Growing up, I was privileged with many teachers across all subjects who took it upon themselves to inform me of the climate crisis. My teachers cared about the planet and my science teachers in particular were sure to teach us about what it meant for the climate to be changing. In my elementary school, we even had various staff and student-led initiatives that were aimed at creating habits, learning, and starting movements all aimed toward improving the planet and making sure kids were informed and aware.

Moving into middle school and high school, I suppose I had the same opportunities. But things began to change as we focused on standardized testing, getting into college, the SAT, and every other thing that comes with being a higher-level student. Which makes sense, because that's how school goes. But in the midst of all this, as teachers were working day in and day out to find better ways to make our learning less or memorization and more of real-world application, I found that the climate crisis was not nearly discussed enough.

And now, as a college student, I can see the initiatives and I can hear some discussion, but I'm still growing more afraid than ever. As I see time going faster and faster, with my own freshman year almost over (and it feels like I just moved here), I'm also watching as the icebergs melt, sea levels rise, and our leaders take steps backward in saving ecosystems and to be frank, people of future generations. We're running out of time and I simply can't grasp onto the confidence that I wish I had in society's prioritization of the crisis.

What I think is at the root of fixing all of this, bettering our mentality to be more clear, is our kids. We've said for generations that kids are the future and that applies in so many spheres of life, but in this case especially I think it's true. Our kids will be handling this and I think that when today's 20-somethings are in their old age, they'll regret not doing a better job preparing their children and grandchildren to handle the crisis. The fact of the matter is that if we don't do something now to fix it, it'll be an irreversible problem in a few years and our kids will be thanking us for that.

So when I thought back to my time in elementary, middle, and high school, I was first thankful for the few elementary school teachers who sparked a passion in me to pursue the climate crisis and to do what I can. They did their job and taught me about the issues that would inevitably affect me. But as I moved on, there was less time in the curriculum for that knowledge to be shared with my classmates and I. And then, I was worried and curious- what was the requirement, on a national level or state-by-state, for this curriculum to be taught in schools? Was there a requirement? Was it just part of ordinary science and history classes? How as it being taught? All of these things led me to do some research that brought me to my answer.

In 2016, The Guardian reported that a mere 38% of American kids were taught that the climate crisis is due to the burning of fossil fuels and that that was something scientists agreed upon. That in itself is startling, because if it is a scientific agreement, why aren't 100% of kids taught about it? I know we have disagreement in politics (that I find hilariously irrational seeing as there is no shortage of signs that climate change has and always has been due to the burning of fossil fuels but I digress) but our kids should be taught the facts. It's simply unfair for them not to know about this.

On top of this, last year, surveys found that while teachers did incorporate roughly an hour of climate change education into their curriculum, the explanation that they offered for the crisis was not about greenhouse gases and the fossil fuel burning that causes them to be released into the atmosphere. These surveys found that 30 percent of teachers taught that global warming was due to natural causes, and another 31 percent taught that scientists weren't clear as to why it was happening. Both of these assertions create enormous problems (read more about this study here).

From these statistics alone I worry for our future, because if kids don't know what's going on and why, how can they possibly feel or be equipped with the tools to face the problem and fix it, or live with it? I think that young people and students deserve a whole lot better. But legislation to get this curriculum in schools nationwide or in states might not be something that is a priority right now for every legislator or leader, and it will be hard to find a national consensus in making this a priority in schools.

The best way that our kids can be prepared is by teachers taking initiative and conversations starting at home. Global warming shouldn't be questioned anymore- we know the cause of it and that's something we've been sure of for a while, despite the doubt of politicians and deniers. And with the obstacles of the current administration denying it ever so fervently, it's time that we move away from politics and start on our own.

The best way that we can preserve the future is to talk to the kid we know, our own, our cousins, friends, or neighbors. Ask them what they know, what they think, and how global warming makes them feel. And be honest about the future of ecosystems, animals, planets, the oceans, and the health of our air. From there, it's best we work in our own social circles, families, and households to recycle, save energy, build good habits in our families and kids, and work hard to preserve the environment on our own.

It's also time to engage with our schools and districts to get the conversation moving if it hasn't started to or to continue its movement if it has. Principals and teachers should care about finding time for climate change curriculum in their school calendars and they should be happy to talk about preparing kids to tackle the problems that will cast a shadow on their future. It's our job as ordinary people to get these conversations started on our own, because the political and social climate of our nation and world is too uncertain today for us to be sure that global warming will resolve itself eventually and that our leaders will take care of it when the time comes.

Start conversations. Be vocal. And be honest about the future with global warming. It impacts all of us and we should all care, for our children and grandchildren. Start talking!

Sources:

https://thinkprogress.org/30-percent-of-teachers-a...

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/feb/1...