Two New Tools Help Educate about Climate Change

Two environmental nonprofits, The Climate Reality Project and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), have launched new online tools to facilitate climate change education. The Climate Reality Project’s new tool, Reality Drop , is a website dedicated to the promotion of solid climate change research. Founded and chaired by former Vice President Al Gore, The Climate Reality Project’s mission is to “reveal the denial and deception around climate change, spread the truth, and clear the way toward real solutions.” The project's team chooses news articles about climate change and either validates the research behind the article or discredits any misinformation found in the article. Project participants can then use these arguments to post comments directly on the news outlet's website. Prolific Reality Drop participants can earn points on the site’s leadership board (pictured). Points are also earned when a participant shares stories through social media. “Reality Drop provides an easy, intuitive way for people to arm themselves with the facts, educate their friends, family and networks, and call on the media to report the truth,” said Gore.

The NRDC’s new online mapping tool helps determine how U.S. counties are affected by climate change. By entering a zip code into the online tool, visitors can see what impacts have already happened in a specific county or city. For example, the District of Columbia has “suffered more days than expected of extreme summer heat (which is known to increase elderly mortality); gasped in unhealthy smog and ragweed pollen (a health double-whammy); been part of a region with more days than expected of high streamflow and flooding; been part of a region parched by more days than expected of low streamflow and drought; some areas that are at risk of flooding with sea-level rise.” NRDC President Frances Beinecke said about the tool, “No matter where we live, climate change is making its presence known.” Using methodology that includes multiple climate-health vulnerabilities found in the United States, the snapshot tool illustrates how climate change can have dramatic impacts where you live. Some of the categories included in NRDC’s methodology are: extreme heat, air quality, flooding, drought, dengue fever, wildfires, sea level rise and extreme weather.

Author: Alison Alford

For more information:

• About Reality Drop
  • Reality Drop
  • Video: Al Gore Introduces Reality Drop
  • "Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project Launches Interactive Tool for Rebutting Climate-Change Deniers," Sustainable Brands
• About the NRDC's Climate in Your Community Tool
  • Climate in Your Community Tool
  • "Take a 'Snapshot' of How Climate Change Affects Your Community," NRDC Blog
  • "Climate Change: New Tool Shows Extreme Weather by ZIP," The Energy Collective
  • State-by-State Reports: President Obama's Plan to Cut Carbon Pollution and Prepare for Consequences of Climate Change , White House