VT Education and Environment Network upcoming events

Art, Engineering, Music and More for the Forest Classroom with North Branch Nature Center (27 Jul 2026)

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 04:00:00 GMT

ECO Institute — Nature Specials

At North Branch Nature Center

July 27 – 31, 2026
$1,300 ($1,750 with 3 graduate credits). Financial Support Available
12 – 20 students
For Elementary and Middle School educators and administrators
Instructors: Ash Kerby-Miller & Guests

For 15 years, North Branch Nature Center’s Educating Children Outdoors (ECO) program has embedded with local public schools to bring standards-based lessons to the fields, woodlots and city parks nearby. Together with classroom educators, our NBNC Teacher-Naturalists have designed and taught many lessons on ecology, physics, geography, math… and music, visual art, engineering, storytelling, cooking, crafting, and play! During this course we’ll focus on ECO lessons based in “Specials” while still tying in academic standards. Expect to teach literacy through an oral storytelling workshop, physics through natural instrument-making, and ecology through harvesting and cooking wild foods.

This course is designed to help homeroom teachers bring more art+ into their forest classroom. In our work teaching outdoors in local schools, we’ve also noticed that music, gym, and art teachers are often tapped to help with outdoor learning – a key goal of this course is to build skills to help translate the expertise of those instructors into outdoor learning. Throughout it all, we will learn, play, and create in perhaps our most fun week of summer professional development offerings.

Click here for more details and to register.

Resilient Coasts: Using Local Phenomena to Understand Climate Solutions with the Wade Institute for Sciences (28 Jul 2026)

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 12:30:00 GMT

Resilient Coasts: Using Local Phenomena to Understand Climate Solutions
A 3-Day Professional Development Institute for Grades 6-12 Educators

Dates: Tuesday, July 28th - Thursday, July 30th, 2026 (8:30 AM -3:30 PM ET)

Location: Crane Beach, The Trustees of Reservations (Ipswich, MA)

Collaborating Partner: The Trustees of Reservations
Cost: $375 per educator; $325 per educator if attending in a team of 3 or more educators

This multi-day summer Institute offers educators a place-based professional learning experience in coastal science and conservation at Crane Beach, combining hands-on fieldwork with collaboration alongside scientists. Through authentic data analysis and exploration of restoration projects, participants will gain tools and strategies to connect local environmental change to broader science concepts and classroom inquiry.

Learn more and register here: https://www.wadeinstitutema.org/2026-summer-professional-development-institutes-resilient-coasts-using-local-phenomena-to-understand-climate-solutions/

Starting the School Year with Nature as your Co-teacher (30 Jul 2026)

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 13:00:00 GMT

The first two months of school are the perfect time to establish a class culture that includes focused, nature-based learning. This workshop will kick off your outdoor planning by offering numerous strategies for including fresh-air learning during the school day.

Learn more and register here: https://harriscenter.org/events/starting-the-school-year-with-nature-as-your-co-teacher-2026

River and Watershed Science in the Wild At North Branch Nature Center (3 Aug 2026)

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 04:00:00 GMT

River and Watershed Science in the Wild

At North Branch Nature Center

August 3 – 7, 2026
$1300 ($1,750 with 3 graduate credits). Financial Support Available
12 – 20 students
For Middle and High School educators
Instructors: Sean Beckett & Guests

A week of great fun and learning in the river! This week-long exploration of Winooski Watershed starts in the verdant headwaters of the Winooski River in the Green Mountains, and works its way downstream, unpacking fundamental concepts in river science along the way. We’ll visit the old forests way up the Winooski’s North Branch to see where forest ecology and river health intersect. We’ll head downstream to meet a family of resident beavers to see how this species historically defined the flow of water across the Northeast. We’ll visit a brook catastrophically altered in 2023 to witness how streams are adjusting to our ever-increasing extreme rain events. And we’ll envision a path forward for our vulnerable towns and cities that have developed over the last three centuries right along our river channels and floodplains.

After a week in the watershed, teachers will be able to “read” a river, and interpret the pieces, patterns, and processes that comprise different parts of the stream system. This course is organized spatially—from upstream to downstream—as well as conceptually—the river “ABCs,” or Abiotic (fluvial geomorphology, geology, and hydrology), Biotic (aquatic and riparian ecology; fish and wildlife biology), and Cultural (human settlement history, stormwater management, and channel alterations). Teachers will finish the week prepared with ideas and activities to integrate these concepts in their own middle- and high-school classrooms.

Click here for more details and to register.

LENE x HEAT Heliophysics Professional Development for Educators (10 Aug 2026)

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 14:00:00 GMT

Learn new ways to teach Sun science using teacher-tested curricula.

Learning Ecosystems Northeast (LENE) is pleased to announce a professional development event coming up this summer. This event, held August 10 & 11 at and around Mount Washington Observatory (MWOBS), will give you the opportunity to learn more about the Sun-Earth system and how to share this knowledge with your learners.

