All across the country, we can see examples of youth coming together and calling for action on this global problem, including students in Western Massachusetts. Last month, students from six high schools participated in a Youth Climate Summit hosted by Mass Audubon\u2019s Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary<\/a> and the Hitchcock Center for the Environment<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Summit\u2019s two days of learning sought to empower 50+ high school students, supported by 10 local college students, teachers, and workshop leaders, to take action on climate in their schools and communities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Presentations and workshops were led by environmental educators, an ecologist, a self-described \u201cbicycle-maniac,\u201d and a hip-hop artist who sings about sustainability and climate action. The workshops focused on topics such as climate change communications, civic engagement, sustainable agriculture, biking, and more. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The goal of the summit is not only to educate students about climate change, but also help students realize they can lead their schools, homes, and communities towards effective climate action. Giving students the tools to advocate for real change allows them to recognize the power of their own voices. <\/p>\n\n\n\n One participant noted: “I didn\u2019t really know the best ways to advocate for and participate in climate change prevention, and I feel like I have those skills now.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n This summit’s impact reached beyond those in attendance. One young student, who read about it in the Daily Hampshire Gazette<\/a><\/em>, was inspired to speak out about the importance of climate action at all levels of government by writing her own letter-to-the-editor<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This Youth Climate Summit expanded on last year\u2019s one-day summit, allowing student teams to develop a Climate Action Plan for their school, including direct actions and proposals for addressing climate change drivers and impacts. The Climate Action Plans included a wide range of strategies such as increasing climate education at a younger age, removing bottled water from their school and installing water refill stations, organizing a zero waste week, and even installing an array of solar panels in the school\u2019s parking lot. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Thanks to support from the several local businesses, Northampton Education Foundation, and donations from the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts (B & E Youth Futures Fund, Edwin P. & Wilbur O. Lepper Fund and Joan Walker Memorial Fund) the summit was able to give $500 to each group for implementation of their Climate Action Plans. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In addition to the fun opportunity to connect with other climate-minded peers, students reported their participation increased their comfort levels with climate change as indicated by pre- and post-surveys. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Mass Audubon hopes to expand this program by launching similar Summit\u2019s across the state in 2019.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Climate change is the defining issue of our time. Perhaps no generation is more at risk to the impacts of this issue than those who are in school today. In a study presented to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in 2016, a survey revealed that 40% of Generation Z reported climate change as their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":116,"featured_media":12074,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[178],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12064","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2018\/12\/youthclimatesummit750.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3t87A-38A","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":16755,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/in-your-words-ollie-p\/","url_meta":{"origin":12064,"position":0},"title":"In Your Words: Ollie Perrault","author":"Kaylin D.","date":"March 18, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"As a 15-year-old climate activist, people often ask me at what age I first got involved and started working with Mass Audubon. While I officially started as a youth leader when I was 11, I have been involved in this work for my whole life.\u00a0\u00a0 Ollie For my generation, there\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Climate"","block_context":{"text":"Climate","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/climate\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Ollie holding a chicken","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/03\/Ollie-2_750.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/03\/Ollie-2_750.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/03\/Ollie-2_750.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/03\/Ollie-2_750.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13126,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/stand-with-youth-climate-strikers\/","url_meta":{"origin":12064,"position":1},"title":"Stand With Youth Climate Strikers","author":"Alexandra Vecchio","date":"September 18, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"On September 20,\u00a0Mass Audubon will stand with millions of people of all ages around the world to amplify the voice of youth activists who understand the urgency of climate change.\u00a0\u00a0 We have partnered with Youth Climate Strike Massachusetts to share our support and stand in solidarity with youth and adults\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Climate"","block_context":{"text":"Climate","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/climate\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Mass Audubon Supports Youth Climate Strike","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2019\/09\/MAClimateStrike_blog.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2019\/09\/MAClimateStrike_blog.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2019\/09\/MAClimateStrike_blog.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2019\/09\/MAClimateStrike_blog.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16048,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/summer-institute-for-climate-education\/","url_meta":{"origin":12064,"position":2},"title":"Summer Institute for Climate Education","author":"Mass Audubon","date":"July 14, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Teachers in the field July 28\u201330, 2021 \u2022 10 am\u20135 pm ETVirtual Conference Do you teach about climate issues? Would you enjoy learning more and spending time with like-minded educators? Hosted by Climate Generation: A Will Steger Legacy, in partnership with NOAA's Climate Program Office and The Wild Center's Youth\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Climate"","block_context":{"text":"Climate","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/climate\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/07\/P8050016-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/07\/P8050016-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/07\/P8050016-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/07\/P8050016-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10146,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/thankful-for-young-climate-leaders\/","url_meta":{"origin":12064,"position":3},"title":"Thankful For Young Climate Leaders","author":"Daniel Brown","date":"November 22, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"As we head into Thanksgiving during this tumultuous political era, I find myself reflecting back on the challenges and progress of the past year, both close to home and around the globe. It\u2019s easy to get discouraged by the nightly news, but something that continues to inspire me is the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Climate"","block_context":{"text":"Climate","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/climate\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Western Massachusetts Youth Climate Summit \/ Phil Doyle","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2017\/11\/climateleader600.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2017\/11\/climateleader600.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2017\/11\/climateleader600.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13850,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/mass-audubon-earth-week-calendar\/","url_meta":{"origin":12064,"position":4},"title":"Your Mass Audubon Earth Week Calendar","author":"Rishya N.","date":"April 17, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"April 18 marks the beginning of Earth Week 2020. This year, activities have gone completely virtual so we can still safely convene around a common goal: Climate Action. If you don\u2019t know where or how to start celebrating, we\u2019ve compiled a Climate Action Calendar to guide your festivities. 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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nCreating Youth Leaders<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Learning and Growing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n