At its March 10, 2026, meeting, New York's State Board of Regents voted to revise (PDF, p. 5) the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education to require instruction in climate change for students in the state's public schools.
Climate change instruction will be required for high school students by the end of grade 12 and for middle school students by the end of grade 8, starting in the 2027-2028 school year, and for elementary students by the end of grade 4, starting in the 2028-2029 school year.
Emily Fano, Director of Climate Education at the National Wildlife Federation and co-founder of the Climate and Resilience Education Task Force, welcomed the vote, saying, "We thank the Board of Regents and [the New York State Education Department] for their leadership in passing this new instructional requirement for climate education, and are committed to supporting them, as well as teachers and students, as implementation begins."
The New York State Education Department is preparing guidance to support schools in complying with the new requirement, including material on causes of, impacts of, and solutions for climate change.
In the meantime, six bills aimed at supporting climate change education — Assembly Bill 4876, Senate Bill 2430, Assembly Bill 1666, Assembly Bill 1984, Senate Bill 6617, and Assembly Bill 8458 — are pending in New York's legislature.
