Oregon was choked with some of the worst air quality levels in the world three years ago, Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) reports. Two summers ago, temperatures of 116 degrees broke the state record and drove citizens in Portland into air-conditioned facilities to find relief, writes The Oregonian. At the start of September, Portland Public Schools dismissed students across 66 sites to escape the 100-degree heat, shares KGW news station. Our current climate crisis is one of the most important issues pertaining to this year’s presidential election, and according to the Climate Clock — an environmental advocacy program — we have just over four and a half years to do something about it — the future is in the hands of our youngest generations.
In 2018, 15-year-old Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg founded a movement called School Strike for Climate. For almost five years, Thunberg posted outside of the Riksdag, the highest decision-making assembly in Sweden. At the time, one of her main demands was that the Swedish government reduce carbon emissions, but Thunberg’s activism had worldwide effects. Students across the world have since joined her in the fight for climate justice.
Around the same time, the Portland Youth Climate Strike (PYCS) movement established itself as one of the strongest resources for student climate activism in Portland. Since 2019, similar organizations have done wonders for Portland students — these movements have taught youth to be passionate and involved in their communities. This year, Ellie Brown, the PYCS communications team lead, hopes to make all PYCS movements as accessible as possible. “The only way to make change is through group action and inclusivity, so that is my main goal,” she says. “In general, I think that PYCS has helped the community [by] giving the youth a platform to speak on climate issues and justice, which is a primarily adult-dominated field,” Brown adds. “The Portland climate scene is exceedingly positive. Everyone I’ve met has such an intense desire to make change.”
With this surge in student climate activism, the PPS Board unanimously approved the Climate Crisis Response, Climate Justice, and Sustainable Practices Policy (CCRP) in March 2022 — a policy that sets ambitious goals for energy use, waste reduction, curriculum development, green schoolyards, student health, resiliency, and climate justice. As a result, there’s been a notable culture shift throughout the PPS community.
“A ton of people are excited to do climate justice-centered work. There has been lots of progress in growing community partnerships and connections with central office staff, teachers, and students,” Hanna Skut, Rosie Goity, Phi Nyugen, and Kat Davis — members of the PPS Climate Justice Team — say. Currently, one of the climate justice department’s goals is to empower educators and youth to become transformative racial equity leaders. “A core part of the climate work we do at PPS is centered around racial equity and social justice. Understanding climate justice helps guide our actions in a way that distributes environmental benefits equitably, focusing first on the populations that have been harmed most by climate change,” the team explains. “It’s refreshing to be in a community that is so passionate about climate change and is hungry [to be] leaders around climate action,” Davis adds.
Megan Whisnand, an Advanced Placement (AP) Environmental Science, Climate Justice, and Marine Science teacher at Franklin, shares her passion for fighting climate change. This year, her goal has been “to rally kids and find the leaders in the mix, and build skills and confidence to be those leaders,” she says.
The Climate Justice class was created in 2020 with the help of passionate students, staff, and other community members around PPS. “We all got together online during that pandemic summer and designed the class and came up with these units and all these resources, and then it existed in most of the high schools,” Whisnand says. Unfortunately, Franklin is currently one of the only schools that still has the class. At the start of this school year, only 13 students were initially enrolled in the Climate Justice class, which while a little discouraging, Whisnand is still motivated: “I’m really trying to motivate and inspire.” You can also get involved in climate justice at Franklin through its student-led clubs that advocate for environmental activism, including Earth Club, Gardening Club, and Climate Action Club.
Currently, the Climate Justice class is working hard to reduce food waste. With grant money, Whisnand was able to put a compost bin outside. She has also invested in tools, like trash grabbers, for her students to clean up parts of the neighborhood surrounding Franklin.
This year, Whisnand is partnering with an organization called Our Future: a statewide, multigenerational network that works to amplify student voices in addressing climate change. “My goal is to expand a network of communications in the community,” she explains. “I want to make [climate justice] real and meaningful for kids.” Goity also advises students to “use each other as inspiration.” Davis adds, “Connect with a group, a community, and think about how you can advocate for climate through things you’re already involved with and interested in.”
Art is another incredible tool that can be used to spread climate activism. The expressive nature of visual media and music is a passionate way to engage emotion and share powerful stories. “I love a good data table or graph, but it’s not very inspiring,” Whisnand says. “I think that sharing real stories is more impactful than analyzing a Carbon Dioxide graph.”
However, it is easy to feel hopeless and can feel challenging to know where to start. It can be difficult to find resources for climate justice if you don’t know where to look. “I’m naturally a positive, hopeful person,” Whisnand says. “I honestly wasn’t really prepared for how depressing a lot of the topics are with environmental science.” The current state of our environment is undoubtedly very upsetting. “I really want to keep hope alive,” Whisnand says.
Good news: there are ways to cope with these feelings of dread and despair. Environmental Psychiatrist John Sullenbarger works to help his patients cope with climate anxiety. “Practicing psychiatry with a focus on the environment and climate change means that the two are viewed as related to one another, rather than separate,” he explains.
The decaying condition of our environment and climate can both directly and indirectly impact our mental health. It’s important to understand, predict, and address these feelings. “We try to grow that understanding while educating others and advocating for larger change,” Sullenbarger says.
Like many concerned with the state of our planet, seeing it disrupted and damaged is very distressing. Since 2020, Sullenbarger has found the perfect balance between his work and his passion for climate justice. “It took me some time to explore how my experience might be similar to others, which only led to an understanding much later that others may experience the injustice of having earlier and worse impacts to climate change,” he says. Ever since, climate justice and equity have been a priority in his work.
On a high note, “There has been more governmental action and attention paid to the issue of climate change on every level, from the national news to professional organizations such as the American Psychiatric Association,” Sullenbarger explains. “But as I once heard, we must make hope an active verb. As long as each of us does something, that will continue to build momentum until addressing Climate Change is no longer avoidable.” Portland, too, has shown commitment to climate justice as the Portland City Council recently approved a Portland Clean Energy Fund plan to distribute $50 million to seven local school districts following the September heat wave, according to the City of Portland website.
PYCS is also preparing to lead another strike on Oct. 25. Currently, their team is busy creating demands, contacting other organizations and speakers, crafting posts and posters, and organizing logistics. If there’s a time to act, it’s now. “No action is too small. The best way to make change is to start small and take it bigger. It’s cheesy, but it’s true. Climate justice can only occur if everyone bands together and speaks out about what they are passionate about,” Brown says. There are endless ways to get involved in climate justice, from school clubs and classes to protests and strikes. It’s our duty as humans, and we owe it to the world and humanity to try to improve our planet and restore the damage we’ve done.
