To the Department of Conservation & Recreation,
 
As a current university student pursuing a degree in environmental science and has gone through the public school system, I have witnessed first-hand the lack of formal education on our environment and the impact that we, as a society, have on it. Education is crucial in addressing our current environmental crisis as it fosters awareness, promotes behavior changes, and equips civilians to adequately address environmental challenges in their communities. Additionally, environmental education helps to ensure that the public is making an informed decision on who we elect as our decision-makers, whether that be our politicians, business leaders, or policymakers. Knowledge in environmental sciences can influence how legislation and regulations are passed that focus on addressing environmental issues such as wildlife conversation or passing regulations honing in on the reduction of pollution. As outlined in the document, our education and our environment are constantly intertwining in our lives and it is our civil responsibility to ensure that future generations are properly educated on the importance of our environment and how we can work collectively to preserve its beauty. 
 
In my public school education, I hardly remember ever receiving any teaching pertaining to environmental science. At the most, I was taught the basic concepts of environmental science such as the Carbon Cycle and Nitrogen Cycle. I was never taught environmental science from a social science standpoint. Environmental issues are a complex blend of various aspects of our society and in order to address them effectively we must take into account how can effectively play our role in the policy process to ensure our society has impactful environmental policies.
Education for future generations lays the groundwork to ensure that we are building a better future. Currently one of the greatest barriers to our implementation of effective environmental policy lies in the education of the people. Lack of education stands as a barrier to our understanding of environmental issues as an average individual of voting age in the United States (ages 18-29) has a subpar understanding of scientific processes as identified by a study conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2019. This study highlights that individuals who were asked 11 questions pertaining to various scientific components such as whether they understood that "deforestation on land leads to increased erosion" only scored an average of 6.7 questions correct out of 11. This raises concerns for the general public's understanding of the severity of our current global environmental crisis and raises red flags about the American public education system. This research underscores the importance of education in the sciences and emphasizes a greater emphasis on people's understanding of scientific processes as a gateway to navigate ongoing debates connected to scientific issues. 
 
Our country has navigated through various cycles in the policy-making process and these cycles will continue to bounce around with each presidential administration, however, our role will not change. There is a violent pendulum that swings between liberal and conservative policies between presidencies, which is why our environment depends so strongly on the American public's concern about the environment. We must build this concern in the classroom and cultivate an educational standard that emphasizes the need to protect our planet!
 
As someone who was born and raised in Virginia, I urge the state to continue forward emphasizing education for environmental issues in the classroom. Federalism gives way for states to take power when our federal government isn't. Environmental policy is dominated by the states and we continue to see amazing strides in policy implementation at the state level which is why Virginia must move forward with the outlined environmental literacy framework. We have historically seen huge strides put forth by other states across the nation. Virginia has made strides to be a greener state, but we must continue to grow and evolve and we must provide future generations with the same opportunities to advance. 
It is imperative that we enhance our student literacy. I was born and raised in Virginia. I have been enrolled in Virginia public schooling from elementary school and I continue to educate myself at a Virginia university I can only hope that Virginia will continue to do right by our future scholars and implement a policy that enhances their learning in a way that will not only better their education, but better our future.
 
I hope you will take me and the rest of the students of Virginia into consideration when considering this framework. 
Ashleigh Mann - Longwood University