One of the unique demands of the workforce of the future will be in industries dealing with the impact of climate change. This imperative is squarely on the radar of leaders and educators in Colorado, who are now championing state policies that support youth career development in 鈥済reen鈥� occupations.

蜜桃影视 recently partnered with the Progressive Policy Institute on a new installment of the 鈥淔uture of High Schools鈥� webinar series, which highlighted the Climatarium initiative of nonprofit group Lyra, which brings together education, industry, and policy partners to build climate-related college and career pathways for Colorado students.

In the replay below, you鈥檒l hear from experts Mary Seawell, CEO and Founder of Lyra, Colorado State Senator Chris Hansen, and Dr. Karen Cheser, Superintendent of Durango School District. Watch the full conversation:

Recent coverage of career pathways and climate education from 蜜桃影视:

• Creating a Climate-Literate Workforce in Colorado, Starting in Middle School

• Howard: Universal climate education can teach students how to preserve the planet today and train them for the green jobs of tomorrow

• 鈥淭his Is the Existential Crisis鈥�: A Push for Climate Change Education

• 6 Tips for Spotting a High School That Best Prepares Teens for Their Futures

Every child must be educated about the environment and climate change, not only in science classes, but as a subject integrated throughout all classrooms 鈥� be it reading a short story on wildfires in an English class, calculating fossil fuel emissions in math or creating stunning posters and imagery about the state of the planet鈥檚 plastic crisis in art. Education inspires curiosity and fires up imaginations.

The power of art was recently brought vividly to life with the , which saw the artwork of two students shine 鈥� Luke Pohl Bogdan, from Maryland, who won the 5-to-17 age group with an entry titled Sparring Earth, and Teague Smith, from Idaho, who was the 18+ age group winner with a Plastic Trash Shark.

For both students, taking part in the competition was a way of speaking up about an issue they care about while embracing a subject they love 鈥� in this case, art.

鈥淚t made me really proud to win the poster competition, as this is the start of my artistic journey,鈥� said Luke. 鈥淧lastics are destroying Earth and harming animals. We must act before Earth becomes a big waste pile. I like to draw action cartoons, and we need action to save Earth from plastics.鈥�

For Teague it was the seas that he specifically wanted to focus on. 鈥滻 chose to spotlight the oceans in my poster because they鈥檙e disproportionately affected by plastic pollution,鈥� Teague explained. 鈥淧lastics present a significant threat to our planet鈥檚 ecosystems, emphasizing the urgent need for action.鈥�

The competition exposed the students to three important aspects of climate education that EarthDay.org presented at the in Denver on March 20 and will be a key part of a released April 8.

First, it gave them an outlet for expressing their concerns about the climate, which is an important way for them to deal with their anxiety about the very real and documented climate crisis. Second, it reinforced , which trains them to make the right choices for the planet by using less energy and resources and being much more mindful of pollution and land and water degradation. And third, it highlighted the skills and enthusiasm young people will need to fill critical jobs in a green economy 鈥� increasingly referred to as the green-collar workforce.

Dennis Nolasco, a member of EarthDay.org’s education team, helped ease his students鈥� climate anxiety when he was a teacher in California and wildfires devastated the landscape. Realizing that climate change is not something far off in the future, but here and now, he designed a unit for his eighth-grade English class around climate change, and they were fascinated by it. 

He asked them to read a series of short stories about other extreme weather events and then challenged them to write their own about what they had just experienced with the wildfires. They then read their stories out in class, and he led a discussion about how these made them feel and what they revealed about the changing climate.

鈥淚 was slightly amazed to see how much information they soaked up from local news as we began discussing the causes of the fires,鈥� Nolasco said. 鈥淢ost importantly, the students asked  鈥� will the fires be back? I learned that the truth is powerful. Those students benefited from having the time and space to understand the world around them.鈥�

Lessons like these also counter misinformation about climate change. The science is in 鈥� it is real. Teaching that is critical. To further help promote the cause of climate education, our organization has just released a as a call to action for every state to assess where it is right now and where it needs to get to in terms of climate education. Clicking on each state produces a list of what is taught about the climate and what specific issues that state is facing. It also suggests whom people can write to if they want to press for climate education as a mandated topic at state level.

鈥淥ne of the things we realized after visiting a lot of schools locally, in Virginia and Maryland, is that parents, teachers and students really wanted to know what their own home state was teaching on climate education and then compare it to what other states were teaching 鈥� or even if they were teaching it at all,鈥� said Emily Walker, an EarthDay.Org education coordinator.

