Climate and Environmental Science

Rockman et al Cooperative has evaluated a variety of climate and environmental science initiatives in diverse educational environments and communities across the country. Through these efforts we have developed a nuanced understanding of how climate mitigation, advocacy, and educational programs impact urban, rural and indigenous communities, provide training and support of future climate leaders and policy makers, and raise the awareness of critical climate issues affecting people and their communities.

We welcome the opportunity to discuss your project with you and to provide you with more information about our tailored services. Please Contact Us to schedule a free 30-minute Q&A session with a consultant.

Selected Projects Include

  • Photo by Peter Beukema on Unsplash

    Climate Leaders Academy

    Climate Leaders Academy is an NSF funded project that offers opportunities for students from a range of institutions of higher education to learn about and work together to address climate change issues. In addition, the program focuses on efforts to expand access to climate change studies to students from under-represented populations. REA is conducting a mixed-methods evaluation of the program. A unique element of our evaluation included onsite interviews and observations of students as they attended the UN-sponsored Conference of the Parties (COP-28) global climate meeting in Dubai in 2023.

  • Photo by Tobias Tullius on Unsplash

    Beyond Ice

    Beyond Ice is an NSF funded project aimed to amplify local community voices of four villages along the Yukon River Valley in Alaska by sharing their stories of resilience, challenges of living in drastically changing conditions and visioning of a future through this transition. Project partners include Alaska Pacific University, the Anchorage Museum and the University of Massachusetts. This grant supports the development of tangible frameworks aimed at telling stories through photography, sound, video, and documentary methods that examine, support, and empower multiple community members, elders, and especially young people. REA is serving as the external evaluator for this project, and will be working with indigenous researchers from APU to document and assess engagement and development models with the four villages.

  • Photo by Tim Wilson on Unsplash

    Environmental Science Through Art

    The Environmental Science Through Art (ESTA) program, is an NIH Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA) that harnesses the combined knowledge and experience of a dynamic team of educators, scientists, and community arts leaders to enrich middle and high school STEAM curricula for low-income, Latinx students. The program encourages and equips individual students to pursue science and health careers while also raising community awareness of environmental health issues using the arts. Led by a team of collaborations from California State University Monterey Bay, University of California Berkeley, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium, the ESTA program supports teachers and students’ environmental health literacy through the development of immersive STEAM projects that tackle environmental health issues that impact their communities. As the external evaluator, REA has been assessing the impact of the program on supporting teachers’ confidence and ability to integrate environmental health and STEAM into class curriculum, and the effects of the projects on motivating student learning, interest, and engagement in environmental health issues.

  • Photo by Joseph Cantwell on Unsplash

    Transforming Outdoor Places into Learning Spaces

    Transforming Outdoor Places into Learning Spaces is an NSF funded project at Penn State University aimed to enhance visitor experiences for rural families in informal outdoor spaces, such as parks, zoos, and nature centers, through the development of augmented reality applications. REA conducted a mixed-methods evaluation exploring methods and challenges of engaging rural audiences in outdoor education. Evaluation findings were presented at the 2023 National Association of Environmental Education Conference.

  • Photo by Ganapathy Kumar on Unsplash

    Water is Life

    Water is Life is a 5-year initiative funded by NSF’s Tribal Colleges and University Programs (TCUP) at Diné College, a four year HLC accredited tribal College located in Tsaile, Arizona. The goals of the project are to improve water security in the Navajo nation while building a strong research infrastructure at Diné College. This project is built on the necessity for Navajo Nation and Diné College researchers to get involved in more innovative projects focused on improving access to clean water for communities in Navajo Nation, while simultaneously providing opportunities for undergraduate and graduate student participation in the rigorous intellectual aspects of environmental research. REA’s mixed method evaluation features surveys and interviews with Water is Life faculty, participating students, and Diné College administrators.