Heal the Bay CEO Ruskin Hartley recently sat down with Saul Gonzalez from KCRW to share his vision for our organization and the unfinished business of cleaning up Santa Monica Bay.
Ruskin details how Heal the Bay is well-positioned to play a significant role in developing innovative solutions to our 21st century challenges: Water pollution and water conservation. If you haven’t had the chance to meet Ruskin yet, the interview is a great way to get to know him a bit better.
Our first-ever S.T.E.A.M. Machines event Nov. 9 on the Santa Monica Pier was a smashing success. Presented by Heal the Bay and Time Warner Cable’s Connect a Million Minds initiative, the day included LA’s inaugural Rube Goldberg Contest and a host of innovative activities for all ages.
A huge thank you goes to sponsor Time Warner Cable and to the staff of the Santa Monica Pier Corporation for their collaboration. Contestants in the Rube Goldberg Machines competition brought their enthusiasm, passion and engineering acumen to the curious contraptions they created to complete the task of zipping a zipper. Kudos to the teams from Santiago Canyon College, Rancho Dominguez Preparatory School, Malibu High School, King Drew Magnet High School and Washington Preparatory High School.
Judges Dina Keirouz, Preston Williams, Hector Alvarez and Dan Busby get perfect scores for not only judging the contest, but for going above and beyond by providing invaluable feedback to all.
Pacific Park, Marbles the Brain Store, Trash for Teaching, Two-bit Circus, The Exploratory and the reDiscover Center brought games and materials that delivered hands-on fun for all. Ben Kay and his Santa Monica High School students of Team Marine provided a lesson in converting a car from gas to electric. Peddlers’ Creamery brought the sweet, cold treat everyone enjoyed on an unseasonably warm November Saturday atop the Pier. DJ Agent Blak created the perfect soundtrack for the day.
Beneath the Pier, visitors to our Santa Monica Pier Aquarium spent hours driving an underwater R.O.V. (remotely operated vehicle) thanks to Aquarium advisory board member Kurt Holland. Kurt financed, built and staffed the Aquarium’s ROV station vehicle during S.T.E.A.M. Machines. And finally, Dale Voelker of Digital Lava Graphic Designs created a Rube Goldberg-esque graphic of Heal the Bay’s successful efforts to ban plastic bags in the city of Los Angeles. The poster remains as a teaching tool in the Aquarium’s Green Room.
We can’t wait for next year’s S.T.E.A.M. machines event!
Heal the Bay staff were a little startled to discover a young woman dressed up as an Australian marsupial at a recent cleanup in Compton Creek.
Chanel Hason donned the costume to help garner votes via social media in a “Best Job in the World” competition, sponsored by Tourism Australia. She had hoped to earn a gig as a wildlife caretaker. Despite her creative efforts, she didn’t end up winning. But the stunt introduced the ocean enthusiast to a lot of new places, such as Compton Creek. “I’d never been in that riverbed before. It was so urban and I was happy to see that there were so many people,” recalls Chanel, a Pasadena resident.
A longtime Heal the Bay supporter, Chanel has also joined us underwater for the SCUBA portion of Coastal Cleanup Day and persuaded her aunt, furniture designer Brenda Houston, to donate a portion of her sales to support Heal the Bay.
On December 20, Chanel’s representing the United States as she vies for the title of “Miss Scuba International,” which she says is focused on marine conservation rather than a “typical beauty contest.” The winner will spend a year “educating, inspiring…all of us to do our best to safeguard our oceans.” And if Chanel emerges the victor, she’s promised to donate a portion of her proceeds to Heal the Bay. Good luck, Chanel!
Find out more about Chanel’s Miss Scuba campaign at facebook.com/ChanelMissScubaUSA
We’re still glowing from a sunny Tuesday morning on the beach with a group of third graders from Parthenia Elementary School in North Hills.Yes, a late autumn sun contributed to the color in our cheeks, but the lasting glow comes from the generous assistance to our field trip programs provided by the Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation and Duke’s Malibu.
The foundation and the iconic surfside restaurant support our Lunch n’ Learn initiative, designed to help foster a love of the ocean in students from the region’s underserved areas. The students’ transportation to the beach and the gift of a book for each child were provided through the foundation’s Fairy Godmother Grant program. After a morning of science-based ocean exploration, the kids were treated to a lunch hosted by Duke’s – with Hula Pie for all!
