Earth Day is a time for all of us to renew our commitment to climate action. Over the last year, more exciting work has taken shape and new financial resources are available. With the right tools, mindsets and partners, districts and schools across the nation will continue to make headway during the rest of 2023.
Below, we present 23 levers for climate action in K-12 education for 2023. They are organized into three areas: governance and leadership; buildings and grounds; and teaching and learning. Scroll through this quick reference to discover a building block that’s within reach in your state or district!
For each item, we provide a brief description, inspiring examples, and key resources that can help you on your way.
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In the largest survey ever conducted about young people’s views of climate change, engaging more than 10,000 youth, three in four agreed the “future is frightening,” and about half said eco-anxiety was affecting them daily. Fittingly, some of the most prominent global voices on climate are the voices of youth. Engaging students with teachers and other adult allies to plan sustainable futures for their schools can serve as a powerful antidote to climate anxiety – and a source of fresh vision and energy for the community.
Examples: Salt Lake City School District’s Sustainability Action Plan + Denver Public Schools Climate Action Plan 2023
Resources: Generation Up / Action for the Climate Emergency / Student Voice / Schools for Climate Action
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Community members have rights and opportunities to hold their elected School Board members accountable for decisions they make concerning student safety and wellbeing. When their constituents come forward with practical, cost-effective proposals to make schools safer and more sustainable, School Board members have the opportunity to respond.
Examples: Denver Public Schools for Climate Action Plan / Prince George’s County Public Schools
Resources: K12 Parent Advocacy Toolkit / Undaunted School Board Toolkit / Schools for Climate Action
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As essential workers in schools and respected members of the community, teachers and administrators can leverage their positions to prompt district action. By demanding that their districts take steps to reduce school-based emissions and make schools more climate-resilient, educators can promote their own safety and wellbeing as well as that of their students.
Examples: Educators, parents call for improvements to Boston Public Schools / Chicago Teachers Union - Resolution on Climate Change / Resolution 17 by CFT
Resources: Coordinating Bargaining over Climate-related Demands from the MTA Climate Action Network (MTA CAN) / Resolution submitted by the Boston Teachers Union / California Federation of Teachers-Resolution 17
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A climate resolution adopted by the local School Board can function as a platform on which districts can build-out a comprehensive climate response over time. A resolution is a strategic move that allows a district to inspire and draw stakeholders together around a set of intentions, then work to develop a plan that connects school-based solutions to local conditions as well as sustainability initiatives and funding opportunities.
Examples: Portland Public Schools’s Commitment to Eliminate Fossil Fuels / LAUSD’s Resolution To Transitioning To 100% Clean Energy / Dallas ISD Environment & Climate Action Resolution / Oakland Unified School District Climate Emergency Resolution / Seattle Public Schools Climate Resolution / Iowa City Community School District’s Climate Resolution / Green Bay Area Public School District’s Climate Resolution / New Buildings Institute’s list of Climate Resolutions
Resources: Schools for Climate Action Step-by-Step Guide to School Board Resolutions on Climate / This is Planet Ed’s K12 Climate Action Plan
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A climate action plan provides district leaders with guidelines to ensure that all their decisions are made with sustainability in mind. For example, planning ahead of time can help districts avoid “like-for-like” replacements of equipment that runs on fossil fuel. And, a plan can help identify and secure financial resources for the work and support schools to be partners to local governments seeking to meet municipal or state climate targets.
