Educators
Find marine debris resources and lesson plans for your formal or informal education programs
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Lesson Plans
Clean Valley Council
Free environmental education programs providing a range of topics for all grade levels
Central Virginia Waste Management Authority
CVWMA offers educational programs for all ages and can work with you to create a program for your class or club
Hampton Roads Sanitation District Classroom
A network of information, resources, and games for teachers and students of all ages
JASON Learning
Compelling information about our diverse waterways and the environmental impact of common but destructive practices with plastics and waste
Keep Norfolk Beautiful
Education Programs: Reduce Reuse Recycle, Preventable Journey, Plastics in Our Environment
NOAA Marine Debris Program
Turning the Tide on Trash K-12 Lesson Plans
NOAA Marine Debris Program
Explore marine debris resources designed to support your needs and learning for students of all ages
Ocean Conservancy
Marine debris education partnership between Ocean Conservancy and the NOAA Marine Debris Program
Plastic Litter Education Advocates
Resources are designed to inform and inspire individuals, families, and organizations about the importance of reducing plastic waste and choosing healthy alternatives to plastic
VA SEA Lesson Plans
Classroom-tested science lesson plans created for VA SEA by science graduate students
Virginia Recycling Association
Recycling activities, projects, and getting your school involved
Waste Hero
Free teacher and school resources on Recycling Fundamentals, Creating Zero Waste, and Building the Circular Economy
The Elizabeth River Project has teacher resources, field trip opportunities, and "River Star School" certification opportunities.
The Marine Debris Coalition at Old Dominion University developed interactive activities freely available online
Character Cards for the Youth Summit Module
Mapping Tools
Incorporate these online mapping tools to enhance educational and research programming
Balloon Monitoring Story Map
This story map explores the issue of balloon litter in the coastal and marine environment and takes a look at what Mid-Atlantic states are doing about it.
Coastal Geospatial and Educational Mapping System
Coastal GEMS is a gateway to Virginia's coastal resource information, data, and maps
Global Plastic Laws Database
The most extensive tool to date to research, track, and visualize plastic legislation that has been passed around the world
U.S. EPA Escaped Trash Risk Map
Zoom into a specific area to see estimate litter densities, floodplain areas, estimated item counts, and microplastics studies
EPA EnviroAtlas
EnviroAtlas provides geospatial data, easy-to-use tools, and other resources related to ecosystem services, their chemical and non-chemical stressors, and human health
Mid-Atlantic Ocean Data Portal
Use our Marine Planner visualization tool to explore over 6,000 map layers showing seafloor habitats, fishing grounds, shipping traffic, marine life distributions, offshore infrastructure, reef and shipwreck locations, and much more
Public Interest Research Group
This map can help identify potential plastic pellet pollution spots near you