Senate Bill 464 (PDF), introduced on March 4, 2021, and referred to the Senate Education Committee, would, if enacted, require the state department of education "to develop a set of key environmental, climate, and sustainability principles and concepts" and to take a variety of steps to ensure that they are reflected in Rhode Island's public schools.
Of particular note, the bill calls for the revision of the state science standards for science and social studies where appropriate, for guidance to be given of how to incorporate climate change into math and English language arts, and for teacher professional development in science, civics, and social science to include the key principles and concepts.
Senate Bill 464 is identical to House Bill 5625; these are the first bills ever aimed at supporting climate change education in Rhode Island. Two non-binding resolutions expressing the legislature's support for increased climate education (HR 7471 and the virtually identical SR 2626) were introduced in 2020 but ultimately died in committee.
