The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Healy assists a NASA shipborne investigation into climate change in the Chukchi Sea of the Arctic Ocean in 2011. Credit: Kathryn Hansen/NASA.
The U.S. Coast Guard Academy "has eliminated 'climate change' and related terminology from its curriculum in an effort to confirm to President Donald Trump's policies," according to Inside Climate News (March 7, 2025) — which consulted NCSE for comment.
In a statement, the provost of the academy explained that the changes were required by a presidential executive order as well as by a directive from the Secretary of Homeland Security, which supervises the Coast Guard during peacetime.
Admiral Paul Zukunft, who served as commandant of the Coast Guard from 2014 to 2018, told Inside Climate News that cadets need to be educated about climate change in order to face new challenges on seas and coastlines transformed by climate change.
The provost wrote that despite the changes, "[W]e will continue to teach good science that prepares our cadets to lead and execute Coast Guard missions in a global maritime operating environment."
But NCSE Deputy Director Glenn Branch commented, "Not using the right terminology makes it harder for students to understand and discuss and process the scientific literature they’re supposed to be inspecting."