Meanwhile, Santa Monica Pier Aquarium volunteers do an amazing job at helping us keep our marine science education center spotless and volunteer Lennie Shelton took that responsibility above and beyond last week to give some of our artifacts a thorough cleaning. Set in super thick resin, the preserved skeletons and invertebrates had become so scuffed it was impossible to see what they were. Lennie gave these vital teaching tools a proper buffing – and he’s taken a second set home to buff out as well. Many thanks for the extra effort, Lennie!
Experts say that the best way to break an unhealthy habit is to replace it with a healthy one. And Heal the Bay is here to help you replace your plastic shopping bags with reusables as you shop this holiday season.
To prepare, we’re busily organizing the distribution of thousands of reusable bags across Los Angeles on November 18.
Sound familiar? For the past six years, we’ve made “plastic-free” a holiday shopping tradition, trotting out Green Santa to help us spread eco-friendly cheer for what we used to call “Day Without a Bag.”
Now, to help Angelenos adjust to the upcoming plastic bag ban (effective Jan. 1, 2014), we’ve rebranded this annual citywide event as “Day With a Bag” to get shoppers accustomed to bringing their own reusable bags to the market.
We worked hard to help pass the citywide ban. Yet, despite feeling elated with the victory, we remain focused and hopeful that our efforts will fuel a statewide ban on single-use plastic bags soon.
In the meantime, enjoy the fact that by going reusable, you’re also gifting the planet this holiday season.
We’re giving away nearly 10,000 reusable shopping bags, so find a giveaway location near you!
We had so much fun with our visitors on Sunday during the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium’s Halloween and Dia de los Muertos festivities. Our first-ever Halloween parade was a smashing success (no pumpkins were injured in the process). Father-and-son Draculas, pint-sized pirates and lions, mermaids and Minnie Mouse, ghouls and action figure heroes all paraded along the Pier to collect Halloween treats at local businesses.
We couldn’t have done it without the help of the following fine folks:
Join us as we rev up some curious contraptions at our S.T.E.A.M. machine event on November 9.
Halloween always goes by too quickly for kids. There’s all that time deciding what you want to be, then there’s assembling the costume and all for one night of trick-or-treating. It’s enough to make a goblin grumpy.
Cheer up! The staff at our Santa Monica Pier Aquarium wants to prolong the holiday too. The second annual Santa Monica Pier Halloween Parade is the perfect opportunity for all creepy creatures to practice their trick-or-treating skills. Bring a costume (check out the City of Santa Monica’s Costume Swap for a fun way to trade in your costume from last year into something new)– or make one at the Aquarium’s Halloween/Dia de los Muertos craft station before the parade. We’ll distribute reusable trick–or-treat bags (as long as supplies last) and little monsters can decorate the bags and be ready to step off in front of the Aquarium at 3 p.m. on Sunday, October 26.
You can bet your cauldron we’ll have a few colorful sea creatures to lead the parade up on the Pier, where local businesses plan to be ready with treats!
Need costume inspiration? Check out our ocean-themed Halloween Pinterest board!
Guest blogger Kurt Holland taught science at Santa Monica Alternative Schoolhouse, a public K-8 learning center, for 10 years. A marine science and environmental education leader, Kurt will contribute occasional blogs focused on science education.
As science teachers, parents, and school districts across California vigorously debate the merits of the recently adopted Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) both the Santa Monica Alternative Schoolhouse (SMASH) and Heal the Bay’s Santa Monica Pier Aquarium have employed these “new methods” for more than a decade with outstanding results, as measured by student engagement, alumni outcomes and traditional testing.
However, the value to young people goes far beyond these measures; “science in action” programs like Key to the Sea, Student Action Teams, and service learning partnerships with our local community equip our students to earn leadership positions early in life by elevating evidence-based argumentation skills, rigorous science inquiry skills, and public speaking practice above rote memorization or test taking.
Effective next generation learning environments like those at the Aquarium/SMASH sound like learners doing most of the talking! During investigations and lessons at SMASH and the Aquarium, small groups may be heard using accurate science vocabulary, considering alternative explanations for their observations, and carefully practicing science and engineering protocols. In numerous cases, students from SMASH’s middle school have deployed these skills in public meetings, at state Fish and Wildlife hearings, and in articles for local newspapers.
