NMEA Book Endorsement Program 

Purpose: 

To advance ocean literacy by creating a transparent, credible process for endorsing books that exemplify and further NMEA’s mission, demonstrate scientific accuracy, and promote diverse perspectives. These endorsements are aimed at guiding community members, partners and the public towards trustworthy resources as well as supporting authors, illustrators, and publishers who align with NMEA’s organizational values. 

Benefits of NMEA endorsing books: 

  • NMEA will gain first-hand knowledge about quality, accessible resources, which when shared with its members become a value add to membership 

  • Potential to build NMEA’s brand and membership base – authors promote endorsements on their websites, social media, print, and sometimes even on jacket covers, bringing eyes to NMEA. 

  • NMEA members would see an NMEA endorsement as a seal of approval, supporting them in their resource choices. 

Benefits of an NMEA endorsement for the author: 

  • An endorsement from NMEA has the potential to impact promotion and visibility of quality books and educational content. 

  • Book endorsements help authors to get their books into schools and nonformal spaces. 

  • Educators and the general public see the endorsement as validating and legitimizing their work. 

  • Endorsement supports authors with foreign rights sales. They help sell international rights because foreign publishers look for books that have won awards and/or been endorsed by known entities (people and orgs). 

  • A NMEA endorsement will help get a book seen by other marine education organizations globally. 

Endorsement Criteria: 

Books considered for endorsement should: 

  • Align with NMEA’s vision, mission, values and goals 

  • Demonstrate scientific accuracy and up-to-date research from credible sources 

  • Nonfiction books for adults or youth designed to educate and/or showcase scientific concepts. NMEA is especially interested in books about: o Ocean & water literacy 

    • Climate change

    • Ocean and aquatic science, conservation, or biodiversity

    • Narratives about research (vs. research papers) 

    • Promote environmental stewardship 

  • Amplify diverse voices and perspectives, especially from marginalized and Indigenous communities 

  • Reflect inclusive language and representation in text and/or imagery 

  • Be professionally published by a recognized publisher, organization, or academic institution 

  • Only books submitted by the author, illustrator, publisher, editor, or an agent representing either the author or illustrator, will be accepted. 

Books that will not be considered for endorsement include: 

  • Self-published books 

  • Books that contain pseudoscience, climate change denials, and/or books that misrepresent scientific fact in content or illustrations 

  • Books that include discriminatory, stereotyped, or harmful portrayals 

  • Books that violate our 501(c)(3) nonprofit status requirements 

  • Books published within 2 years from submission. NOTE: for the first year of this new process, we will review books published within the last 5 years.

Expectations: 

Submit a Title for Endorsement

NMEA will... 

  • Provide author, illustrator, and/or publisher with an endorsement to share as they see fit, 

  • Promote the book to membership through newsletter and website, 

  • Endeavour to have the review complete within 3 months, 

  • Provide an NMEA endorsement seal for use with endorsement, and 

  • Post on a new section of the website a list of all of the books endorsed by NMEA with the following text on the page: 

    • The following books are endorsed for their scientifically accurate treatment of their topic, strong environmental stewardship, educational quality, and inclusive representation. 

    • NMEA endorsements reflect the book’s content and quality at the time of review; they do not imply agreement with every opinion of the author, illustrator or publisher. 

  • Please Note:

    • At their own discretion, reviewers may also provide a short review (2-5 sentences) that can be used by the author, illustrator and/or publisher. If they believe the book requires a trigger warning for any potentially triggering content, they will indicate that. 

    • All endorsement decisions are final and NMEA reserves the right to withdraw their endorsement at any time. 

Authors, Illustrators and Publishers will... 

  • Follow all terms and conditions of endorsement, reviews, and logo use, including:

    • Use the following language: [book title] is a National Marine Educators Association Recommended Title when mentioning the endorsement 

    • Link to NMEA wherever the endorsement is used online, including on a website 

    • Tag NMEA (@NatlMarineEd) in all social media posts that include mention of the endorsements and/or NMEA reviews 

Rubric 

The following criteria will be used when reviewing all books. 

  1. NMEA alignment – advances NMEA’s goals, aligns with vision and mission 

  2. Scientific accuracy – correct, current, evidence-based content, supported by reputable sources 

  3. Environmental messaging – authentic treatment of environmental issues, stewardships and solutions, special emphasis on ocean literacy, marine/aquatic, etc. Offers stories of action, hope, and opportunity for positive change. 

  4. Presentation clarity – concepts are explained in an accessible way for the intended audience (age/grade), narrative has a clear structure and concepts are presented in a logical way, terms and concepts are defined and jargon is avoided 

  5. Creativity & craft – strong and engaging narrative, unique perspective or approach, effective, accurate illustrations that complement/enhance the story (or images, graphics, photos, etc.) 

  6. Age appropriate clarity – text is clearly written for the age group for which it is intended 

  7. Equity and representation – text uses inclusive language and imagery reflects diversity 

  8. Educational value – book is educationally sound and content connects to educational standards; includes backmatter, such as recommended reading, resource list, educational activities, curriculum links, etc. where appropriate. 

Submission Requirements:

To submit a book: 

  1. Review endorsement criteria and expectations above

  2. Complete the submission form (you will need publisher and illustrator information, links to website and/or social media)

  3. Provide a full and final pdf or ARC. The pdf/ARC should include all illustrations, diagrams, photos, backmatter, etc.