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Impressive time series photos showing change in population growth, desertification, receding glaciers, more.

lastic. It's super useful but it's also a big problem for the environment. Enough plastic is thrown away every year to circle the earth four times! The main issue is that plastic doesn't biodegrade, meaning it sticks around for a very long time. This video gives a quick overview of the scope of the plastic problem and what some people are doing to try to solve it. .

The Breathing Earth simulation Welcome to Breathing Earth. This real-time simulation displays the CO2 emissions of every country in the world, as well as their birth and death rates. Please remember that this is just a simulation.

Students set up a marine biome and have to maintain it over time

Change Birth and Death rates (or use different countries rates) to see how populations change over time

This problem-based case study guides students through a systematic exploration of the scientific issues surrounding the application and development of hydrogen fuel technology. A PowerPoint presentation introduces a New York Times article about the impact of our abundant natural gas resources on the cost of hydrogen fuel production. The article includes an Energy Department estimate that places the gasoline-cost equivalent of hydrogen fuel production, compression, and distribution at less than $4 per gallon, making it a viable option for the transportation sector. Students are then given primary literature articles and a worksheet to help them examine (1) the benefits and drawbacks of using hydrogen as a fuel in automobiles and trucks, (2) the current technological/engineering limitations of using hydrogen fuel, and (3) whether the pursuit of developing large-scale use of hydrogen-powered cars is the right direction for the country. Originally written for a second semester/second quarter general chemistry course, the case study is designed to illustrate the direct application of chemical thermodynamics and gas laws to the production and distribution of renewable fuels.  

EarthViewer lets you see continents grow and shift as you scroll through billions of years. Additional layers let you and your students explore changes in atmospheric composition, temperature, biodiversity, day length, and solar luminosity over deep time

This is my students all time favorite lab. Students don't understand the full economic or scientific impact of the mining industry until they have gone through this simulation. It's sort of like a geologic monopoly game. It is based in part on the ROA activity and similar activities in various earth science books.

Real-time information on Air Quality Index by zip code.

This study could work as a follow-up to immigration / emigration island biodiversity / biogeography topics. I would look up the original work through the Nebraska state museums. Dawkins has a lot of good short videos, but be careful to watch them ahead of time for his rather common aggressive social statements that might cause parent issues.

The island nation has mounted an aggressive response to illegal fishing in their waters. How they protect themselves may help the rest of the world save all of the oceans.

For real time data of CO2 conc in different parts of Oakland, CA; the site also contains resources on climate change

The Story of Stuff is one of the most watched environmental-themed online movies of all time. Its animated and accessible to all levels of students. This is a great introduction to Environmental Justice, and what students can do to get involved through action.

I totally agree! I got to meet Annie Leonard at SXSW-Eco in Austin, TX last October after her keynote speech. She encouraged me to take advantage of the free teaching material on the project website. There's so much great "stuff" on there!

Incerdible standard births deaths to computers sold, deaths due to hunger, days of coal left...tickers for everything!

Current tallying of Population, environment, economics, food, etc.

This has a live, constantly-changing track of various world statistics, including toxic waste produced, desertification, and CO2 emissions.

Coal seam has been burning for 53 years!! Good when discussing Fossil Fuels. There are several shorter clips if you have time constraints.

I use this site for Net Primary Productivity. I like the animations. Also great for the images. This recent image shows the recent iceberg shed that is the size of Delaware. Students can see in real time what is going on around the world.