Examples: Prince George’s County Public Schools’ (MD) Climate Change Action Plan / Salt Lake City School District’s Sustainability Action Plan / Arlington Public Schools’ Air Quality and Electrification Master Plan / Flagstaff Unified School District Climate Action Report / Berkeley Public Schools Sustainability Plan / The School District of Philadelphia Green Futures Plan / San Francisco Unified School District Carbon Reduction Plan / Boston Green Schools Plan / Boulder Valley School District Sustainability Management Plan
Resources: Decarbonization Roadmap Guide for School Building Decision Makers / California Division of the State Architect - Achieving Net Zero Energy, Net Zero Carbon and Sustainable School Facilities / PGCPS CCAP
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A critical first step in climate action is to assess the current performance of a district’s infrastructure. Benchmarking may be completed across a range of dimensions like energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, water usage, waste, and air exchanges. By taking stock of how school facilities are currently performing, decision-makers have vital context for their goals, plans and the resource-planning. Benchmarking can also be critical to assess equity across facilities serving various student populations.
Examples: VBCPS Emissions Reduction Plan / Kansas Energy Program’s K-12 Energy Benchmarking Project / NYSERDA’s Energy Smart Schools Program / Des Moines Public Schools Benchmarking & ENERGY STAR® Certification / Fort Worth Independent School District: Energy Performance / Food Waste Audits in 9 Hawaiian public schools
Resources: ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager / Arc / CoolCalifornia.org’s School GHG Inventory: Protocols and Calculators / Department of Energy’s Building Energy Use Benchmarking Plan and Tools / EPA’s Simplified GHG Emissions Calculator
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By creating positions dedicated to sustainability, energy, and climate-resilience projects, leading districts are building their capacity to take on climate work and integrate it into the educational mission. And these positions often pay for themselves by identifying and executing on projects that generate operational savings for the district.
Examples: LAUSD Job Posting for Chief Eco-Sustainability Officer / Miami-Dade County Public Schools - Sustainability Officer / Austin Independent School District -Environmental Stewardship Advisory Committee / Modesto City Schools
Resources: Center for Green Schools- School Sustainability Leaders Network / Resource Center for Environmental and Climate Action Changemakers in TK-12 Schools / Energy Class Prize
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By eliminating gas-fired equipment such as boilers and fully electrifying school buildings, districts can eliminate on-site sources of greenhouse emissions and reduce their contribution to air pollution. Upgrading to all-electric, high-performance systems (like heat pumps!) is a critical action to promote healthy indoor environments that support the wellbeing of students, educators, and staff. Incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act can defray the installation costs of ground-source heat pumps by up to 50%.
Examples: Connecticut's first renovate-as-new Net Zero Energy school renovation project / Kansas’ Dodge City Unified School District’s new quiet HVAC systems / NYC Commits $4B to Electrify Schools Serving Communities with High Rates of Asthma
Resources: Rewiring America’s Electrify Everything in your School: Handbook / HVAC Choices for Student Health and Learning / Decarbonizing HVAC and Water Heating in Commercial Buildings
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Public-private partnerships, sometimes enacted in the form of an Energy Services Performance Contract between a district and an energy services company, can reduce the upfront cost to improve school buildings, generate cost savings, and bring in much-needed expertise to effectively manage clean energy assets.
Examples: Berkeley County Public Schools (WV) Energy System Overhaul / Volts podcast with CEO of Highland Electric Fleets - Beverly (MA) and Baltimore (MD), Brightcore Clean Energy as a Service, Nelnet’s Net Zero-as-a-Service offering
Resources: Energy Savings Performance Contracting, DOE Resources / Sample Documents for Performance Contracting
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Transitioning to on-site solar power generation can provide districts with clean, renewable energy that not only reduces energy costs, but also provides students with opportunities to learn about renewable energy from a real-world, local example. Incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act can defray the installation costs by up to 60%.
Examples: Heart Butte High School Is the Host of a Community Solar Project / Chula Vista Elementary School District (CA)’s 8.1MW Solar Installation / Rooftop Solar Installation at Thomas A. Edison Career and Technical Education High School in Jamaica Hills, Queens
Resources: Generation 180 Solar for All Schools / K12 Education and Climate Provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act
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Districts can compound the benefits of solar power by storing the energy on-site. Solar batteries or “microgrids” give schools a reliable power source when public utilities are disrupted – by extreme weather, for example. Microgrids enable schools to continue operating and provide community shelter in times of emergency. Incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act can defray the installation costs by up to 50%.