Fish and Wildlife managers credit student scientists’ testimony and writing with being “deeply influential” during the protracted effort to create marine protected areas (MPAs) along the Southern California coast in 2010. One burly MPA opponent publicly challenged one SMASH student, Jasper R, suggesting that he was merely parroting his teacher’s views. Jasper quickly set that notion to rest with an articulate and respectful rebuttal. Imagine a world where 14- year-old boys routinely exhibit such poise, consideration, and effectiveness.
These new science standards will allow and encourage similar learning experiences for many children and adolescents. SMASH and Heal the Bay are already producing just such learning experiences; great teachers everywhere know that experience is the real teacher and we are just guides or advisors to learners as they explore the world.
Even adolescents love touching sea cucumbers, examining colorful anemones, or – yes! – kissing sharks. This last activity is not recommended for everyone, but my students loved this for some reason and made it a tradition. Hands-on-activity is encouraged by a new section labeled science and engineering practices (SEPs).
Science in action is one way to think about this hands-on teaching method. Building and physically handling tools or interesting artifacts is fundamental to how new generation learning environments are different from textbook-driven education. At the Aquarium, this practice this looks like kids of all ages using oceanographic tools to measure dissolved oxygen, collecting plankton for analysis, and explaining their results in demanding “lab practicals.” At SMASH this has looked like building underwater robots, testing water quality, and designing experimental equipment like wave tanks and “green surfboards.”
The students’ feelings of empowerment and the critical life-skills habits of initiative, persistence, and striving for continuous improvement are the most lasting impacts of effective Next Generation Science Standards. If such habits are what you want for your learners, then get on down to the Aquarium and develop the partnerships that will make your classroom into a model NGSS learning environment. SMASH students have used these effective habits to win prestigious academic contests like QuikScience, to restore riparian habitats in Malibu Creek, and as launch pads for effective high school experiences at public and independent high schools across the Westside. A former student, Naomi commenting on our experiences with the Aquarium said, “This is teaching us to change the world.”
Call 310-393-6149, ext. 105 to reserve a field trip at the Aquarium. Heal the Bay has many education programs for teachers and kids across all grades.
California’s Next Generation Science Standards:
Heal the Bay’s Santa Monica Pier Aquarium and SMASH Lead the Way
Science teachers, parents, and school districts across California are vigorously debating the implementation and merits of the recently adopted Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Many veteran teachers are wary of any state initiative, having experienced many fruitless instances of “educational reform.” Other thoughtful stakeholders point out that the all-inclusive integrative nature of the new standards rely upon “new” teaching methods that many teachers have never practiced given that theat state has been mandating other practices since the late nineties. As for our valued partners -, parents -, many have never even heard of these new standards that will soon be a positive game changer for science education across the state. Understandably, many teachers, parents, and districts are seeking a model of how these standards would sound, look, and feel in a real world of schools and children. Fortunately for Southern California, we have two exemplars of teaching excellence, Santa Monica Alternative Schoolhouse (SMASH) and Heal the Bay’s Santa Monica Pier Aquarium, that are deeply versed in the effective teaching methods now being prescribed for schools across the state. These partners have been using the so-called “new methods” for over a decade with outstanding results as measured by student engagement, alumni outcomes, and traditional testing. However the value to young people goes far beyond these measures; “science in action” programs like Key to the Sea, Student Action Teams, and service learning partnerships with our local community equip our students to earn leadership positions early in life by elevating evidence- based argumentation skills, rigorous science inquiry skills, and public speaking practice above rote memorization or test taking. Effective next generation NGSS learning environments like those at the Aaquarium/SMASH sound like learners doing most of the talking! During investigations and lessons at SMASH and the Aquarium, small groups may be heard using accurate science vocabulary, considering alternative explanations for their observations, and carefully practicing science and engineering protocols. In numerous cases, students from SMASH’s middle school have deployed these 21st century skills in public meetings, at state Ffish and Wildlife game hearings, and in articles for local newspapers. Fish and Wildlife game managers credit student scientists’’s testimony and writing with being “deeply influential” during the protracted effort to create marine protected areas (MPAs) along the Southern California coast in 2010. One