This collection of lesson plans explores winter counts which are pictographic records of historical/memorable events for a tiospaye (community). The pictures, which were used as mnemonic devices, are arranged in chronological order. Originally, the memorable events were recorded on rock, buffalo hide, deer hide, cow hide, and then ledger paper and muslin (cotton fabric). Each tiospaye designated a winter count keeper. The keeper (traditionally a man) of the winter count was the historian for the community. The images on the winter count were used as a reminder/aid to help the keeper (oral historian) remember the events.   

In this video from QUEST, we travel with conservation biologist Dee Boersma to the Galapagos Islands where she works to support a population of penguins that are being impacted by climate change. Boersma has been studying these penguins for over 30 years. Her studies have revealed that the biggest threat to the survival of these temperate penguins is climate change. Global climate change has increased the frequency of weather patterns called El Ni�o events. El Ni�o events produce stronger and more frequent storms, and they reduce upwelling; which occurs when cold oxygen and nutrient rich waters are brought up from the deep ocean.