The purpose of this proposed grant project is to increase environmental literacy and climate resilience among a socially vulnerable and medically underserved population in roanoke, virginia and more…

This two-year, $712,764 cooperative agreement from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will support environmental literacy and climate resilience efforts in Roanoke, Virginia. Funded through NOAA's Mission-Related Education Awards program, the project aims to educate local health professionals, educators, urban planners and government officials on building climate resilience. Key activities will include piloting an environmental literacy campaign combining heat management strategies with community engagement opportunities. The partnership between Carilion Medical Center and Carilion Clinic will provide learning for both youth and adults to address heat impacts identified in a prior NOAA-funded study. The objective aligns with the CFDA program's goal of facilitating educational activities related to NOAA's science, service and stewardship mission.

The purpose of this proposed grant project is to increase environmental literacy and climate resilience among a socially vulnerable and medically underserved population in roanoke, virginia and more broadly throughout southwest virginia. This initiative will educate and engage health professionals, students/educators, urban planners, and local government officials in building climate resiliency for the region. Building off a recent NOAA-funded study which looked at the impacts of heat on the urban population in roanoke, the primary objective of this initiative is to pilot a reproducible environmental literacy campaign that combines approaches to heat management and heat mitigations strategies, led by a partnership between public health and medical professionals, urban planning experts, and community groups. This project will provide intra- and inter-group learning and engagement opportunities for youth and adult residents, healthcare professionals, and city officials in roanoke.