At the college level, the organization is working with student groups to help them advocate for environmental causes on their own campuses, with plans to roll out teach-ins throughout April. 

With Earth Day on April 22, there鈥檚 never been a better time to advocate for teaching the next generation about the climate crisis and giving them the tools they will need to cope with it. Climate education can play a critically important role in saving the planet.

Chris Riback: Dr. Johnson, thank you for coming by the studio.

Lee Johnson III, PhD: Thank you for having me.

Chris Riback: What is the NBCDI Policy Fellowship?

Lee Johnson III, PhD: The NBCDI Policy Fellowship is an 18-month program for leaders that are black, who are responsible for programs across communities, who are focused on making sure that the leadership at the national level reflects the population being served. I was part of the inaugural cohort of fellows-

Chris Riback: Yes.

Lee Johnson III, PhD: Which there were six of us, the only guy in that cohort. And now we have our second cohort, which is made up of 14 fellows of incredible early childhood and policy leaders from across the country. And the Policy Fellowship is really rooted in this model called Breakthrough Action Leadership that really focuses on being responsible, being self-reflective as a leader, and then also creating collective leadership, which is essentially encouraging others to be responsible and self-reflective as well.

Chris Riback: Why is climate such an important focus area for you?

Lee Johnson III, PhD: From an early childhood perspective, we know that when young children are developing, particularly in the ages from birth to age eight, there is so much rapid brain development that is occurring. And so their exposure to toxins and either lead or challenges around navigating flooding or even navigating storms, it can actually disrupt the very development of young children as they’re navigating those experiences. And so it’s very important for parents, but also folks on the policy level to know and understand that there is no substitute for a secure attachment relationship. And during that attachment relationship being formed between the child and the caregiver, we want to make sure that that process is not interrupted.

And so navigating climate really adds on to a very adventurous moment in childhood, but also, understandably so, children are learning and figuring out the world around them, how to navigate it, and oftentimes climate and the impacts of climate can devastate their communities, can uproot their families, and can cause trauma.

Chris Riback: And so many of the words that you just used, the adventurous and changing, obviously we all feel that with climate right now. It seems to be changing every day and it too often is one heck of an adventure. What about things like water and other health related, climate related, but health related impacts? Are those also areas that you focus on?

Lee Johnson III, PhD: Absolutely. So at the National Black Child Development Institute, and you’ll notice at our conference this year, there’s a graphic. The graphic really speaks to our eight essential outcomes for black child development, one of which is that we envision a world where every black child can breathe clean air and drink clean water.

Chris Riback: Yes, breathing the air as well. Yes.

Lee Johnson III, PhD: Yes. Yes. And it is so important. We’ve seen the news of the wildfires, but we also recognize that many of the particles that are invisible to the naked eye can find their way into the water sources that our children drink.

Chris Riback: Yes.

Lee Johnson III, PhD: We also know that even just the pipe structures in old homes and old buildings-

Chris Riback: The lead.

Lee Johnson III, PhD: Or the lead can be a contributing factor to neurodevelopmental challenges of young children.

Chris Riback: So is part of your remit helping educate parents and help them be aware? Because parenting is hard enough without also having to figure out, “What are my pipes? Where am I getting my water from? What’s the quality of the air in my community? Which by the way, I can’t control anyhow.” Is it about educating parents, helping empower parents with knowledge, and/or is it about influencing policymakers?

Lee Johnson III, PhD: I would say it’s both, and. And the reason I say that is I often share with my colleagues and friends and parents who are friends, is that childhood is not an adventure we choose, but it is chosen by adults familiar and forever unknown through the experiences they create for us. And so when I think about what we’re doing when we’re sharing knowledge or raising awareness about the impact of climate on the development of young children, particularly young black children, it is a point of education. It is an opportunity to equip them with the resources so that they can connect with their policymakers and really influence them.

As we know, policymakers live and breathe on hearing from their constituents. And so it’s really critically important for parents to know, understand, and recognize how critically important it is to grasp these issues, but also really speak to the urgency of the moment that we’re all in if we do not act from a policy space.

Chris Riback: And as you mentioned at the start, you were once one of the members of the cohort, you were a student. Was it cohort one you were a part of?

Lee Johnson III, PhD: Cohort one as a policy fellow.

Chris Riback: You correct me if I’m wrong now, you run the darn thing?

Lee Johnson III, PhD: I do.

Chris Riback: Which is more fun, being a student [inaudible 00:05:59] or running it?

Lee Johnson III, PhD: I would say they’re equally fun because-

Chris Riback: You’re sounding very political Senator.

