Breaking Down Barriers

Supporting Community Engagement and Effective Science Communication

We have discontinued the Breaking Down Barriers program but will continue to make available its web resources. If you have questions, please email us.

Over the years, NCSE has developed and field-tested many climate change and evolution activities, from The Evolution of the Flu to Rising Tides. They’ve been used effectively across the country, engaging thousands of participants to help them overcome misconceptions and misinformation they may have about evolution and climate change. Detailed descriptions of each activity are available online, including how-to videos and resource lists. (Note: You are responsible for purchasing any necessary materials beyond what is downloadable. We strive to make the materials as affordable and accessible as possible.)

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Check out our entire series explaining the science involved in the coronavirus pandemic.
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Early morning on Father’s Day, June 17, 2018, I was in Houghton, Michigan, for my summer forestry field research.
Activity Kit
Activity Kit
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For the final 2020 collaboration between the NCSE Graduate Student Outreach Fellows and Our Changing Climate, we turned to portrayals of climate change in television sitco
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As cities move beyond recycling paper and metals, and into glass, food scraps and assorted plastics, the costs rise sharply while the environmental benefits decline and sometimes vanish.
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Our 2020 topic: $100k Budget Distribution Challenge. Your town has budgeted $100,000 to fund a climate-friendly initiative, and players must role play and argue for the proposal that their stakeholder wants to see passed.
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To read academic writing is almost certainly to suffer. Yes, the ideas are likely complex. But the way many scientists choose to write about their work makes it even more difficult to understand.
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Summer looks different this year. A number of families will follow health guidelines and choose not to go on vacation or even to a public pool.
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Climate Change in Iowa, developed by NCSE Graduate Student Outreach Fellow Joe Jalinsky, encourages communities in Iowa to learn about the processes and consequences of climate change.
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Darwinism is a theory of biological evolution developed by the English naturalist Charles Darwin. It states that all species of organisms arise and develop through the natural selection of small, inherited variations that increase the individual's ability to compete, survive, and reproduce.

Become a DIYSci Affiliate

DIYSci Affiliates (formerly Science Booster Clubs) lead science activities in communities that may not have strong connections to science learning opportunities. Run by local volunteers, DIYSci Affiliates hold activities in publicly accessible places, such as libraries, farmers’ markets, and community centers. DIYSci Affiliates can make use of fully stocked activity kits sent quarterly by NCSE, as well as any of the materials available for download on this page. Love science and communicating science with kids? Then consider organizing a DIYSci Affiliate.

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