The NOAA Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) Program was established in 2002 to improve the understanding
of environmental stewardship of students and teachers through education. Recognizing that an educated community is
the key to understanding and sustaining the National ocean and coastal environments, NOAA has developed B-WET Programs
in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, Monterey Bay watershed, and the Hawaiian Islands.
The B-WET Program strives to create a population that is knowledgeable about the environment by supporting organizations
that use the environment as the context for learning. Using the outdoors, a bay, stream, or the surrounding landscape as a
living laboratory provides the opportunity to teach students about their connection to the greater environment. The
environment can provide a platform that interests learners and revitalizes teachers.
Funded projects provide "meaningful" outdoor experiences for students and professional development opportunities for
teachers in the area of environmental education.
