Everyone has a role to play in climate change and education is key to giving our future generations the support they need to address it.
According to this NPR article, 86% of teachers and 80% of parents believe that climate change should be taught, but only 42% actually teach it. There is a lot to learn and many resources that can be found.
To start educating, we must learn. I’m new to climate restoration. It’s a term that was started by Peter Fiekowsky in 2008. He inspired the scientific community to look at removing CO2 from the atmosphere. Learning about climate restoration, and how achievable it is, is so exciting! It’s been a lot of doom and gloom lately with COVID so thinking about the state of the environment is overwhelming. We are fortunate that there are advocates like Greta Thunberg, Peter Fiekowsky, and Dr. Erica Dodds, fighting to improve the planet and take measures to restore it.
Dr. Erica Dodds, eco-anxiety and environmental expert, is a climate advocate working with the Foundation for Climate Restoration, the nonprofit committed to removing the excess carbon from our atmosphere. Erica spends much of her time speaking with youth and millennials about how proactive optimism is the only rational response to the existential threat of climate change. At just 29 years old, Erica has presented at the UN Headquarters and multiple different youth climate convenings across the country.
This Earth Day, it will be easier than ever to arm the next generation of youth climate activists with facts and give them hope with the new and free online Climate Restoration Course. This course, created by the Foundation for Climate Restoration (F4CR), is specially designed by teachers for students in grades 3-5. Start the course here.
With age-appropriate modules dedicated to explaining climate change, demystifying climate restoration, and debunking myths, kids will complete the course feeling confident about their knowledge and empowered to make the difference our planet needs. Activities include a letter-writing contest, drawing contest, and a final quiz.
Most importantly, kids will walk away with hope and an understanding of what we all can do to protect our planet.
This Earth Day, spend a few minutes with your children and help them to get a better understanding of what we can do to protect and restore our climate. It’s not over yet. There is work to be done, but we can all make small changes to help and make a difference!
“Envision the planet that you want to see in 2021. Ask not what your planet can do for you, but what you can do for your planet. Align your actions with the outcome you want to see, and take heart in the fact that your actions make a difference. The more you can do to make the planet livable, the less eco-anxiety you’re likely to have.”
Erica Dodds
About F4CRFoundation for Climate Restoration (F4CR) – the nonprofit that works with the United Nations Office for Partnerships and Earth Day, F4CR is on the cutting edge of the climate conversation. Their work is pushing boundaries and influencing politicians and global movements to adopt the mindset that we can restore the climate. F4CR has researched, supported, and championed proven-safe solutions and technologies available today that, once at scale, will remove the trillion tons of excess CO2 from the atmosphere.
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