Resources: We recommend the following links for teachers, students, environmentalists, scientists, and anyone interested in learning more about renewable energy and solar power.

Glossary

Visit our online glossary for detailed definitions of renewable energy and electrical terms.

Solar Classroom Resources

The following list offers schools and teachers further training and curricula resources. Several of these groups may have utility funded solar schools programs.

• Solar Schools Program examples (lesson plans, real-time data monitoring of connected solar systems, and links to additional resources):
  • Service territories in the U.S.:
    • OH and AEP: www.aep.com/environmental/education/solar/
    • CA: www.pge.com/solarschools
    • IL: www.illinoissolarschools.org
    • TX: http://www.txu.com/residential/Solar_Academy4.htm
    • RI: http://www.nesea.org/RISchools/teacher_resources.html
  • Australia: http://www.solarschools.net/
  • Philippines: http://www.amore.org.ph/
• Solar School Program developers and implementers (non-profits):
  • The Foundation for Environmental Energy: www.learnenergy.org (expanding environmental and energy literacy, through energy project and related public outreach)
  • NEED (The National Education Development Project): www.need.org
  • The Rahus Institute: www.rahus.org (a 501(c)(3) non-profit research and educational organization with a focus on resource efficiency)
  • Solar Schoolhouse Summer Institute for Educators: www.solarschoolhouse.org/ssh/ssh_sie2008.html (outline, syllabus, and other resources from the Rahus Institute)
• Energy Kid's Page: www.eia.doe.gov/kids/ (learning activities from the U.S. Government's Energy Information Administration)
• From the U.S. Department of Energy:
  
  • Solar Energy Timeline: www1.eere.energy.gov/solar/solar_timeline.html (major milestones in the historical development of solar energy)
  • Solar Glossary: www1.eere.energy.gov/solar/solar_glossary.html
  • Solar FAQ: http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/solar/cfm/faqs/ (a database of Frequently Asked Questions related to the four solar technologies: Concentrating Solar Power, Photovoltaics, Solar Heating and Solar Lighting)
• Solar Schools Forum: www.school4energy.net (from the European Sustainable Energy Education Forum, available in 11 languages)
• Schools Going Solar: A PDF download of activities to incorporate installed photovoltaic systems into the classroom learning environment http://www.need.org/needpdf/SchoolsGoingSolar2007CA.pdf
• IREC Schools Going Solar news: www.irecusa.org/index.php?id=36 (ongoing news about solar school projects from the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, available as an RSS feed)
• Solarbuzz: www.solarbuzz.com/links/education.htm (education links and a variety of solar resources)

Carbon and Solar Learning Tools

• Carbon Calculators:
  
  • Your Carbon Footprint: http://green.yahoo.com/calculator (asks a few questions to calculate how much CO2 your lifestyle emits, from Yahoo! Green)
  • Zerofootprint Calculator: http://apps.facebook.com/zfcalculator/?auth_token=7a5d4ed6459b1ac38e1f361e55ec845e&installed=1 (a more detailed calculation within the U.S., from the official partner of the World Wildlife Fund's Earth Hour event. Note: You must sign up for Facebook, but we recommend it as a way to stay connected to the 100 People Under the Sun efforts)
• Maps & Charts:
  
  • Hot Spots: The Carbon Atlas: http://kelsocartography.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/carbonatlas.pdf (a PDF download of a detailed map of global carbon emissions, from The Guardian in the UK)
  • Global Solar Power Map: www.solar4power.com/map1-global-solar-power.html (overview of worldwide solar power average Peak Sun Hours, from Advanced Energy Group)
• Animations:
  • Solar Animation: http://www1.eere.energy.gov/solar/animations.html (a one-minute animated video that shows how a solar cell converts sunlight into electricity, in QuickTime or MPEG, from the U.S. Department of Energy)
  • Solar Energy Flash Simulations: www.edumedia-sciences.com/en/a188-solar-energy (a large online library of interactive animations in science education, from eduMedia)
  • Sunsite Funsite: www.tucsonelectric.com/Community/educationalservices/solar/frameset.htm (interactive Flash-based tutorials, from Tucson Electric Power Company)

Renewable Energy

• International Energy Agency: www.iea.org (an intergovernmental organization that advises 28 member countries on reliable, affordable, and clean energy)
  
• World Energy Outlook: www.worldenergyoutlook.org (an authoritative source of energy analysis and projections, from the International Energy Agency. Includes energy projections to 2030)
• U.S. Department of Energy: www.energy.gov
• The Foundation for Environmental Education: www.the-environment.org/index.html (educational programming, energy projects, and related public outreach activities throughout the United States and abroad)
• World Energy and Consumption Page, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_energy_resources_and_consumption (Note: Wikipedia is an open-content collaborative encyclopedia that anyone can edit, with no peer review; please quote with caution)
• Clean Energy States Alliance: www.cleanenergystates.org (a nonprofit organization comprised of members from 16 clean energy funds and two state agencies)
• The Foundation for Environmental Energy: www.learnenergy.org (expanding environmental and energy literacy, through energy project and related public outreach)
• The Berkeley Institute of the Environment: http://bie.berkeley.edu (part of the UC Berkeley Research Center, brings together 300 faculty, dozens of research centers, and thousands of students with research interests in the environment)

Statistics

• Worldometers: www.worldometers.info (world statistics, including energy and population, updated in real time, managed by an international team of developers, researchers, and volunteers)
• Energy Information Administration: www.eia.doe.gov (official energy statistics from the U.S. government)

Solar Events

• World Solar Challenge: www.wsc.org.au (the 2009 challenge: Design and build a car capable of crossing Australia using only sunlight as fuel)
• American Solar Challenge: www.americansolarchallenge.org (an educational sporting event in which university teams, companies, and clubs from around the world compete to build and race solar-powered cars across the U.S.)
• Renewable/Solar Energy Conferences and Fairs: www.solarbuzz.com/infocenterupcoming.htm (regularly updated schedules from Solarbuzz)

Publications, Blogs

• Renewable Energy World: www.renewableenergyworld.com
• Energy Seeds: http://energyseeds.com (an online journal documenting energy and environmental projects at solar schools around the U.S. and the world)
• Technorati's Green Channel: www.technorati.com/lifestyle/green (a page devoted to green blogs from a leading blog search engine).
• Blog posts mentioning solar: www.technorati.com/search/solar+energy?language=en (Technorati's live tracking of the blogosphere)