MAEOE Moves Into Green Office Complex

The Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education has a new home in one of the greenest buildings in the state: The EnviroCenter in Jessup. Interest and demand for environmental education has steadily increased since MAEOE’s formation in 1985. While this move is designed to centralize operations to streamline client services, Bronwyn Mitchell, Executive Director for MAEOE added, “The new office will focus additional attention on the tremendous environmental education work being done by thousands of educators in hundreds of locations throughout the state.”

As the organization supporting environmental education professionals, it was important to select an office that reflected and complemented the organization’s mission. In the U.S. alone, buildings represent 39 percent of our primary energy use, consume 12.2 percent of our potable water (15 trillion gallons per year), and 40 percent of global raw materials. Green buildings significantly reduce this environmental burden, while providing a healthier place to work and live. “More than an office, the EnviroCenter is a teacher, textbook, and classroom,” explained Mitchell. “Each visitor to the office will leave knowing more about green building strategies and techniques than when they entered.”

A sampling of the EnviroCenter’s environmental attributes include:

· Walking distance from MARC commuter train between Baltimore and Washington
· ½ block from a Howard County Green bus line stop
· Maximum site density by saving an old 1905 farmhouse and incorporating it into the building
· Capturing of rain water for irrigation and landscape features by Water Savers, LLC
· Passive cooling design features
· Carpeting by “Interface” made with recycled materials and recyclable
· Bamboo flooring
· Siding made from recycled asphalt shingles
· Solar tubes and daylight shafts provide natural lighting and save energy
· Hydronic solar heating integrated with a radiant floor heating system for even, comfortable heating
· A 2.25 kW photovoltaic Solar electric system to offset the electric loads of the building
· A fiber optic daylighting system to focus light from outdoors to indoor light fixtures
· Use of biodiesel for supplementary heat
· Interior trim of wheat stalk boards and sunflower seed husks
· A living "Green" roof
· Environmentally friendly finishes with low or no volatile organic chemicals (VOCs)

MAEOE joins current EnviroCenter tenants in this green office complex, including: ASG, environmental design and construction consultants; Water Savers, working to provide solutions for water and energy conservation; The Green Building Institute, a non-profit offering green building courses; Phase II Architecture; and the Robinson Foundation, developing a nature center in Howard County. Founding partner, Stan Sersen, describes it as a community that shares business ideas, personal networks, and professional passions towards creating a more sustainable world. He explained that “MAEOE is the perfect complement to the suite of occupants. The organization embodies the past, present and future of environmental education in Maryland.”

MAEOE’s new address is:
7761 Waterloo Road Jessup, MD 20794
Tel: (443) 733-1212
Fax: (443) 733-1219

MAEOE Welcomes Ryan Pleune as Maryland Green School Coordinator

MARYLAND: Ryan Pleune has been chosen to lead MAEOE’s Maryland Green School Program as it enters a period of unprecedented growth. “Originally from Utah, Ryan will bring a fresh perspective and a wealth of new ideas to the program. He is going to broaden the Maryland Green School program by exploring opportunites to connect the program to education reform. I’m excited about the bright future of the program” explained MAEOE Executive Director Bronwyn Mitchell.

Since 1999, 266 or approximately 10 percent of Maryland public and independent schools have been certified as Maryland Green Schools through MAEOE’s signature program, which was recognized by Governor O’Malley as a model in his Children in Nature Partnership State Environmental Literacy Plan. The program was also recently featured in a PBS national documentary highlighting Green School initiatives, scheduled to air on Earth Day 2010. MAEOE’s Maryland Green Schools initiative challenges schools to integrate the environment into every aspect of the school culture including professional development, curricular connections, student-led projects which model environmental best management practices, and community engagement.

Interest in Maryland Green Schools has grown steadily throughout the program’s history, although Mitchell explained that the program has entered a period of hyper-growth. “It seems every school wants to be a Maryland Green School -- and wants to be one now!” She estimates that the record set in 2009 of 70 new Maryland Green Schools will easily be eclipsed in 2010.

Mr. Pleune will put his experience as a classroom teacher and outdoor educator, along with innovative ideas and his accessible yet charismatic personality, to work as MAEOE’s Maryland Green School Coordinator beginning on October 13. Pleune is anxious to get started, and MAEOE is equally anxious to have him, his enthusiasm, and his dynamic ideas on board as soon as possible.

ABOUT MAEOE: Founded in 1985, the Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization which seeks to develop a Maryland citizenry that understands and is engaged in responsible environmental behavior and stewardship by training and supporting Maryland educators.

Call for Presentations: 2010 Maryland EE Conference

MAEOE 25th Annual Conference
Many Paths, One Destination: From Knowledge to Action
February 4-7, 2010
Rocky Gap Lodge – Flintstone, Maryland


The Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education (MAEOE) invites you to submit an Application to Present for consideration for one or more of the following:

• one of the 10 Friday workshops (3 or 6 hours in length)
• one of the 50 Saturday sessions (50 minutes)
• a Sunday Field Experience

MAEOE welcomes applications from professionals representing all levels of education, all content areas, specialists, and business and industry experts.

