What I learned from Series 2 of the CHLL Podcast

I learned that not nearly enough is being done in classrooms to educate children about climate change. And that’s a shame because extreme weather, mass migrations, food and water shortages and many other climate change phenomena are already affecting every form of life on this planet.

Many children have been directly impacted by devastating floods, hurricanes, wildfires and other extreme weather events that will continue to become more frequent and more severe. The impact is so ubiquitous that, whether or not children have been directly affected, they know about the threat to their future through social media, the news and the conversations of adults.

I learned in our podcast series, that children think about climate change and wonder why adults are not doing more to respond to and change its dangerous course.

I also learned that there are wonderful education initiatives that support teachers and students to research, learn about, discover, and implement adaptations and solutions to the global crisis. I learned about pockets of classrooms where this teaching and learning is already underway. In these classrooms, students are empowered with the knowledge, skills, confidence and community relationships to enthusiastically embrace the work that every person must undertake for the present and future well-being of our species and all other living things on this planet.

In these classrooms, teachers have more hope for the future, and better ability to engage every child in their classroom, because the content can be situationally applied locally, while connecting globally.

I learned that in 2020 the state of New Jersey passed legislation for climate change to be taught across all subject matter areas: in the sciences, history, math, physical education, dance, music, visual, literary and media arts!

This is real brilliance! What if each state in our country followed the lead?

How many times have children who are asked to memorize multiplication tables, or learn algebraic equations, scientific theories, or the historical advance of societies over millennia asked the question, “Why do we have to learn this?”

The umbrella throughline of the impact of human history and decision-making on the habitable qualities of the planet Earth, where the human species preside, provides a compelling and purposeful answer.

I think that by addressing the pertinent and existential questions confronted by politicians, CEOs, lawmakers, and citizens today, with the children in kindergarten through the 12th grade, and into higher education today, we can prepare a solid foundation of citizens who deeply understand that their purpose is not to become billionaires or superstars.

Rather, their purpose is to establish a sustainable infrastructure for struggling minions and future generations. Today’s leaders can be informed by the educational inquiry of tomorrow’s leaders.

What if, in every grade level, kindergarten through the 12th grade and beyond, students/scholars were asked to imagine the world as it should be.

Enough of the artful narrative of dystopian futures. We get that!

What I think we need is to do is to consistently ask the young, from their time in kindergarten through their experience in higher education, “What is the world as it should be? What are the priorities as they should be? What is the world you imagine that could be?”

That might just change the narrative from the current adversarial “us and them” dialogue/trope, to an ongoing, recursive conversation about collective and aspirational visions for the future, and about the purpose and intention for our present actions across sectors and generations.