According to NASA, 97% of climate scientists agree that humans are causing climate change. As this phenomenon can impact every person on the planet, it begs the question, “Why is this even political?”. Political differences are perhaps more polarized than ever in the United States, with 78% of Democrats polled describing climate change as a major threat, as compared to 23% of Republicans, according to Pew Research.
Why this has happened can be debated and argued over, but this does not offer a solution. While the past cannot be undone, educating the next generation of leaders can help build our future. This story will look at two initiatives to educate young people about the realities of climate change in two very different parts of the world; Upstate, New York, and Vieques, Puerto Rico.
Spearheading a global curriculum
One of the best ways to help generate a simple understanding of our environment is inside high school classrooms. At SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY ESF), the college’s “ESF in the High School” program aims to educate Central New York High School students on the global environment, while allowing them to earn college credits. SUNY ESF professor Mark Penhollow doubles as a teacher for this program in Baldwinsville, NY. Penhollow teaches “Global Environment and the Society” in the fall to SUNY ESF students and teaches the same course in the spring to high school students for college credit.
For high school students, this of course helps them not only get ahead in their college careers, but also gives them a holistic understanding of our global environment. To Penhollow, the college credit aspect of the course is not the most important thing. “I want to put it into some sort of context and understand the bigger picture in terms of what it means to be a person on this planet and what it means to the future,” he said. Similar to mandatory health classes, Penhollow argues students should have to take an environmental course. “Even if it's just a single semester for high school students, it is something that… (should be) required because it's our behaviors (and) decisions every day that have a dramatic and direct effect on our ability to thrive in the future” Penhollow said.
How we understand the environment and our climate has much to do with where we live and those associated experiences. In Rochester, New York, Penhollow's curriculum is taught at a local city school, East High School, by Tiarra Worthington. According to Worthington, who has taught Earth Science and the Global Environment college course for 10 years, providing students with hands-on experience is one of the most important aspects of this course. Recently, she was able to take her students to a park through the local science center, “The students were just going to do water analysis and talk about what a healthy stream looks like. But some of them said it was their first time walking in the woods,” Worthington said. While high school curriculum is often locally defined, Worthington sees the importance of a global environment course for all students. “It doesn't even have to be a college credit type course. They should know about climate change. And we're getting a lot of kids that hear the word, but they can't explain it too much,” she said.
In Vieques, Puerto Rico, high school students often face different challenges than some students may have on the mainland. Perhaps the most daunting being, if they want higher education, it requires them to leave their home island. But before they are old enough to do so, each high school student is required to obtain a set number of “Green Hours” before they graduate. Green hours require each student to ‘get outside' and do something for their island that would better the environment.
Recently, I had the opportunity to visit Vieques with fellow students and members of SUNY ESF. During this trip, we were able to sit down with the local high school students, as well as U.S. Fish and Wildlife staff. We found that some students meet with their Vieques Fish and Wildlife office to obtain these set hours. While the boundaries for this are kept broad, it gives students a chance to choose something they prefer and potentially further influence a curiosity that may already exist.
An island off the east coast of Puerto Rico, Vieques has had various challenges in relation to its environment. According to PFAS Investigation Records, early in the 1940s, the United States Navy purchased more than half of the Island of Vieques to conduct a variety of military operations, including test bombings. The Navy would stay on the island for more than 60 years. Over time, the naval half of the island was faced with depleted uranium, Agent Orange, napalm, and heavy metals per Military Task law force.
In 2003, after years of protest, the Navy finally closed their bases and left the island. While this was a massive win for Viequenses, the future of the over 33,000-acre area of their island was still uncertain. Today, the section of the island that the Navy inhabited is still restricted to the public. Although no known military operations are being conducted, there are many unexploded ordinances (UXOs) that have not been located or detonated, leaving the Navy’s mark on this island as indelible as ever. Furthermore, a growing understanding of the long-lasting health impacts of Agent Orange and other devices of chemical warfare has been a massive concern of Viequenses today according to USA Today.
In Conclusion
Whether in upstate New York or an island off the coast of Puerto Rico, educating the youth on climate change and the importance of sustainability is an increasing priority for educators.
Values like a shared understanding of science and an appreciation for the natural world are not difficult or complicated topics. These simple understandings are taught when East High Students are brought to their local park, or when Viequenses High School students obtain their green hours.
Meeting your green hours in the tropical island of Vieques or leaving the city limits of Rochester NY to go to a state park may seem different, but the beauty of this world has the potential to build the bridge for this unnecessary divide, no matter where we are.
Photo Credits: Robert Beauchamp, and Nichole Dougherty
Special Thanks to Tyler Dorholt, Aaron Dye, Jason Kohlbrenner, Abbey Leibert, Mark Penhollow, Nicole Rattle, Olivia Whitmarsh, and Tiara Worthington