Examples: Santa Barbara Unified School District (SBUSD) Solar Microgrids
Resources: Microgrids-Center for Climate and Energy Solutions / Clean Coalition's Microgrid Research / K12 Education and Climate Provisions In the Inflation Reduction Act
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Standard diesel school buses produce tailpipe emissions that are harmful to students’ health and performance. By upgrading to electric-powered school buses, districts can eliminate a source of pollution that is a major contributing factor to childhood asthma. Incentives in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act are available for the purchase of new electric school buses and to install charging infrastructure.
Examples: Governor Hochul Announces $23 Million in Funding and Awards for Transportation Electrification Initiatives / Stockton Public Schools - Electric Buses in Partnership with the California Air Resources Board and the Center for Transportation and the Environment / Montgomery County’s Electric School Bus Fleet / Modesto City Schools’ New Sustainability Project
Resources: WRI - Electric School Bus Initiative / IIJA 5 Billion for Decarbonizing National School Bus Fleet / Inflation Reduction Act of 2022: Tax Credit for Qualified Commercial Clean Vehicles / VEIC’s Transportation Electrification / Education And Climate Provisions In The Infrastructure Investment And Jobs Act
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Installing electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure at schools supports the electrification of district vehicles and bolsters the transition to electric vehicles by local residents. Schools and educators themselves can be powerful role models for community members by leading the transition to clean transportation options.
Resources: PG&E’s EV Charge Schools Pilot Program
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By setting up functional outdoor classrooms, districts can nurture the physical and mental health of their students, provide an essential resource for teachers to meet environmental literacy standards in the curriculum, and offer recreational green space for the greater community that strengthens local ecological systems.
Examples: Living Schoolyards Act (S-4993) / Seattle Public Schools Learning in Places Collaborative for K-3 Climate Education / New York PS41 Greenroof Environmental Literacy Laboratory
Resources: Thriving Schools: Using Outdoor and Environmental Learning A Roadmap for Schools and Districts for Use of ESSER Funds / National Covid Outdoor Learning Initiative / Five Guiding Principles: How Districts Can Use COVID Relief Funds to Advance Healthy, Green Schools / Living Schoolyards Student Advocacy Kit
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Greening campuses with shade trees and schoolyard and rooftop gardens featuring native plants can protect students and staff from extreme “heat islands” while mitigating air pollution and reducing cooling costs.
Examples: California Forest Schoolyard System / LAUSD’s Greening Projects / The Cool Block Project in Chelsea MA / White Roofs at Chelsea Public Schools
Resources: Schoolyard Forest System Resource Library / CalFire Green Schoolyards Grants / LAUSD’s Greening Index of Schools
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By improving stormwater management on school campuses, districts can improve schoolyard safety, reduce the risk of costly floods, reduce sewer bills, and prevent pollution and waste from entering local waterways.
Examples: Milwaukee Public Schools’ Fresh Coast Green SchoolYards / Sidwell Friends’ new sustainable middle school in Washington D.C. / Arlington Public Schools’ Stormwater Management Program / Rochester Community Schools’ Stormwater Management Program / Stormwater Management at Albemarle County Public Schools
Resources: FEMA: Making Schools Safe Against Floods / Milwaukee Green and Healthy Schools Program / EPA’s Storm Smart Schools
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Especially in hotter, drier climate zones, fresh water is a finite and increasingly endangered resource. Districts can ensure the reliability of their own water access and help to preserve the supply and quality of local natural water resources by upgrading the fixtures and appliances in their restrooms and kitchens, and by adapting their landscaping. Stormwater capture and greywater recycling can also significantly reduce a school’s overall water use.