Lee Johnson III, PhD: I will tell you, I am a student of life. I am constantly learning about this wide, wondrous thing, human existences. As a student or as a fellow in the cohort, you have your fellows that you can learn from, glean off from, get energy from, challenge, coach, and really navigate experiences of leadership that many of them absolutely understand. Being on the other side, I actually carry the stories that they shared with me into how we lead the program now, how we understand the nuance and context of what our current cohort is navigating and faced with and challenged with. So I find joy in both the carrying of the stories that I learned in cohort one, but actually applying the lessons from those stories to lead more effectively for cohort two and beyond.

Chris Riback: Well, those are wonderful lessons to be a student of life and to find joy as you just described. Dr. Johnson, thank you for your work. Thank you for coming by the studio.

Lee Johnson III, PhD: Thank you for having me.

Now, a , published by the Bernard van Leer Foundation, sounds the alarm on this indicator: children鈥檚 well-being is endangered, the report argues, and the reason is climate change.

The report, 鈥淐aring for Children and the Planet,鈥� focuses on very young kids, for good reason. Eighty-eight percent 鈥渙f the existing burden of disease attributable to climate change occurs in children younger than 5 years,鈥� according to the World Health Organization. It鈥檚 a staggering data point that has received surprisingly little mainstream attention, especially considering that the early years are a time of intense, rapid development and can set the stage for a child鈥檚 life. One of the report鈥檚 key arguments is that what鈥檚 good for young children鈥攃lean air, safe streets and opportunities to play in nature鈥攊s good for our planet as well.

The first part of the report documents the various ways climate change is bringing tragedy to young lives around the globe. Extreme weather has forced the families of millions of babies and toddlers to flee their homes, often turning to makeshift urban slums where they have few rights and supports, and 鈥渇ace malnutrition, interrupted education and many other threats.鈥�

Droughts, rising sea levels and floods are leading to a shortage of safe drinking water, with a 鈥減rofound impact鈥� on children, who are more vulnerable to toxins and dehydration. Because of their small size, children are also especially susceptible to rising air pollution and heat. In one chapter in the report, demonstrating how heat and air pollution are already threatening the health of newborns in the U.S. 鈥淕ains made in the health and well-being of children around the world, over many decades鈥� are 鈥渁t risk of being reversed,鈥� concludes by New Zealand鈥檚 former prime minister Helen Clark.

This sobering assessment is only slightly tempered by the solutions-oriented second section of the report, and Clark鈥檚 reminder that 鈥渆arly childhood is not only a period of sensitivity to risk鈥� but 鈥渁lso a time when the benefits of early interventions are amplified and risks can be reduced.鈥� This inspiring section makes the case that how we do and don鈥檛 support young children can influence the course of our planet as well.

Breaking car and fossil fuel dependency to achieve cleaner air, safer streets, and more active and connected childhoods is amazingly good for kids and the environment as well, for instance. A long history of prioritizing cars as the dominant means of transportation has led to rampant carbon emissions, inefficient sprawl and massive highways that have isolated and segregated neighborhoods. 鈥淔or health and climate reasons, it seems logical to prioritize children and families鈥攁s pedestrians鈥攐ver cars, on city streets,鈥� in Brazil.

Active modes of transport like walking and taking public transportation for errands allow for the kinds of interactions between kids and caregivers that young children thrive on, and which can鈥檛 happen when a child is strapped into a car seat. They also have the added bonus of facilitating social cohesion and connection with the neighborhood. But too often, caregivers feel streets aren’t safe and don’t feel welcomed on public transportation. (Think of all the U.S. bus systems and the many metro stations that aren’t accessible to caregivers with disabilities.) This results in 鈥�a vicious circle: more people choose to drive, adding to traffic and the sense of danger for others, and worsening public health through greater air pollution and lower levels of exercise.鈥�

Several initiatives showcased in 鈥淐aring for Children and the Planet,鈥� take steps to change that. , the city鈥檚 Metropolitan Services has set aside 20% of its budget for walking or cycling infrastructure and is working to build safer sidewalks and make other improvements that are strikingly low-cost but will nonetheless create a better walking environment for children and caregivers. , Marcelo Mena and Xavier Altamirano have to monitor the air children breathe as they play, learn and travel to and from school and child care. Modeled after a successful initiative in Chile, its goal is to pressure governments to seek solutions and change pollution policies. , a campaign to reduce the speed limit, aims to more broadly shift people鈥檚 鈥渦nderstanding of the place of cars and children in the city,鈥� explains Saul Billingsley, executive director of London-based FIA Foundation that backs the campaign. 鈥淲e must prioritize the cause of shared and equitable access to our streets and public space,鈥� he writes. 鈥淭he road towards a revolution for people and planet begins on low-speed streets.鈥�

