Dear Editor:
It has always been important that teachers at all levels of education act as examples for the students they teach. So, I’m aiming this letter to all the teachers in the Okanagan Skaha School District.
It is no longer a question of whether we are in the middle of earth’s climate change. The recent report from the IPCC has clearly established that fact. Teachers now need to become the purveyors of knowledge about our climate, how it is changing for the worse and what, if anything, can be done about it.
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Start with the young kids, explain the concepts, inspire them to do the very small things that they are capable of doing in their own homes. Inspire them to get their parents to do the bigger things.
In the middle and senior schools, do plenty of experiments, do the math, the history and the social studies of what mankind has done to take us to where we are.
Most of all, get them to push their parents, their grandparents to start doing the right thing to reduce their CO2 and methane pollution. If the kids can start shaming their elders, we might have a chance to change the climbing temperature rate.
Some positive discussion suggestions for the teachers:
• Reduce travel, holidays abroad or even out of province
• If you need to buy a vehicle, make sure it is small and electric
• Solar panels pay off in the long run, along with additional home insulation
• Use less water
•· Change their diets to vegetarian. Don’t waste food
• Turn off the lights
• Walk or ride your bikes
• Go zero waste
• Be a thoughtful consumer, limit unnecessary buying
• Consume local products and buy locally
• Buy fewer things, especially new things
And for the teachers, lead by example. You are probably more important to the future of our planet than most parents if you do your part in convincing the young people what they will have to do. After all, they are the ones who will have to solve the problems.
Frank Martens
Summerland
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