This webinar includes presentations by leaders in the climate justice movement as they discuss important topics like environmental and racial justice and the poverty crisis and introduce students to the relevant intersections.
The webinar also includes a Q&A session and provides students with additional resources.
Teaching Tips
Positives
This is an in-depth and informative webinar about the importance of approaching climate solutions through an equity and justice lens.
The panelists provide specific examples of the disproportionate impact of policy decisions and environmental and climatic changes on marginalized communities.
Additional Prerequisites
The presentations take place in the first half of the video and the Q&A period begins at 38:58.
Additional resources, including websites, events, and readings, are provided at 1:01:00.
Be prepared to support the feelings of all students and respect their privacy as discussions occur.
Although the call to action has already happened, future events and ways to become involved can be found on the Climate Reality Project and Poor People's Movement websites.
Differentiation
Considering the length of the video and the amount of information presented, students should be encouraged to take notes. Otherwise, the video can be paused every few minutes for reflection as a class.
As a follow-up activity, have students research the links between economic inequality and racism and the causes of climate change and environmental pollution.
This webinar can also be used in health classes during lessons about racism within the health sector and the unequal distribution of pollution.
The connections between improving human health through environmental regulations and helping communities most at risk of climate change can be explored in science and social studies classes.
Scientist Notes
This is an hour-long webinar in video format which is a conversation with a variety of panelists, not all of whom are scientists, but all have a history of working in the climate justice space. This main topic of this webinar is to discuss how the climate crisis and social justice intersect, climate justice, poverty, and how impacts of climate change are disproportionally felt by people of color and vulnerable communities. Overall, the specific science of climate change and related targets is not discussed but the information they present, and reference is accurate. The focus is more on the impacts of climate change, racism, and poverty and what various people and organizations are doing, or want to do, to reduce these impacts and injustices. The discussion is passionate at times, and sensitive topics such as politics, politicians, and COVID are mentioned. Depending on the audience the webinar may cause strong reactions and discussion. However, this could start several important discussions about racism, social justice, climate justice, and the climate crisis. With those considerations in mind, this resource is recommended for teaching.
Standards
College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Standards
Dimension 2: Civics
D2.Civ.1.9-12 Distinguish the powers and responsibilities of local, state, tribal, national, and international civic and political institutions.
D2.Civ.14.9-12 Analyze historical, contemporary, and emerging means of changing societies, promoting the common good, and protecting rights.
Dimension 4: Taking Informed Action
D4.6.9-12 Use disciplinary and interdisciplinary lenses to understand the characteristics and causes of local, regional, and global problems; instances of such problems in multiple contexts; and challenges and opportunities faced by those trying to address these problems over time and place.
D4.7.9-12 Assess options for individual and collective action to address local, regional, and global problems by engaging in self-reflection, strategy identification, and complex causal reasoning.
Common Core English Language Arts Standards (CCSS.ELA)
Speaking & Listening (K-12)
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.2 Integrate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) in order to make informed decisions and solve problems, evaluating the credibility and accuracy of each source and noting any discrepancies among the data.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.3 Evaluate a speaker's point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, assessing the stance, premises, links among ideas, word choice, points of emphasis, and tone used.
