For demonstrating a sustained commitment to excellence in geophysical education by an individual, group or team. THE GLOBAL LEARNING AND Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program is an unparalleled effort to bring environmental science to students, educators and citizen scientists worldwide. By leveraging evidence-based best practices for teaching Earth system science, GLOBE has cultivated a vibrant global community that is passionate about science and the environment. GLOBE students do not just read about science, they do science! This powerful approach has impacted over 40,000 educators and over 1 million students in 126 countries during its 25+ years of operation since 1994. GLOBE engages a diverse population of students in authentic, hands-on scientific research and project-focused investigations using >50 data collection protocols developed by scientists, modern technology infrastructure and linkages to major scientific missions. Training of educators in the use of these protocols has helped to ensure data quality and reinforce the content knowledge, scientific skills and efficacy of a global community of primary and secondary teachers. The authenticity of the scientific questions explored by GLOBE students and the opportunities for students to engage with a network of scientists have yielded long-term positive impacts on student learning and attitudes toward science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and STEM careers. GLOBE’s international dimensions and participant diversity are unique assets of the program, both for enabling regionaland planet-scale Earth system science investigations and for promoting diplomacy through the scientific enterprise. Doing more than just collecting scientific data, GLOBE students experience what it is like to be an Earth scientist through collaboration, peer review and sharing of their findings. GLOBE opens doors for many students who have never before participated in science-focused events, through coordinated research campaigns, regional student research symposia and the annual International Virtual Science Symposium. GLOBE Learning Expeditions, held periodically in international settings, promote awareness of our rich cultural differences and reinforce appreciation for the important role science plays in finding common ground and uniting to confront our shared environmental vulnerabilities. Yet GLOBE is so much more than an education program; it also contributes meaningfully to advancing scientific discovery. Coordinated GLOBE student research campaigns have contributed to scientific research focused on climate change impacts and tracking Zika-spreading mosquito species, among others. Collectively, GLOBE students have contributed more than 200 million measurements to the program’s curated database, which offers a unique and rich resource for additional time series studies on environmental change. Given GLOBE’s immense impact on science education worldwide, those future investigations will, perhaps, be led by GLOBE alumni!

— Jill L. Karsten National Science Foundation (retired) Eden Prairie, Minnesota

Response

“The GLOBE Program is honored to join the long list of distinguished recipients with this award,” said Dr. Tony Murphy, director of the GLOBE Implementation Office. “This award acknowledges the dedication and effort of all the GLOBE community in building the program from a small number of countries in 1995 to 126 countries today, with a database of over 200 million measurements for use in research by students and scientists, and new technology advancements, including The GLOBE Program’s app, GLOBE Observer. Without the efforts of all those involved worldwide, this unique program would not be possible.”

The GLOBE Program (www.globe.gov) is an interagency program sponsored by NASA and supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation, NOAA and the U.S. Department of State and implemented through a cooperative agreement between NASA and the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research in Colorado.

When the program began operations building the infrastructure in 1994, staff from these agencies, plus the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency worked together diligently to prepare various components for a launch date of 22 April 1995. In addition to a suite of scientific protocols for environmental science measurements that could be collected by students in K-12 schools globally, the technical infrastructure for entering, storing and analyzing the data had to be created. Other programmatic components, including educational resources in multiple languages, national and international training workshops and an international agreement for countries entering the program, were developed within the context of this new “World Wide Web.”

The concept of involving students and adults in projects where they would assist scientists in the collection and analysis of data is not new. However, the difference between GLOBE and these other efforts is the ambitious nature of this “citizen science” project (schools in all countries, diverse types and numbers of protocols, collection of data in areas (pedosphere)) while using the fledgling internet as a backbone for the infrastructure. While much has changed in the 26 years of its existence (growth in countries and data, governance of the program, rapid development of existing and new technologies, including the program’s app, GLOBE Observer, etc.), the vision and mission are still core to the program and visible in some instances with alumni who are serving in leadership positions, such as GLOBE teachers, government employees and country coordinators around the world!