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HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 1596 FILED ON: 1/15/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 560
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_________________
PRESENTED BY:
Mindy Domb
_________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act implementing elementary and secondary interdisciplinary climate literacy education.
_______________
PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Mindy Domb3rd Hampshire1/15/2025 1 of 5
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 1596 FILED ON: 1/15/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 560
By Representative Domb of Amherst, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 560) of Mindy
Domb relative to implementing elementary and secondary interdisciplinary climate justice
education in the Commonwealth. Education.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
(2025-2026)
_______________
An Act implementing elementary and secondary interdisciplinary climate literacy education.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. Chapter 29 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022 Official Edition,
2is hereby amended by adding the following section.
3 Section 2BBBBBB
4 (a) To achieve, promote and support the instruction of interdisciplinary climate literacy
5education for K-12 public school students in districts across the commonwealth, there shall be
6established and set up on the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the
7Interdisciplinary Climate Literacy Trust Fund. There shall be credited to the fund: (1) revenue
8from appropriations and other money authorized by the general court and specifically designated
9to be credited to the fund; (2) funds from public and private sources such as gifts, grants, and
10donations to further interdisciplinary climate literacy education; and (3) interest earned on money
11in the fund. Amounts credited to the fund shall not be subject to further appropriation and any
12money remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not revert to the General Fund. 2 of 5
13 (b)(1) The commissioner of elementary and secondary education, in consultation with
14the Interdisciplinary Climate Literacy Council established in section 1U(b) of chapter 69 of the
15General Laws, shall make expenditures from the fund, without further appropriation, to support
16the development and implementation of Elementary and Secondary Interdisciplinary Climate
17Literacy Plans, including, but not limited to:
18 (i) development, purchase, distribution and implementation of curricular materials for
19interdisciplinary climate literacy;
20 (ii) professional development training, including the provision of trainings, seminars,
21conferences and materials, for educators to use in the teaching of interdisciplinary climate
22literacy in K-12 grades;
23 (iii) opportunities for districts and stakeholders to assess and share evidence-based best
24practices in support of climate change education and student skill development, and to provide
25feedback and recommendations to the department; and
26 (iv) provide technical support to districts for their elementary and secondary
27interdisciplinary climate literacy plans.
28 (2) In making such expenditures, the commissioner shall prioritize underserved
29communities across the commonwealth including those public schools or school districts with
30high concentrations of economically-disadvantaged students; those public schools or school
31districts which serve high proportion of students from environmental justice populations, as
32defined in section 62 of chapter 30 of the General Laws; or which are located in environmental
33justice communities or communities that have or will in the future experience disproportionate
34effects of the change in climate. 3 of 5
35 (3) In making such expenditures, the commissioner may also prioritize schools
36implementing an interdisciplinary climate literacy program for the first time consistent with the
37standards set by the department of elementary and secondary education.
38 SECTION 2. Section 1D of chapter 69 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022
39Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “skills”, in line 38, the following
40words:-
41 , interdisciplinary climate literacy
42 SECTION 3. Chapter 69 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official edition,
43is hereby amended by inserting after section 1T the following new section:-
44 Section 1U. Elementary and Secondary Interdisciplinary Climate Literacy Plans
45 (a) as used in this section the following word shall, unless the context clearly requires
46otherwise, have the following meaning:-
47 “Interdisciplinary climate literacy”, An understanding of how human actions influence
48the climate, and how the climate influences people and other parts of the Earth system through
49the curricula of science, technology, engineering, mathematics, arts, history, social sciences,
50civics, and government.
51 (b) The commissioner shall create an Interdisciplinary Climate Literacy Advisory
52Council. The commissioner, in consultation with the Council, shall promulgate guidelines on the
53development and implementation of district-level Interdisciplinary Climate Literacy Plans.
54 (c) The council shall consist of 10 members: 2 youth leaders from a range of
55communities across the Commonwealth, including representatives of diverse environmental 4 of 5
56justice neighborhoods; 2 representatives of environmental justice organizations; 2 educators
57representing different disciplines from the fields of science, technology, engineering,
58mathematics, arts, history, social sciences, civics, or government; 2 representatives of
59environmental education organizations, 1 educator union representative with experience and
60expertise in youth mentorship, and 2 experts in climate science and best practices in policy.
61 (d) The guidelines promulgated by the commissioner with the Council shall require
62district-level Interdisciplinary Climate Literacy Plans to:
63 (1) be developed with the involvement and input of youth from the district;
64 (2) be developed in consultation with environmental, environmental education, civics,
65and environmental justice organizations or professionals; and
66 (3) provide equivalent culturally competent instruction and opportunities for English
67language learners.
68 (e) Each district may implement an Interdisciplinary Climate Literacy Plan that will
69provide students with an understanding of the causes of, impacts from, and policy proposals
70addressing anthropogenic climate change. Plans shall include, but not be limited to; education
71on environmental justice, the underlying causes of climate change, the effects and consequences
72of climate change, international reactions, history, and progression of scientific climate research
73and governmental and nongovernmental responses; evidence based policy solutions, the role of
74climate and environmental activism in policy making, the essential principles of Earth’s climate
75system, the options to address human-caused climate change, how to recognize credible
76information about climate change and know where to find it; how to communicate about climate 5 of 5
77change in accurate and effective ways, and how to make informed decisions related to climate
78change.
79 (f) The department shall utilize funding from the Interdisciplinary Climate Literacy Trust
80Fund to support districts to develop or implement their Interdisciplinary Climate Literacy Plans.
81 (g) Annually, not later than October 1, the commissioner of elementary and secondary
82education shall report to the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the joint committee
83on education and the house and senate committees on ways and means on the fund’s activities.
84The report shall include, but not be limited to:
85 (i) the source and amount of funds received;
86 (ii) the expenditures made from the fund and the purposes of such expenditures, including
87the school districts that have received funding, indicating those that serve environmental justice
88populations; the purpose of the funds, and the estimated number of students, grade levels, and
89classes who were projected to benefit from the Fund’s support; and
90 (iii) the report shall be publicly available on the department’s website, along with the
91names and sources of educational materials developed or used and the partner organizations
92enlisted, as a result of the grant awards in order to increase access to these resources.