and

and

and the following Connecticut Science Centers

Audubon Greenwich
The Children's Garbage and Trash Museums
The Children's Museum
Connecticut Audubon Society
Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo
The Discovery Museum
Eli Whitney Museum
Kellog Center for the Environment
Mystic Aquarium and Institute for Exploration
SoundWaters
Stamford Museum and Nature Center
Yale Peadody Museum of Natural History
About the Program Calendar Participate
Keep Connecticut Cool's History
 
The Keep Connecticut Cool Challenge is administered by the Institute for Sustainable Energy at Eastern Connecticut State University. The program is funded by the Connecticut Energy Efficiency Fund. Program partners include the science centers of the Connecticut Science Center Collaborative.
 
The program started by Clean Air-Cool Planet and funded by the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation as the Cool It Challenge in 2005/06 with the following vision:

Over the past three years, Connecticut has made tremendous progress in addressing the issue of climate change. However, most of this action has come from adults. The goal of the CT Solutions to Climate Change competition is to engage a geographically, economically and culturally diverse range of CT students in an issue that has profound significance for them, to facilitate their understanding of climate science and current and proposed solutions, and to support them in taking action and creating successful local solutions to global climate change.

To achieve this goal the Connecticut Science Center Collaborative worked to provide science education and resources for an annual competition for Connecticut young people to create local solutions to climate change. A pilot competition during 2006-07 laid the groundwork for institutionalizing an annual competition that will support implementation of the CT Climate Change Action Plan and engage future generations in this issue.

The Objectives for the contest's first year included:

· Student Engagement: Foster an understanding of the science of climate change and engage and empower students to create local solutions to climate change.

· Sound Science and Alignment with State Core Science Curriculum Framework: Provide students and teachers with educational content and resources on the science of climate change and real-life applications of “science and its role in society”[1]that fulfill 9th grade and other appropriate CT Core Science standards. Both educational resources provided by the program and student's work on solutions projects will support standards.

· Community Engagement: Involve community members and organizations in supporting the competition and in participating/collaborating in student-created solutions projects; local science centers as hosts and resource and education providers; students as participants; community leaders as judges; families as resources, supporters and visitors to science centers; local and statewide media as they cover events and winners; and local businesses as sponsors, thereby increasing awareness of climate change solutions in local communities.

· Capacity Building for Science Centers: Build the capacity of Connecticut's science centers in the following ways:

  • Build the professional capacity of science centers to provide climate change education and programming, and integrate climate change into mission and work.
  • Help establish the CT Science Center Collaborative as a reliable and valuable resource for educating the public about climate change science and solutions.

· Solutions and Messaging: Gain insights into student-developed solutions to climate change and appropriate messaging for children on climate change awareness. Learn from students what solutions and messages work with their peer group. Empower young people as the providers of solutions and messengers; use their messages to reach their generation.

· Public Awareness: Generate media attention of climate change solutions.
The Cool It Challenge was developed as a two year process, with teams completing a greenhouse gas inventory or a school, home or business in the first year (Phase 1), along with the developement of their solution plan. In Phase 2, returning teams implemented their solution plans. At both levels, teams present their findings to a panel of judges.
 
2006-2007
 
At the pilot competition in 2006- 07, teams from seven schools across Connecticut won cash awards for their “Local Solutions to Climate Change” projects at the Cool It! Climate Change Challenge Awards Ceremony and 157 students participated on 21 teams.
 
2007-2008
For the 2007-08 year, there were 31 teams registered, with more than 210 students. The program shifted administration from Clean Air - Cool Planet to the Institute for Sustainable Energy. A team training event was added to the program, with 150 Keep Connecticut Cool participants meeting for workshops and fun at the Mystic Aquarium in the early spring. The Judging Event was held at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford.
2008 Team Displays for Judging at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford
 
 
Prizes were awarded based on best overall plans and projects, and for collaboration and teamwork.
St. Gregory the Great students win $10,000 Cool It prize
2008 St. Gregory the Great School, Danbury wins the first Cool Solutions $10,000 prize
 
The name of the challenge changed at the end of the 2007-08 year. "Keep Connecticut Cool" was selected in a renameing contest, open to all competing teams. Teams were encouraged to use the "12 Steps to a Sustainable School" to choose their projects. Judging at Eastern Connecticut State University brought together 16 teams competing as first year (Phase 1) or continuing (Phase 2).
 
2008-2009
In the 2008-2009 contest year 21 teams with more than 170 students competed. Judging was held at Eastern Connecticut State University. Danbury High School took the top prize of $3000 for their team effort.
 
2009-2010
 
For the 2009 - 10 contest year, Keep Connecticut Cool partnered with the Alliance for Climate Educationto promote a message of climate change science and student activism. ACE offered schools free assemblies, and participated in KCC team training events held at Beardsley Zoo and Mystic Aquarium.
Teams who held assemblies could use ACE resources, and apply for mini grants to support their KCC projects. Teams were asked to focus their projects on the themes of the 12 Steps to a Sustainable School or Community. More elementary teams joined the program, allowing KCC to expand the contest to include 4th grade students on teams.  For the contest's fourth year, 30 teams with more than 230 students participated.
 
Judging for the 2010 prizes was held at the Connecticut Science Center to coincide with their LEED Green Building Ceremony.
 
2010-2011
 
In fall 2010, Keep Connecticut Cool entered its fifth year. The contest was shifted from a two year process to a one year focus with earlier sign-ups encouraged. Team judging was split to two levels- Elementary/Middle School Teams and High School Teams. KCC continues partnering with ACE, and encourages teams to draw from both program's resources.

[1]Core Science Curriculum Framework: An Invitation for Students and Teachers to Explore Science and Its Role in Society. Content Standards and Expected Performances, Core Science for Grades 9 – 10. CT State Department of Education. Approved October 2004 (edited January 2005).

 Sign-Up for Email Updates
For more information, email KOHLL@easternct.edu or call 860-465-0256. Keep Connecticut Cool is funded by the Connecticut Energy Efficiency Fund.