Cultivating nature-filled urban spaces for children to roam and play is another theme throughout the report. Trees absorb carbon and help mitigate the effects of a warming planet. Kids also love them. In one fascinating case study about Israel鈥檚 efforts to make 鈥渟treets, libraries, parks, housing developments, open spaces and mobility infrastructure鈥� more friendly to infants and toddlers, we learn that a place cannot be considered 鈥渃hild-friendly if the caregiver feels bored, left out, stressed or uncomfortable about engaging with the child.鈥� To that end, many of the plans for natural play areas are exceptionally thoughtful about caregivers too. reimagines schoolyards as the 鈥済reen living rooms鈥� of neighborhoods, 鈥減laces where teachers want to hold lessons, and where parents want to spend time playing with their children or chatting with neighbors.鈥� In Lima, Peru, an is as much about cultivating play as encouraging 鈥渇amilies with young children to get to know each other and organically form a network of mutual support.鈥�

Collectively, these case studies make a persuasive case that to keep our planet inhabitable, we must raise children who value nature, understand the power of community, and are ready and willing to fight for the environment. Many of the efforts showcased in 鈥淐aring for Children and the Planet鈥� are sure to accomplish exactly that. But it is hard not to read this report without sensing the gaping disconnect between what families and initiatives can accomplish and the monumental scope of problem鈥攖he malnutrition, displacement and deaths already resulting from climate change. As the third activism-focused section of the report suggests, substantial change on this issue will not happen unless governments also take bold action by investing in alternate forms of energy while setting standards that will force corporations and industries鈥攖he largest contributors to climate change鈥攖o meaningfully and swiftly reduce carbon emissions. Much like raising children, saving the environment we all depend on is a collective effort, one that won鈥檛 happen with forward-thinking cities or programs alone.

From Oct. 31 through Nov. 12, roughly 20,000 international leaders and climate advocates will gather in Glasgow, Scotland for the conference known as COP26. The next annual meeting is an opportunity to shape global climate priorities 鈥� during COP21, which took place in 2015, the landmark Paris Agreement was adopted to limit global warming. 

This year鈥檚 conference is hosted by the United Kingdom, where climate and girls鈥� education has been prioritized over the last year. In 2021 the country led both the and Summit. In May, G7 countries reinforced political commitments for girls鈥� education, reaffirming that it鈥檚 a human right and setting two goals for the global community by 2026: 40 million more girls in school and 20 million more girls reading by age 10 or the end of primary school.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of pressure on this COP to accelerate progress on the Paris Agreement and there will be some progress. However, I think the question will be: 鈥榠s it enough?鈥欌�� Naomi Nyamweya, a lead researcher with the Malala Fund, told 蜜桃影视 by email. 鈥淟eaving girls behind undermines gender equality and governments鈥� ability to deliver on 鈥�

Climate crises will prevent an estimated 4 million girls in lower- and middle- income countries from accessing education in 2021, according to the . With current policy and emission trends, weather-related disruptions will prevent 12.5 million girls from finishing their education by 2025. 

鈥淲e need leaders to see that climate change, girls鈥� education and gender equality aren鈥檛 separate issues,鈥� Nyamweya added.

Quality, compulsory education for girls may to facilitate climate action, like literacy and critical thinking. And if climate curricula is prioritized alongside access to schools, young leaders can understand value in solutions that move beyond one-off, technical swaps to renewable energy, for example. Millions more can learn to assess climate threats and their root causes and support policies to curb poverty and environmental racism. 

An of countries with female political representation found that they are more likely to adopt stricter climate policies and have fewer carbon emissions. The findings further solidify arguments that investing in girls鈥� education and their pathways to leadership will yield positive outcomes for the earth. 

Countries can also build stronger, low-carbon economies with more girls鈥� educated and entering the workforce. Particularly if their education includes, as advocates and hope, career and technical . 

Climate change, and any possible solutions, are becoming harder to ignore. 

Despite at past climate talks, many countries are not currently naming climate change education, or girls鈥� education, as part of their policy strategy. of recently updated 鈥楴ationally Determined Contributions鈥� (NDCs) from 73 countries revealed that less than a quarter mention youth or children and none call for mandatory climate change education as a strategy, including the 鈥檚 plan.

While NDCs are not the 鈥渆nd-all-be-all鈥� of climate policy, they are the most visible, guiding document for nations to support Paris Agreement goals, says researcher Christina Kwauk, who penned the report and is a nonresident fellow with the Brookings Institute. 

