Imhoff In response to an Announcement of Opportunity for the Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment Program (GLOBE) this project is designed to meet the GLOBE goals and objectives of linking scientists and schoolchildren in a global information network with the ultimate goal of better understanding the Earth's environment and changes that take place within it. The specific goals of this project are to introduce students in grades K-12 to the concept of soils as a basic building block of terrestrial ecosystems and the concept of ecosystem services that support human life. The teaching and learning environment will be integrated with actual baseline data gathering efforts being carried out for global change modeling projects supported by NASA as part of Mission to Planet Earth. The use of satellite and aircraft based remote sensing technology will be a significant part of the program. A primary task of the proposed effort will be the creation of a new set of education packages through integration of satellite remote sensing and geographic information system technology with already existing K-12 soil science education models. The new packages will take on the viewpoint of soils being part of an inter-dependent network of Earth system functions and an important provider of ecosystem services.
