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The Critical Need for Climate Education in U.S. K-12 Public Schools

By Ellery Spikes '24


Climate change (Merriam-Webster): Significant and long-lasting change in the Earth's climate and weather patterns due to an increase in the greenhouse effect, primarily due to pollution.



Climate Literacy (Earthday.org): A climate literate person is a critical thinker who understands complex relationships of multiple variables of the climate system and acts in the best interest of long-term global health. These individuals make informed and thoughtful decisions based on science, economic and social factors to have the least impact on the climate system, including a person’s carbon, water, and land footprint.



Climate Change Education (Earthday.org): Holistic learning about the complex, global, interdependent climate system and all of the variables contributing to anthropogenic (human-influenced) climate change.



Net-Zero (Net Zero Climate.org): A state in which the greenhouse gases (fossil fuels & other emissions) going into the atmosphere are balanced by removal out of the atmosphere.



Ask yourself, how much do you know about climate change? How much do you talk about this subject? Many people grapple with discussing climate change, and the silence on the issue extends into our classrooms.

Climate change is one of the greatest threats to our futures, yet it is largely ignored in American school classrooms today. Annually, young people spend roughly 1,000 hours or nearly one-third of their waking hours in school. Outside of the home, school is the most influential environment for young people. A 2019 NPR poll found that while 86% of teachers supported educating students on climate change, only 42% have ever covered the climate in their classroom, and just 45% of students discuss the subject with family. A 2016 study found that the average time even a science teacher devoted to the topic was only 1.5 hours per school year - not nearly enough!

Climate education should be integrated into all K-12 school curriculums in the United States since climate change impacts everyone. The traditional curriculums fail to prepare this generation for the climate-impacted future. An increasingly unstable climate has led to 2020’s detrimental disasters like the California and Colorado wildfires, which combined burned over 5 million acres, and 30 Atlantic season hurricanes - the highest annual number recorded in history. Furthermore, 2020 tied with 2016 as the warmest year on record. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) says we have only until 2030 to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by 50% to safeguard our future from the worst effects of climate change. This is the critical decade. The world also must meet net-zero emissions by 2050.

We will be the adults carrying the burden and responsibilities of climate change, so why are we not prepared with climate education? Our generation’s involvement in the active solutions currently underway will be essential to meet net-zero goals and create a brighter future. Students cannot contribute to progress if they do not receive this education.

No matter what careers we pursue, being comprehensively educated on climate issues early on will benefit us all. Not only will we be better poised to participate in the global green economies, but we will be more conscientious consumers and more informed advocates for a better world! In schools today, we fail to communicate to students that personal and societal success is connected to a stable environment.

A starting point could be learning about the seventeen United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG), each of which is imperative to our future. We could be learning about how to reduce the impacts of air pollution, which affects 75% of humans; plastic pollution, a byproduct of fossil fuels, that is harming our health and wreaking havoc on our ecosystems, and poor agricultural practices that are ruining our soil’s ability to absorb carbon dioxide from the air. We should be discussing the realities of climate migration and displacements. We should be exploring the exciting technologies and careers influenced by climate change.

As a 9th-grade student, I have experienced first-hand the disconnect between the dialogue of the climate crisis on the world stage and the near silence in classrooms. Students must rely on outside sources for information, like the news or social media that often spread fear and misconceptions about the climate crisis. I’ve learned nearly everything I know about climate change through my deliberate search for information not offered in school.

Not only do young people need to be educated on climate change, but we want to be! Many recall the Global Climate Strike in September of 2019, inspired by 16-year-old Greta Thunberg and others. Some 7 million people participated in over 150 countries. In NYC, there were a reported 250,000 people, many of whom were passionate students, like me, who were excused from school to participate. Sadly, the momentum and urgency communicated through the climate strikes haven’t been carried into our schools.

Climate change is an emotionally distressing issue for young people. According to a recent Washington Post poll, when teens were asked how they feel about climate change, 57% were afraid, 54% were motivated, 52% were angry, and 43% felt helpless. It’s time the U.S. education system acknowledges this reality and provides the proper instruction we will need to empower us.

Some argue that climate change doesn’t relate to school subjects. According to the same NPR poll, 65% of teachers don’t teach climate change because they do not see a connection to their courses. While this reasoning is understandable, I would reason that climate change applies to every subject. It’s a Physical Ed and health matter, because pollution compromises young people's health. It is a science and mathematics matter because our hope for solving the climate crisis lies predominantly in innovative technologies and engineering. It is an English, Language, Music, Theater, and Art matter because imagining brighter futures and reconciling climate uncertainty through song, literature, film, visuals, and storytelling are meaningful mediums. It is a social studies matter because the burden of climate change’s worst environmental impacts has disproportionately harmed marginalized groups, particularly communities of color. Climate change is relevant in every subject, though integrating climate instruction into school curriculums will require vision and commitment at the school, state, and national levels!

The prospect of classrooms nurturing this generation of climate leaders is surely motivation to expand our K-12 curriculum. This change has begun! In 2020, New Jersey became the first U.S. state to mandate climate education be taught across all subjects in K-12 public schools to some 1.4 million students by 2021! Other states, including New York, must follow their lead in providing climate instruction that will prepare young people for the future.


What NEST+m Can Do!

At NEST, we can address the climate crisis by holding more restorative circle events where the community has a space to talk about these challenging climate issues and the UN SDGs. We should also encourage teachers to have more climate conversations in classrooms and advisories. I genuinely believe a community approach to understanding the climate crisis is important. Furthermore, while we are all isolated, a school-wide conversation around climate change could be a purposeful way to unite our community around a shared purpose!





What you can do now!

  1. Talk about climate change: Pledge to have a conversation about climate change today, whether with a family member, friend, teacher, or colleague. Watch this TED talk on the importance of speaking up about climate change.

  2. Sign up for NY Times Climate Fwd: a weekly newsletter that delivers the latest news on climate issues to your inbox. (Sign up is free with students’ DOE NY Times subscription)! https://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/climate-change

  3. Watch the talks and performances from the global launch of TED Climate COUNTDOWN (an initiative to accelerate climate solutions) and sign up for their updates. https://www.ted.com/series/countdown.

  4. Read about the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: https://sdgs.un.org/goals.

  5. Support Bill S7341 to establish climate education in all of NY State’s K-12 curriculums. Vote “Aye” and leave a brief message of support for your senator! https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2019/s7341





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