The annual MAEOE conference, the largest statewide environmental education conference and the only one of its kind in Maryland, brings together more than 600 educators from schools, local and state government agencies, environmental centers, businesses and organizations to develop strategies and skills to develop a citizenry that understands and is engaged in responsible environmental behavior.

Call for Presentation Deadline: September 4, 2009

More detailed information about MAEOE, the annual conference, or submission background is available at: http://maeoe.org/conference/speakers/2010callforpresenters.php

Click on the following link to submit your proposal: MAEOE.ORG/CONFERENCE.PHP

Job Opening: Green Schools Award Program Coordinator

The Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education (MAEOE), Maryland’s professional organization dedicated to building the capacity of educators to effectively create an environmentally literate citizenry, is seeking an energetic and creative individual to join our dynamic team as the Maryland Green School Awards Program Coordinator, working part-time (averaging 20-hours a week) to start immediately. The successful candidate will serve as the program director, public spokesperson, and will oversee all aspects of the program’s operations. The coordinator will report directly to the MAEOE Executive Director.

Click here to download the complete Position Description.

Thoreau's Legacy: American Stories about Global Warming

Thoreau's Legacy: American Stories about Global Warming is the new anthology from the Union of Concerned Scientists and Penguin Classics which brings together established writers and fresh voices, including Bronwyn Mitchell, current Executive Director for the Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education (MAEOE), to inspire us with personal stories and reflections on global warming.

Following in a uniquely American tradition of environmental writing begun by Henry David Thoreau and continued by great writers from Rachel Carson to E. O. Wilson, Thoreau's Legacy enhances our appreciation of the world around us and galvanizes support to preserve it for future generations. The 67 pieces of writing and art in the anthology are drawn from nearly 1,000 submissions about beloved places, animals, plants, people, and activities at risk from a changing climate and the efforts that individuals are making to save what they love.

A foreword on global warming by the well-known author Barbara Kingsolver helps to set the context, and is a powerful call to action.

Launch the interactive book to read the anthology now, or explore the site to learn about the forthcoming hardcover and e-book versions and what you can do to help address climate change.

The selected essays represent a variety of perspectives, voices, and experiences. The authors follow in the long tradition of great American environmental writers, like Henry David Thoreau, who have broadened our awareness and sharpened our perspective about the world we share. And they are inspiring action to protect our planet from global warming. They are Thoreau's legacy.

Green Schools On the Air!

Jeanne Armacost is discussing MAEOE's Maryland Green Schools Program on Friday at 2:00 p.m. on WNAV - AM 1430, on the "1430 Connection," the local news magazine in Annapolis. The interview will be re-broadcast on Saturday morning, 7:00 a.m., and during the following week online at www.1430wnav.com.

Yvette Paradis hosts the in-depth interview program designed to present a broader scope on local issues. Yvette and Jeanne will welcome your phone calls at 410-267-7777.

Chesapeake Classrooms

Get your feet wet paddling, hiking, fishing, sampling water quality, and visiting people and places that connect your school community with the Chesapeake Bay. Chesapeake Classrooms is a five-day immersion course that will focus on watershed issues in conjunction with the Maryland Green Schools requirements. During the program, participants will visit with U.S. Fish & Wildlife, Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF), and MAEOE experts, which also fulfills the Maryland Green Schools professional development criteria. Staff will provide advice and guidance as participants walk through their personal Green Schools plan. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation, supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Geographic Society, appreciates having MAEOE as their partner for this trip.

Registration Details:

When: August 10-14, 2009 2 days local, 3 days/2 nights at a CBF Island Center

How: Go to www.cbf.org/chesapeakeclassrooms, click 5-Day Immersion Course, and complete the registration form. You may also fax completed forms to 410/268-6687 or mail them to: Chesapeake Classrooms, 6 Herndon Ave., Annapolis, MD 21403

Cost: $150.00 (covers food, housing, ferry cost, and materials included)
$25.00 non-refundable deposit due with registration form (cash, check, or credit card)

Credit: Participants can earn 3 MSDE credits or graduate credits through one of our regional college or university partners at a reduced rate.

Visit our professional development page cbf.org/chesapeakeclassrooms and click on the Summer Immersion courses.

Questions? Contact: chesapeakeclassrooms@cbf.org

Chipapalooza GREEN

May 9 - Noon
College Park, Maryland

The Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education (MAEOE) is proud to announce Chipapalooza GREEN on May 9th at noon at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 9450 Cherry Hill Road, College Park, MD 20740. The show will raise awareness of environmental problems in Maryland and all profits will be donated to the Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education. The event will feature live music starting at noon, great outdoor activities, guest speakers, food and beverages, merchandise, and a marketplace for green businesses to showcase their products and services.

Three high school friends, Chip Hiden, Chris Trenner, and Pat Gibson, started the Chipapalooza Charity Concert that was first held in Hiden's backyard, and began by raising more than $1000 dollars for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. More than 300 enthusiastic people attended and demanded that the concert become an annual tradition. Since then, the concert has continued to grow, being held in bigger venues, featuring nationally touring acts, and raising more money for charity. Now in its fifth year, the planners are looking forward to their biggest concert yet with Chipapalooza GREEN. All MAEOE members, friends and family -- and friends of the environment and environmental education -- are encouraged to attend. For more information, visit: Chipapalooza.com.