Connect! Transform the Future

Teach About Complex Issues in Energy Conservation

Image courtesy NASA

Created to complement the themes of the Electropolis 3D film and the Plan It Green: The Big Switch! game, National Geographic designed education materials to bring students in grades 4-12 content about energy sources, energy efficiency, and energy conservation. These free, standards-based, online education resources were developed for formal and informal educators to engage students in science, social studies, and geography concepts related to energy. These resources provide innovative strategies and approaches to teach about complex energy topics in the classroom.

Questions about energy cannot be easily answered, and energy-related decisions require the work of many experts to address economic, political, environmental, and social factors. Be mindful of the complexity of issues around energy topics in both the national and global conversation as you engage students in these topics.

Educating about energy and energy choices is necessary. Students are future decision-makers, and the choices they make will be crucial to solving tomorrow’s energy problems. Arming students with a greater understanding of energy allows them to make wise choices in their lives and communities.

Activities for Grades 4-8

The Right Balance: Mixing Energy Resources

How can using different combinations of energy resources affect population's use of electricity?

Energy Solutions: Tapping into the Topography of Lake Turkana

How do geographic, environmental, and social factors influence the decisions made around energy challenges?

How does the supply of non-renewable resources affect our supply of electricity?

The Role of Water in the Generation of Electricity

What role does water play in the generation of electricity?

Electrical Energy from Source to Destination

How does energy from a power plant escape before it gets to your home? How does that affect how much energy is available at home?

Hydroelectric and Geothermal: Benefits and Drawbacks

How do hydroelectric and geothermal energy impact the environment? What are the benefits and drawbacks involved in using these energy resources as part of a diversified energy portfolio?

Solar Energy and Diversifying Energy Resources

What are the benefits and drawbacks of using solar farms to generate electricity?

How is energy efficiency information about appliances communicated to consumers?

Conserving Energy through Grid Modernization

What are some ways grid modernization technology increases the efficiency of energy distribution? How do the choices we make as a society affect the conservation of energy?

Activities for Grades 9-12

Will there be enough affordable energy in the United States in the near future? What factors must be considered, and what actions need to be taken?

Using Waste Heat to Generate Electricity

How can waste heat be repurposed to conserve energy and increase efficiency?

How do stakeholder interests determine which specific energy resources a community will use?

Energy Sustainability in the Klamath Basin

How do the needs and wants of different groups affect the complexity of energy decisions?

Encyclopedic Entries

biomass energy

People have used biomass energy—energy from living things—since the earliest “cave men” first made wood fires for cooking or keeping warm. Today, biomass is used to fuel electric generators and other machinery.
Coal

Coal is a nonrenewable fossil fuel that is combusted and used to generate electricity. Mining techniques and combustion are both dangerous to miners and hazardous to the environment; however, coal accounts for about half of the electricity generation in the United States.
Geothermal Energy

Geothermal energy is heat that is generated within the Earth. It is a renewable resource that can be harvested for human use.
Hydroelectric Energy: The Power of Running Water

Hydroelectric energy is power made by moving water. “Hydro” comes from the Greek word for water.
Natural Gas

Encyclopedic entry. Natural gas is a fossil fuel formed from the remains of plants and animals. Other fossil fuels include oil and coal.
non-renewable energy

Non-renewable energy comes from sources that will eventually run out, such as oil and coal.
nuclear energy

Nuclear energy is the energy in the nucleus, or core, of an atom. Nuclear energy can be used to create electricity, but it must first be released from the atom.
oil shale

Oil shale is a type of rock that can be burned for energy or fuel.
Petroleum

Petroleum, or crude oil, is a fossil fuel and nonrenewable source of energy.
Renewable Energy

Renewable energy comes from sources that will not be used up in our lifetimes, such as the sun and wind.
solar energy

Solar energy is created by nuclear fusion that takes place in the sun. It is necessary for life on Earth, and can be harvested for human uses such as electricity.
tidal energy

Tidal energy is power produced by the surge of ocean waters during the rise and fall of tides. Tidal energy is a renewable source of energy.
Putting Wind to Work

Wind energy is produced by the movement of air (wind) and converted into electricity.

Energy Videos

Energy 101: Biofuels

Learn how biomass is converted into clean, renewable transportation fuels to power our cars, trucks, planes, and trains.
Energy 101: Electric Vehicles

Watch electric vehicles drive America toward better fuel economy, lower emissions, lower fuel costs, and increased energy security.
Energy 101: Lighting Choices

Learn about energy-efficient light bulbs that can light your home for less money.
Energy 101: Algae-to-Fuel

Learn about algae, a fast-growing, renewable resource that holds great promise to become a reliable, homegrown fuel source to reduce our nation's reliance on foreign oil.
Energy 101: Energy Efficient Data Centers

Learn how an energy efficient data center's power-saving features significantly reduce energy use and cost while protecting vital data and computing functions.
Energy 101: Solar PV

Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems can generate clean, cost-effective power anywhere the sun shines. This video shows how a PV panel converts the energy of the sun into renewable electricity to power homes and businesses.
Energy 101: Wind Turbines

See how wind turbines generate clean electricity from the power of the wind. Highlighted are the various parts and mechanisms of a modern wind turbine.
Energy Conservation

