2019 Annual Appeal
Dear NMEA Supporters,
As another year comes to a close on our ocean planet, we like to take a moment to look back and reflect on all that has occurred within our organization and in the greater world of marine and aquatic education. Here are are just a few of the highlights:
This summer, NMEA’s 44th annual conference was held in Durham, New Hampshire. The conference brought over 300 attendees from around the world together to renew friendships, share stories and curricula, promote Ocean Literacy, and remind ourselves of our mission “to make known the world of water.”
Throughout the year, NMEA has kept up a strong social media presence, especially with our #WeAreNMEA campaign. This journey has given us an in-depth look at our members: who we are, where we work, and what we do. Each week, one of our members shares their connection to NMEA and Ocean Literacy. For some members, we learn of their journey into water education; for others we learn about where they work and the students they work with. Some have even been brave enough to take over the NMEA Instagram account for the week, to give us an up close and personal look into their life and work! It has been fascinating to see and read about our members each week, and we look forward to continuing this into the new year.
NMEA has taken steps to be more responsive to our members' needs and to the greater education community. Our peer-reviewed journal, Current, has become open access and will soon be hosted on a digital platform. This will provide greater access for anyone seeking high quality information on best practices in marine and aquatic education research, ocean literacy, classroom and free-choice learning activities, marine science art, maritime history, and literature.
NMEA continues to reach out to new stakeholders. As a lead partner in the ocean literacy movement, we look forward to opportunities to contribute meaningfully with our colleagues in international marine education networks, as the United Nations prepares for the Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. We have continued our commitment to student engagement through webinars and support of the Student Conference at our annual conference. An ad-hoc committee has been established to focus attention on issues related to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Although all of these accomplishments should be celebrated, there is still work to be done. With your support, donations to this year’s Annual Appeal will extend our influence in places and spaces where we have not been before. Our vision for change includes new initiatives in several areas. We hope to offer more travel support to members within the United States, as well as leaders coming from developing nations. A webinar series will connect our student members with professionals in a variety of marine science careers, showcase the importance of Traditional Knowledge for ocean conservation, and demonstrate the diversity of our members. Through conferences, summits, publications, and digital tools, we will share the principles and practices of ocean literacy with new audiences. Our organization is dependent upon memberships and donations. We need your help to make these ideas come to fruition.
So, in this season of giving, we ask you to support our efforts through a donation of any amount in order to meet these goals. Visit https://www.marine-ed.org/donate to make your tax-deductible donation to our Annual Appeal. Together we can make a difference, one drop at a time.
Lauren Rader
NMEA President-elect