If girls鈥� education continues to be omitted from the documents, she told 蜜桃影视, the priority will likely be overlooked in subsequent policies, strategies and initiatives 鈥� like expanding career and vocational training for green jobs or leadership.

鈥淕irls’ education is going to be collateral damage from climate change, if we’re not paying attention to it. From the research we know that investing in girls’ education can be a powerful climate solution, why aren’t we talking about these two hand in hand?鈥� Kwauk said. 鈥淚f our education system isn’t helping us to address those structural and systemic aspects of the climate crisis, we will have wasted some really valuable years.鈥�

If quality girls鈥� education and reproductive health care are provided over the next 30 years, (mass roughly equal to 16 billion elephants) of carbon dioxide emissions could be avoided, according to researchers with the international nonprofit , who estimate the impact of particular climate solutions. That is over four times more impactful than increasing concentrated solar power in the same timeframe.

Advocates caution against using Project Drawdown鈥檚 oft-quoted measure of impact as the sole driver for expanding girls鈥� education. 

鈥淢any stakeholders link girls鈥� education to reducing emissions, due to decreased fertility rates, however this places the burden of mitigating climate change on those least responsible for its cause and undermines a rights-based approach. We advocate for girls鈥� education as it is their right, and can equip them with the skills and knowledge to take climate action, adapt to impacts, be more resilient and engage in policy processes,鈥� Plan International鈥檚 Jessica Cooke, a London-based expert in climate change and resilience programming, told 蜜桃影视 via email. 

Cooke will attend the U.N. conference this year with colleagues and youth activists to call for transformative education policy that advances both climate and gender justice. 

鈥淎 gender-transformative education can equip girls with the skills and knowledge needed to tackle the climate crisis, claim and exercise their rights, and empower them to be leaders and decision-makers, including by challenging the systems and norms which reinforce gender, climate, racial and social injustices around the world,鈥� Cooke added. 

Roughly one third of girls don鈥檛 currently feel confident participating in climate policy processes, fewer boys feel the same hesitancy 鈥� about 25 percent, a recent Plan International revealed. And over 80 percent of youth surveyed in 37 nations, including the U.S., say that they don鈥檛 know anything about their country鈥檚 climate policy and that efforts to include them in decision making are insufficient. 

More womens鈥� rights and feminist organizations are pushing for climate education policy as they begin to 鈥渟ee climate justice as a key aspect of work for gender equality,鈥� said Bridget Burns, director of Women鈥檚 Environment & Development Organization. Her group partners with U.N. and government agencies as advisors on intersectional policy. 

Similar thinking is underway at the U.S. federal level on the eve of the conference. At the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration, Frank Niepold leads climate education efforts and holds a singular leadership role for the U.S. with the UN鈥檚 Action for Climate Empowerment. He served as a U.S. delegate to the 2015 climate conference.

Niepold told 蜜桃影视 that he鈥檚 searching for ways to collaborate with other agencies to support girls鈥� education as a key climate strategy. The infrastructure for dialogue leaves something to be desired. Beyond the climate talks 鈥� which are focused on the national level 鈥� there is not an existing support system for international groups to collaborate with sub-national agencies like his, which implements policies to protect the environment.

鈥淎 gender equity focus on educational programming at the federal level 鈥斅爄t is missing,鈥� he said, but added, 鈥淚 think it’s emerging.鈥�

Niepold confirmed that education remains on the negotiating table for this year鈥檚 talks. 

Many are closely watching to see what the U.S. prioritizes during and following the conference, especially given that President Biden鈥檚 key . The president originally planned to tout the move 鈥� to replace coal and gas power plants with wind, solar and nuclear energy sources 鈥� as an example of his country鈥檚 commitment to climate solutions and infrastructure.

In 2017, former President Trump pledged to drop out of the Paris accord; the U.S. was the first country in the world to . At the last in-person climate talks in 2019, over whether his re-election would further block meaningful climate action globally. President Biden has since made the current administration鈥檚 position on climate change clear, rejoining the agreement in February 2021. 

The Aspen Institute鈥檚 Laura Schifter, who鈥檚 heading up a new to make school infrastructure more sustainable, remains hopeful that the nation is now prepared to back more education-centered climate solutions. 

鈥淭he U.S. has the potential of really being an international leader in this space,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e have the administration right now committed to climate issues, we have schools across the country who have been experiencing climate impacts. We have a real need 鈥� the time is really right for education to mobilize and start taking climate action.鈥