The use of symbols in the various conceptual diagrams that the Integration and Application Network staff have been employing as part of science communication taps an ancient and effective communication technique. Symbols are universal, transcending cultural and language barriers, as demonstrated by the global adoption of the IAN symbol libraries. I recently experienced two examples of the development and utilization of IAN symbols which shed light on the symbols that we employ.

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I attended "The Great Ocean Adventure: An evening with Jean-Michel Cousteau" event at the Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology (IMET) in Baltimore's inner harbor on 9 October 2013. The event included dinner with fish that were raised in the Aquaculture Research Center, a facility pioneered by Yoni Zohar, which is developing sustainable aquaculture approaches using recirculating aquaculture facility in the ground level of IMET.

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The Integration and Application Network has teamed up with Opinion Works LLC, an Annapolis based group of researchers interested in understanding behaviors related to environmental policies. This effort is funded by the Chesapeake Bay Trust, and is part of the effort by the Mid-Atlantic Tributary Assessment Coalition of various watershed groups to effect better watershed stewardship.

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Field Manual for Water Quality Monitoring in Schools: An Environmental Education Program for Schools, Keith Mitchell & Bill Stapp … I found this to be a very useful book when I started showing kids how to monitor streams. There are some inspirational things in the book, particularly where they talk about all the different places in the world where this approach is being used. Shouldn't Our Grandchildren Know?

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There are three things that the community needs to be able to say collectively in order to successfully confront an environmental challenge. The community needs to be able to say "We care" about a specific environmental issue, which comes from the heart. The community also needs to be able to "We know" what the right thing to do would be, which comes from the head. Finally, the community needs to be able to say "We can", referring to their ability to institute the appropriate actions.

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Healthy Waterways Healthy Catchments is now available for free in PDF format from IAN press. Healthy Waterways Healthy Catchments: Making the connection in South East Queensland, Australia … This 238 pp. book was the fourth in a series of four books produced as part of the Healthy Waterways campaign in Southeast Queensland. It was published in 2005 and summarized the scientific findings from a variety of different projects that were conducted as part of Phase 3 of the Healthy Waterways program.

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Discover the Waterways is now available for free in PDF format from IAN Press. Discover the Waterways of South-East Queensland … This book was the third of a series of four books produced as part of the Healthy Waterways campaign in Southeast Queensland. It was published in 2001 and was intended to provide citizens with enough context to view key ecosystem features from different vantage points around Southeast Queensland.

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Moreton Bay Study is now available for free in PDF format from IAN Press. Moreton Bay Study: A Scientific Basis for the Healthy Waterways Campaign … This book was the second of a series of four books produced as part of the Healthy Waterways campaign in Southeast Queensland. It was published in 1999 and was the first summary of the scientific findings of Healthy Waterways.

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The crew member's guide to the health of our waterways is now available for free in PDF format from IAN Press. The crew member's guide to the health of our waterways … This short book (~100 pp.) was the first of a series of four books produced as part of the Healthy Waterways campaign in Southeast Queensland. It was published in 1998 and was a key component of the campaign in a variety of ways. First, the book was inexpensively priced to encourage wide dissemination.

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Maryland's greenhouse gas reduction plan: Executive summary … This 20 page booklet was produced in 2013 for the Maryland Department of Environment to summarize a long (300+ pp.) and detailed Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan. The short, bold statements that are highlighted at the beginning of the booklet are very powerful: "Climate change is real. Scientists agree. It's happening now. It's harmful and human caused.

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