valleys of Asia's major rivers, on the slopes of the Himalayas, in Africa's tropical rainforests or on dry lands in the Middle East - rice enters people's lives as a daily food, at religious festivals and wedding parties, in paintings and in songs. Even in nations "new to rice", cultivation of the crop has changed landscapes, introduced new cuisine, and provided farmers with new sources of income. So, rice is a food - but more than a food. It is society, culture, politics, business, the beauty of the landscape, people in their communities. In short, rice is life. International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition The proclamation by the United Nations General Assembly of the year 2004 as International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition marks, on the one hand, the bicentenary of the proclamation of the first black state, Haiti, symbol of the struggle and resistance of slaves,Êand triumph of the principles of liberty, equality, dignity and the rights of the individual, and, on the other, the fraternal reunion of the peoples of African, the Americas, the Caribbean and Europe.The objectives of the Commemoration are the following:
2003 International Year Of Freshwater
SPLASH! the newsletter of the International Year of Freshwater 2003 Every few weeks throughout 2003, SPLASH! will bring you news and information related to the International Year of Freshwater. The newsletter seeks contributions from subscribers- ideas, pictures, events, news, no matter how modest. Remember, every little drop counts. The newsletter plans to include:
Contact wateryear2003@unesco.org to subscribe. More information at http://www.wateryear2003.org/ 'Education Corner'
The United Nations International Year Of Fresh Water The United Nations General Assembly in resolution 55/196 proclaimed the year 2003 as the International Year of Freshwater. The resolution, adopted on 20 December 2000, was initiated by the Government of Tajikistan and supported by 148 other countries. It encourages Governments, the United Nations system and all other actors to take advantage of the Year to increase awareness of the importance of sustainable freshwater use, management and protection. It also calls upon governments, national and international organizations, non-governmental organizations and the private sector to make voluntary contributions and to lend other forms of support to the Year. The International Year of Freshwater provides an opportunity to accelerate the implementation of the principles of integrated water resources management. The Year will be used as a platform for promoting existing activities and spearheading new initiatives in water resources at the international, regional and national levels. The International Year of Freshwater is expected to follow up on agreements reached at the World Summit on Sustainable Development (Johannesburg, September 2002), and should have an impact far beyond the year 2003. The publication by the United Nations system of the World Water Development Report will be a major focus of the Year's public information activities. Its first edition will be launched at the Third World Water Forum in Kyoto, Japan in March 2003. The public information and media strategy will include the elaboration of information materials, brochures and media kits. Educational material for schools, videotapes and documentaries, and an official Website for the Year are also being developed, with assistance from the private sector, NGOs and bilateral donors. http://www.un.org/events/water/ Water Conservation Webquests http://www.glencoe.com/sec/science/webquest/content/chesapeakwatershed.shtml
http://www.saskschools.ca/~ischool/tisdale/sc/water/ http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Hall/1303/water.htm http://www.42explore.com/water.htm Global Water Sampling Project http://www.k12science.org/curriculum/waterproj/ Students teamed up around the globe to test fresh water comparing the water quality of our local river, stream, lake or pond with other fresh water sources around the world. Years 9 - 12. Keep Australia Beautiful Week, 31 August - 6 September http://www.keepaustraliabeautiful.org.au/nat/02_program/kab_week.htm With the theme "Seven Steps to Help Keep Australia Beautiful", each day of Keep Australia Beautiful Week will focus on a different environmental issue: Healthy waterways (Sunday 31 August) Recycling (Monday 1 September) Chewing gum pollution (Tuesday 2 September) Animal faecal litter (Wednesday 3 September) Litter (Thursday 4 September) Energy conservation (Friday 5 September) Plastic bags (Saturday 6 September) The website suggests simple actions that Australians can take to modify their behaviour to lessen the impact of these issues and to make a positive contribution to the environment. Clean Up the World Weekend, 19-21 September http://www.cleanup.com.au/ An international campaign that empowers people worldwide to undertake environmental action. Activities are carried out all year round, with a focus on Clean Up the World Weekend 19-21 September 2003 Go Totally Wild with WWF Go Totally Wild with WWF encourages schools to conserve local biodiversity and educate their local community about wildlife conservation.
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