At this event, MWOBS and educators from NASA HEAT will conduct workshops designed to engage you directly with Sun science in various forms. On Day 1 (held on the summit of Mount Washington, with transport provided), educational workshops are expected to center around weather, climate, and connections to the Sun. Day 2, held at MWOBS’s offices in North Conway, is expected to be a rapid progression through the Helio Club Study Unit. This collection is geared towards a middle school audience.

Overnight accommodations for those travelling 70miles or more will be provided between Day 1 and Day 2. Rooms will be double occupancy.

Meals will be provided during workshop hours. A $200 stipend will be available for those that attend the full workshop.

Day 1 address- 1 Mt Washington Auto Rd, Gorham, NH 03581

Day 2 address- 2779 White Mountain Highway, North Conway NH 03860

Please reach out to Keri Moskowitz with any questions- kmoskowitz@gmri.org

Click here to register!

Place-Based Education Resource Day at the Billings Farm and Museum! (10 Aug 2026)

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 14:00:00 GMT

Educators! Join us on Monday, August 10 from 10am-12pm for a Teacher Resource Day at Billings Farm & Museum. Staff from Billings Farm & Museum, Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park, and the Vermont Institute of Natural Science (VINS) will be available to collaborate with educators on developing engaging, curriculum-connected learning experiences, share educational resources and current program offerings, and discuss options for both on-site field trips and classroom visits throughout the school year. Come learn how we can partner to create memorable and impactful educational experiences for your students!

Teachers who attend the Resource Day will receive free admission to Billings Farm & Museum for the day. Children and families are welcome and will also receive free admission for the day. Childcare will be provided from 10-12. The first 20 teachers to RSVP will receive a $20 stipend to cover travel expenses, and there will be light refreshments and raffles. We hope to see you there! Please email Mollie at msurprenant@billingsfarm.org if you’d like to attend.

The Living Storyline: Ecosystems, Inquiry, & Real-World Science with Wade Institute for Science (11 Aug 2026)

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 12:30:00 GMT

Climate Education Collaborative Summit (24 Sep 2026)

Thu, 24 Sep 2026 04:00:00 GMT

The Climate Change Education Collaborative will convene its second summit at Shelburne Farms on September 24–25, 2026, bringing together educators, nonprofit leaders, community partners, youth advocates, and other stakeholders from across the region to strengthen climate education through connection, collaboration, and shared learning.

The Summit takes place on September 25, with an optional pre-Summit workshop, dinner, and lodging available on September 24. Participants will explore climate education best practices, policy and infrastructure supports, regional collaboration opportunities, and collective visions for the future of climate education in the Northeast.

VEEN is excited to join fellow Northeastern NAAEE Affiliate organizations at this year's gathering:

Connecticut Outdoor and Environmental Education Association
Maine Environmental Education Association
New Hampshire Environmental Educators
Rhode Island Environmental Education Association
Vermont Education and Environment Network

Registration is $50, with optional add-ons for the pre-Summit workshop, dinner, and lodging. Financial assistance is available.

Registration deadline: September 4, 2026

Learn more and Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/climate-education-collaborative-summit-tickets-1987822540730

NAAEE 2026 Conference & Research Symposium (6 Oct 2026)

Tue, 06 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Registration is now open for the NAAEE 2026 Conference (October 6–9) & Research Symposium (October 6–7), hosted by the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) in partnership with the Environmental Education Association of Oregon. In times of change, imagination matters. This year’s theme of “Imagine If…” invites us to pause, look beyond current constraints, and consider what becomes possible when education drives connection, action, and positive change. We’ll explore how we can build on the momentum already underway across our field—and what more becomes possible when environmental education is fully leveraged to shape a more just, resilient, and sustainable world.

The Annual Conference and Research Symposium offer inspiring and thoughtful keynotes, a rich variety of workshops, presentations, symposium panels, discussions, bright spots, and posters, along with great opportunities for networking, growth, and change.

NAAEE is committed to making this in-person experience accessible to all, with financial aid and scholarships available. Check the conference website for information.

Youth Environmental Science (YES!) Summit (16 Oct 2026)

Fri, 16 Oct 2026 13:00:00 GMT

The much-loved Youth Environmental Science (YES) Summit is back at Vermont 4-H! The one-day youth-led event connects high schoolers with environmental topics, including hands-on workshops, discussions, networking, and action steps to carry forward beyond the summit. We are looking for engaging folks who would like to host an interactive 45-minute workshop related to environmental science, climate change, natural resources, and stewardship for a high school audience.

If you are interested, please fill out our workshop proposal form: https://na.eventscloud.com/ereg/index.php?eventid=879356&

Questions? Camille Kauffman, camille.kauffman@uvm.edu, 4-H UVM Extension