Environmental Educators Roundtable: Save-The-Date!

Lighthouse Camp for Natural Resource Education — Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education

Barnegat Bay Environmental Educators Roundtable

SAVE-THE-DATE

Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Each year, teachers, environmental educators and nature enthusiasts from around the watershed (and around the state!) look forward to the Barnegat Bay Environmental Educators Roundtable. Watch this video to learn more about this exciting professional development event.

The 28th Annual Barnegat Bay Environmental Educators Roundtable will be held on Wednesday, April 16, 2025 at the Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education, Waretown, NJ. Scroll below to “Explore Our Past Environmental Educators Roundtables” and to view last year’s Agenda, Keynote Presentation, Workshops, Field Trip, and Exhibitors.

Our 2025 theme is Our Precious Natural Resources: Considering Conservation, Climate and Community. This theme highlights a holistic approach to environmental education by focusing on the interconnectedness of ecosystems, climate resilience, and community involvement as it pertains to the unique ecological significance of the Barnegat Bay watershed. Through collaborative learning and exploration, we hope to empower educators to impart invaluable knowledge on future generations, fostering a legacy of conservation and environmental responsibility.

Conservation: emphasizes protecting biodiversity, habitats, and soil & water resources, essential for sustaining ecological balance and the health of all living organisms. Educators explore local conservation efforts, best practices for preserving habitats, and strategies for maintaining ecological integrity.
Climate: underscores the importance of addressing climate change impacts on natural resources, emphasizing how rising temperatures, severe weather events, and sea-level rise threaten ecosystems. Topics include climate adaptation strategies and mitigation measures, especially in vulnerable coastal areas, such as the Barnegat Bay watershed.
Community: reinforces the idea that sustainable environmental stewardship is a community effort. By engaging teachers, students and community members in conservation initiatives, we promote awareness and collective responsibility, fostering partnerships among environmental organizations, schools, local governments, and citizens to protect and preserve natural resources.

The Ocean County Soil Conservation District has been effectively coordinating and implementing this professional development event since 1997. It is specifically designed for educators to enhance their knowledge of local natural resources, culture and history, and gain valuable tools that support environmental topics in the classroom, through participation in hands-on, experiential workshops and field trips. The Roundtable helps promote a commitment to environmental stewardship in educators and the students they teach.

This Professional Development program is Ocean County Soil Conservation District’s annual signature event. The Open House hosts nearly two dozen exhibitors, and dinner and desert are served to our hungry Educators. Each year offers a different theme that guides the focus of our workshops and field trips. Our Keynote Speaker concludes the evening with an inspirational presentation, followed by Door Prizes.

The Roundtable has a proven success rate with Ocean County educators. The educational programs and opportunities available from all participating agencies, organizations and groups allows a comprehensive approach to watershed education and provides educators with a “one-stop-shop” approach. It is well known that educators are more likely to present and teach topics with which they are familiar and comfortable. The main goal and objective of the annual Barnegat Bay Environmental Educators Roundtable is to provide this opportunity for teachers and to spur action to improve and protect the health of the Barnegat Bay watershed.

We hope you will join us in 2025 for our 28th Annual Barnegat Bay Environmental Educators Roundtable. Please check back for details, or contact Becky Laboy, Education Outreach Coordinator, education@soildistrict.org. In addition, please peruse our Lesson Plans & Resources for Educators webpage to find pertinent teaching and learning materials for your classroom or outdoor learning experiences.

Terry O’Leary and McDuffy Barrow, of the Forest Resource Education Center, teach a group of educators about bees at the 2010 Environmental Educators Roundtable.

“Excellent workshops! I will use the lessons in my own class and will share with other teachers in my school. Thank you!!” ~Anne B. Stafford Intermediate School