NJClimateWeek: Sea Level Rise

• This video details how and why New Jersey is more vulnerable to sea level rise than many other coastal areas.
• The video also shows current efforts underway in New Jersey and what needs to happen moving forward in order to keep residents safe, informed, and ready to act.

Positives

• Several New Jersey government employees are included in the video, which provide students with multiple perspectives. 
• The video is very informative and includes graphics that will support visual learners. 

Additional Prerequisites

• Students should have an understanding of how sea level rise is connected to global warming.
  

Differentiation

• Social studies classes can use this resource in order to discuss the role governments can play in combating climate change. Discussion questions could include:
  • What steps has New Jersey taken?
  • What steps should be taken next? 
• After watching this video, have students (individually, in groups, or in pairs) use the New Jersey Flood Mapper tool to explore a chosen or assigned area of the New Jersey coastline and answer the following questions:
  • From your understanding of the video, why is this part of New Jersey susceptible to flooding?
  • At what level of sea level rise is this area going to flood? 
  • What else did you learn from using the flood mapping tool?
  • What actionable items from the video could help the people living in this part of New Jersey?
  • In your opinion, what else should New Jersey, The United States, or the world do to combat sea level rise? 
• Other related resources include this video about sea level rise in Boston, this activity about rising sea levels, and this data set that focuses on sea level. 

This resource addresses the listed standards. To fully meet standards, search for more related resources.