Examples: Acton-Boxborough Regional School District Triple Net Zero Goal (MA) Project Overview / Bright Green Future Grant in Austin Texas / Deerfield High School’s rainwater harvesting system / San Diego Unified Piloting Rainwater Collection System / Art projects & rain barrels / Teaneck school water collection system / Large Scale Rainwater Collection in Texas Public Schools / SEC Plans and Installs a Rainwater Harvesting Demonstration Project at Flowery Elementary School
Resources: Net Zero Water Building Strategies / Rain Barrel Use in Outdoor Classrooms Guide / EPA Municipal Handbook on Rainwater Harvesting Policies
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By providing students with interdisciplinary climate change education, districts can prepare students to live, work, and take action in a future that is fundamentally re-shaped by climate change. Learning about climate solutions is also a powerful antidote to eco-anxiety since it helps build students’ understanding and agency when it comes to navigating the challenges.
Examples: State Climate Education Policies in the U.S. / New Jersey State Climate Education Curriculum / Maryland’s Environmental Literacy High School Graduation Requirement
Resources: Climate Change Education in Schools Across the Nation: How State Policy is Delivering Impact (webinar and resources) / SubjectToClimate / California Environmental Literacy Initiative / Center for Universal Education at Brookings - A new green learning agenda
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A main obstacle to improving students’ climate literacy is teachers’ lack of content knowledge and confidence to address the topic. By engaging teachers in professional learning about climate and environmental science, districts can ensure that educators have the support and instructional resources they need to incorporate these topics in appropriate ways at all grade levels and across all subjects.
Examples: Community Driven Climate Education Bill in Maine / Capacity Building Fellowship Cohort Program Examples
Resources: CAELI Teacher Call to Action Toolkit for Environmental and Climate Literacy Professional Learning / CLEAN / NGSS Resources Library / Washington State’s ClimeTime / Talk Climate / NOAA’s Professional Development for Educators
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As our economy transitions from one based on fossil fuels to one defined by clean energy, new jobs, skills, and mindsets will be in high demand by employers. Moreover, the work to build clean energy infrastructure creates local, family-sustaining jobs. Schools can ensure all students have access to career and technical education that can prepare them to participate in the growing “green economy.”
Examples: SouthWest Colorado District Collaborative Between Rural School Districts and Local Community Colleges / Philadelphia’s Bright Solar Futures / San Mateo County Green Career Modules Inspire Students and Teachers
Resources: CAELI’s Roadmap to Educating for a Green and Blue Economy / SMCOE Green Career Awareness Program
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As local governments set and organize to meet climate goals, they are looking to their school districts as important partners. In many cities and towns, schools represent the largest form of public infrastructure and the heaviest energy users. As municipalities are engaging in resilience planning, they are also looking at their school buildings as key community assets that can serve as emergency shelters, food distribution sites, and cooling centers.
Examples: NYC to Convert 100 Schools to Clean Energy By 2030 / Arlington’s Net Zero Action Plan / Heat Resilience Solutions for Boston / Flagstaff Unified School District Becomes an Active Partner in the City’s Response to the Climate Emergency
Resources: Climate Action Planning Resources for Local Governments / US Climate Alliance
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Supporting and participating in the development and implementation of state standards for advancing healthy, green schools ensure that there is guidance for accountability, equity, and strategic resource allocation in every school district.
Examples: Massachusetts State Government Green and Healthy Schools Provision / NJ Climate Change Education Standards / California Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS) Criteria
Resources: Zero Energy Advanced Energy Design Guide / Measuring Health and Energy in Existing Massachusetts Public Schools / K12 Climate Action Overview of State Standards
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Current federal programs including the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provide an unprecedented opportunity for schools to take advantage of federal support for climate action.
Examples: Green Ribbon Schools program / White House releases new commitments to cleaner indoor air / Grants for Energy Improvements at Public Schools Facilities / White House Toolkit: Federal Resources for Addressing School Infrastructure Needs
Resources: K12 Education and Climate Provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act / Aspen Institute’s Education and Climate Provisions In the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act / EPA’s Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools Action Kit