burly MPA opponent publicly challenged one SMASH student, Jasper R, suggesting that he was merely parroting his teacher’s views. Jasper quickly set that notion to rest with an articulate and respectful rebuttal. Imagine a world where 14- year- old boys routinely exhibit such poise, consideration, and effectiveness. These new science standardsNGSS will allow and encourage similar these learning experiences for s learning pathways where this could be a reality for many children and adolescents.; SMASH and Heal the Bay are already producing just such learning experiences. Great teachers everywhere know that experience is the real teacher and we are just guides or advisors to learners as they explore the world. and their Even adolescents love touching sea cucumbers, examining colorful anemones, or even kissing sharks. This last activity is not recommended for everyone, but my students loved this for some reason and made it a yearly tradition. In NGSS, Hhands-on-activity is encouraged by a new section labeled science and engineering practices (SEPs). Science in action is one way to think about this hands on teaching method. Building and physically handling tools or interesting artifacts things is fundamental to how new generation NGSS learning environments are different from textbook driven education. At the In Aaquarium, this practice this looks like kids of all ages using oceanographic tools to measure dissolved oxygen, collecting plankton for analysis, and explaining their results in demanding “lab practical’s.” At SMASH this has looked like bBuilding underwater robots, testing water quality, and designing experimental equipment like wave tanks and “green surfboards”.” is science in action at SMASH. Are some of the The most lasting impacts of effective NGSS style teaching within learners are Tthe students’ feelings of empowerment and the critical life-skills habits of initiative, persistence, and striving for continuous improvement are the most lasting impacts of effective Next Generation Science Standards . If such habits are what you want for your learners, then get on down to the Aquarium and develop the partnerships that will make your classroom into a model NGSS learning environment. SMASHing students have used these effective habits to win prestigious academic contests like QuikScience, restore riparian habitats in Malibu Creek, and as launch pads for effective high school experiences at public and independent high schools across the Westside. A former student, Naomi commenting on our experiences with the Aaquarium said, “thisThis is teaching us to change the world.” Call 310-393-6149, ext. 105 to reserve a field trip at the Aquarium or learn more about the education programs of Heal the Bay at https://healthebay.org/educators
Guest blogger Kurt Holland is a marine science and environmental education leader; for ten years he taught science at Santa Monica School House (SMASH). He will be contributing occasional blogs on science education.
Aquarium volunteer Audree Fowler will mark her 80th birthday on Monday, Oct. 7. The following information appeared in a volunteer newsletter several years ago, but her remarkable career bears celebrating again.
Google Audree Fowler, long-time Santa Monica Pier Aquarium volunteer, and scores of entries appear. Want to delve into the world of protein sequencing? This retired UCLA biochemist’s published works are available. The annual selection of the Audree Fowler Fellows in Protein Science (recipients of the fellowship she endowed at UCLA’s Molecular Biology Institute) shows up too. And then there’s the reference to Scottish country dancing.
“Scottish country dancing was my hobby for 30 years,” Audree explains. “I finally stopped six years ago, but [the dancing] took me to Edinburg to summer school as well as to Victoria to dance. I still have many friends from that time.”
Wednesdays wouldn’t be the same without Audree, who has volunteered at the Aquarium since 1999, when she retired as the director of UCLA’s Molecular Biology Institute. She’s logged 1,866 volunteer hours, and a few years back was awarded a Heal the Bay “SuperHealer” award. While Audree is also a docent at the Annenberg Beach House in Santa Monica, she is ever the ambassador for the Aquarium; one August evening she rented the Aquarium to introduce the marine center to a group of Annenberg docents.
Born in Los Angeles and raised on a farm in Long Beach, Audree says she’s been at UCLA “forever.” She was a trailblazer for women in science: Audree earned her bachelors degree in chemistry in1956 and went on to earn a Ph.D in the nearly all-male biochemistry division in 1963. “There was one gal ahead of me in the program and one behind me, and we three were it. Today, women make up at least half of the students coming through graduate level science programs.”
Audree’s passion for travel has led her to embark on many UCLA alumni trips, on Elderhostel tours around the globe, and she continues to travel to conferences for the many science-based associations to which she belongs. If she misses a couple of Wednesdays at the Aquarium, staff knows when she returns it will be with an assortment of pens and pencils to share and she’ll be sporting some crazy new socks that tie in to her travels.
Happy Birthday, Audree!
Want to join Audree as a volunteer at the Aquarium? Learn how you can get involved.
Find out if your favorite watering hole is on the honor roll or flunking out.