Climate change education legislation in Michigan

Detroit, MI, skyline

Photo by Kahari king on Unsplash.

Michigan's House Bill 5283 would, if enacted, establish a temporary environmental literacy task force, charged with developing a model curriculum aimed, in part, at preparing students for understanding and addressing environmental challenges, including climate change.

The task force would also assess the degree to which existing resources, including the state science standards, address environmental literacy. The task force would submit a report to the legislature including the model curriculum and any recommendations for legislation.

House Bill 5283 was introduced by Julie Rogers (D-District 60) along with twenty-five cosponsors, on August 18, 2021, and referred to the House Committee on Education. It is unclear whether the committee will consider the bill.

Michigan adopted the Next Generation Science Standards in 2015; the NGSS received the grade of B+ in "Making the Grade? How State Public School Science Standards Address Climate Change," a report from NCSE and the Texas Freedom Network Education Fund.

Glenn Branch
Short Bio

Glenn Branch is Deputy Director of NCSE.

branch@ncse.ngo