Educators On A Hot Topic: Global Warming 101

Organizers of Saturday's nationwide March for Science have some pretty lofty goals: supporting science "as a pillar of human freedom and prosperity." Promoting "evidence-based policies in the public interest." Oh, and don't forget highlighting "the very real role that science plays in each of our lives and the need to respect and encourage research that gives us insight into the world."

Whoa, that's a lot of exalted ground to cover with one cardboard sign!

But long after those signs and slogans are put away, educators will continue the fun, hard slog of helping students understand key issues, like global warming, the science behind it and what students can do to help.

I reached out to three veteran experts on climate science education — Scott Denning, Frank Niepold and Rebecca Anderson — who'll be working on the issue during and after this weekend's marches. I wanted to hear more about their work and challenges, especially at a time when the head of the EPA has questioned the human role in global warming and President Trump has proposed slashing climate change funding and pulling back many environmental regulations.

First up: Scott Denning. By day, at Colorado State and the founding science chair of the North American Carbon Program. He's produced lots of peer-reviewed scholarly papers on the topic.