School Disruptions from the LA Fires Hit Latino, Disadvantaged and English-Language Learners Hardest, Experts Find
California fires’ disparate impacts on students offer lessons for how schools should prepare for climate disasters across the nation.
Students impacted by L.A. fires mostly from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds
The January wildfires that burned through tens of thousands of acres in Los Angeles may be gone — but the impacts on students in the region are far from extinguished.
From Los Angeles's Climate Crisis, A Blueprint for California's Schools
When Los Angeles teachers welcomed students back to school in January, they couldn't have imagined what lay ahead. Within days, climate-fueled wildfires would tear through Altadena, Pasadena, and the Palisades, destroying or damaging twelve schools and disrupting education for more than 600,000 students.
As heat rises, California kids are sweltering in schools with no air conditioning
Vomiting, cramps and lethargy. That’s what thousands of CA student are facing when they go to school in classrooms without air conditioning.
Some L.A. teachers, tired of waiting, are creating their own climate curriculum
Los Angeles-area public schools are now guided by the country’s most ambitious climate education policies, according to local school administrators and advocates for environmental education. There’s just one problem: There’s little money for any of it.
California students push for solar schools
"Energy costs are the second-largest expenditure for schools after teacher salaries, and every dollar spent on energy is a dollar that can’t be used for teachers, textbooks, supplies and other essential resources,” said Stephanie Seidmon, program director at UndauntedK12.
Yolo County Office of Education Launches School Resiliency and Sustainability Project
The Yolo County Office of Education launched its groundbreaking Schools Resiliency and Sustainability Project, marking a significant milestone in sustainable education practices.
Newsom energy plan sparks tug of war with lawmakers in final hours of legislative session
Stephanie Seidmon said the HVAC program is particularly important at a moment when COVID-19 is surging and California is dealing with worsening heat waves and wildfires, all of which underscore the need for proper air conditioning and ventilation in schools.
Inside California’s last-minute effort to cut electric bills and streamline clean energy
“It is a pound-foolish decision that doesn’t address the systemic (energy) affordability crisis we’re facing,” said Stephanie Seidmon, Program Director for UndauntedK12, a nonprofit that helps public schools transition to clean energy.
California electric bill relief plan would gut low-income energy programs
A California bill proposes cutting funding for CalSHAPE, a program that helps school upgrade their HVAC system for student health and learning. Advocates for the program argue the cuts will harm schools and vulnerable communities with little benefit to ratepayers.
Education and the Environment: School buildings, playgrounds and carbon
Throughout California, students and teachers spend classroom time learning about the climate crisis while simultaneously experiencing its impacts. The Climate Ready Schools Coalition (CRSC) wants to address this.
Sacramento City Unified commits to carbon neutrality by 2045
“There’s urgency behind the transition: State officials have noted the increasing climate impacts on California schools and the need to adapt buildings to weather these changes.”
How California schools can finally quit burning fossil fuels
“Statewide planning is key to making safe, electrified schools a reality. With more than 11,000 buildings spanning 730 million square feet and more than 125,000 acres of land, California’s school system has a vast footprint. We need a plan now for all these buildings to stop creating pollution.”
How can we shield children from the impacts of climate change? Investments in schools can help.
“In terms of a broader climate strategy, and the transition to clean energy that we need to make, school should be some of the first places we do that work. Because that’s where young people are: 1 in 6 Americans is on a school campus every day.”
Coalition urges California to invest $150 billion in climate-resilient, healthy schools
“A coalition of health, city planning and education nonprofits issued a report Thursday urging California leaders to invest $150 billion over a decade to build and renovate schools to mitigate to the increasingly hazardous effects of climate change on children’s health and well-being.”
A new UNICEF report says that children are experiencing frequent heat waves around the world
Manola Secaira talked to our co-founder Jonathan Klein, Dr. Lisa Patel from Stanford, and Sharon Danks from Green Schoolyards America about the increasing threat of extreme heat and its consequences for children’s health and learning.