Wind energy is poised to become a major energy source. Recently, however, people have begun to report problems and complaints with wind turbines built close to houses. There have been some solutions, but the best is to use less energy and conserve, therefore needing less of it. But U.S. government support for renewable energy stills lags. When people begin to see economic and environmental benefits, public attitude won't be far behind.
Solar Power

California, a leading state in solar power, has found many ways to harness the Sun, the most powerful source of energy on the planet. Cities, such as Sacramento, are working to make solar power competitively priced and reliable with bulk use of solar cells and solar panels. California offers its citizens net metering, the option to sell solar power back to utilities and to earn money. In the Mojave Desert, Kramer Junction, a solar power facility, also creates an impressive amount of power.
Kansas Town Rebuilds Green after Disaster

See how residents in the town of Greensburg came together after a tornado leveled almost every structure in the area, built numerous energy efficient buildings, and installed renewable energy systems to save energy and money. This video walks you through many of the new buildings and lets you hear how the town grew back greener than ever.
Careers in Renewable Energy

Watch videos of a live event focused on STEM careers in renewable energy.

National Geographic Explorers

Find out what National Geographic explorers are contributing to the global energy conservation.

Engineer and Renewable Energy Advocate

Urban Planner

Chemist

Interactives

Play National Geographic Games' online, city-building energy game. As the new mayor of Greenville, you are charged with the task of constructing the greenest and most eco-friendly city in the world!

Plan it Green: The Big Switch Educator Guide

Use this educator guide to engage students in Grades 6-8+ with the Plan It Green: The Big Switch game in a variety of settings, both on and out of the classroom.

Have students use this interactive to make informed energy decisions by exploring the relationships between factors such as geographic location, availability of energy resources, cost, and environmental and community impacts.

Energy Data Layers

Use the MapMaker Interactive to explore alternative energy use by countries across the globe.

Use the MapMaker Interactive to explore carbon emissions from countries across the globe.

Electricity Generation from Renewable Energy

Use the MapMaker Interactive to find out which countries are getting their electricity from renewable sources of energy and how they are doing it.

Guides

Check out our environmental literacy teacher guide, designed to familiarize teachers of students in Grades 3-8 with both the technical terminology about energy, and the energy efficiency and conservation issues that have become so important in recent years.

The Connect! Transform the Future collection was designed based the US Department of Energy’s Energy Literacy Principles. These principles provide a framework for energy education for learners of all ages. If understood and applied, the principles help individuals and communities make informed energy decisions.

Energy Resource Photo Gallery

This crop of corn in Ontario, Canada, could be intended for use as fuel, or corn biomass.
Photograph by Wei Chu, My Shot
Labadie, Missouri coal fired power plant viewed from north bank of Missouri river.
Photograph by Charles Brennecke, My Shot
An aerial view shows Decker coal strip mining.
Photograph by Emory Kristof
Debris is cleared from a deep coal-mining operation.
Photograph by Dick Durrance
Aerial view of mountain top leveling for coal mining.
Photograph by George Steinmetz
Geothermal steam pours from the Svartsengi Power Plant at Blue Lagoon in Iceland.
Photograph by Paul A. Souders/CORBIS
A natural gas processing plant changes the face of the tundra.
Photograph by Steve Raymer, National Geographic
Natural gas drilling rigs dot Wyoming's Jonah Field.
Photograph by Joel Sartore
Vapor leaves vents in nuclear power reactors in Belleville sur Loire, Cher, France.
Photograph by CORBIS
The Trans-Alaska pipeline crosses the tundra in North Slope, Alaska.
Photograph by Steve Raymer, National Geographic
Dust hangs in the sky above an open-pit mine in Alberta, Canada.
Photograph by Peter Essick
A solar array forms part of the Gemasolar Power Plant in Seville, Spain.
Photograph courtesy Geo-Eye
Wind power moves much of the Netherlands.
Photograph by Roberto Delamora, My Shot
Turbines turn wind into power in the Philippines.
Photograph by Melinda Mendez, My Shot
An aerial view shows a wind farm in Palm Springs, California.
Photograph courtesy GeoEye
A hydroelectric dam sits on the Inguri River in Jvari, Georgia, Eastern Europe.
Photograph by David Gogokhia, My Shot

A National Collaboration

The Center for Science is a national collaborative network focused on advancing science and technology, starting with the nation's youth. For Connect! Transform the Future, six of its leading science centers have partnered with National Geographic and GE to educate students about energy, engage them in a conversation about the future of energy, and inspire them to be the next generation of scientists and engineers. The Center for Science includes: Center of Science and Industry (OH), Maryland Science Center (MD), Pacific Science Center (WA), Reuben H. Fleet Science Center (CA), Saint Louis Science Center (MO), and The Museum of Science and Industry (IL).

Dennis Dimick, Executive Editor, National Geographic Magazine
Martin Storksdieck, Ph.D., Director of the Board on Science Education (BOSE), National Research Council (NRC)
Matthew Inman, Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow, Department of Energy
Dr. Jennifer Milne, Energy Assessment Analyst, Global Climate and Energy Project, Stanford University
Kathleen O’Brien, Ph.D., Manager, Electric Power Systems, GE Global Research