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January 31st 2008, Focus the Nation is a national teach-in engaging millions of students and citizens with political leaders and decision makers about Global Warming Solutions.
We stand at a unique moment in human history. Decisions that are ours to make today – to stabilize global warming pollution and invest in clean energy solutions – will have a profound impact not only on our lives and the lives of our children, but indeed for every human being who will ever walk the face of the planet from now until the end of time. At this moment in time, we owe our young people one day of focused discussion about global warming solutions for America
More than just that one day, Focus the Nation: Global Warming Solutions for America is an unprecedented educational initiative, involving over a thousand colleges, universities, high schools, middle schools, faith groups, civic organizations and businesses. Focus the Nation is a catalyzing force helping shift the national conversation about global warming towards a determination to face this civilizational challenge.
A teach-in is a day when an entire school turns its attention to a single issue—when faculty, students and staff put aside business as usual, and focus the full weight of campus engagement on one topic.
The key to a successful teach-in is widespread faculty involvement. Focus the Nation challenges participating schools to engage at least fifty faculty members in their role as educators (as well as students, staff, alumni, and community members). With fifty plus faculty engaged from disciplines across the curriculum—art, science, politics, psychology, engineering, philosophy—the event will involve thousands of students on each campus, and millions of students nationwide. Campus-wide engagement at this scale sounds difficult to organize, but in fact, our TEACH-IN MODEL charts a simple path to success that requires only a month or two of lead time.
Our model has 45 suggested educational panels with slots for 110 faculty members. For example, the days events could include a session on “Obstacles to Change” with a psychology professor talking about denial, a communications professor talking about the media, and an engineer or economist talking about technology obstacles. Each professor talks for ten minutes, and then helps lead a discussion for the remaining half an hour of class time. Next a session on “Life Without Polar Bears”, with an artist talking about what makes these animals such powerful, iconic images; a philosophy or religious studies professor talking about the moral implications of mass extinction; and a biologist or ecologist providing hope, perhaps, that there may be remnant habitat for these beautiful creatures. Hold three more sessions, and a dozen faculty are engaged just in the first hour alone.
Faculty will say yes to involvement for two reasons. First, the Focus the Nation model requires them to talk for only 10 minutes in a subject area close to their discipline, and then help lead a half an hour discussion. Faculty do not have to be climate change experts to participate, nor invest heavily in preparation. Second, faculty across the curriculum are eager to be asked. As educators and as parents, they understand the magnitude of the global warming challenge, and are looking for an opportunity to engage with students on this critical issue. And once 50+ faculty are involved, then Presidents and Deans will be supportive. Most critically, thousands of students will attend, because faculty will require them to go, or give them extra credit, because other faculty will “focus” their classes, and travel with them to attend the sessions, but primarily because global warming solutions will be the exciting focus of discussion that day. Using this model, we view 2 million students nationwide as a realistic participation goal.
At two and four year colleges, and universities, building a teach-in that involves fifty plus faculty, and thousands of students is what these times demand. Educators and students at this level should settle for nothing less. Some high schools will be able to pursue this model as well.
For high schools unable to build a teach-in, and for faith organizations and civic groups, there is a second way to Focus the Nation: host a screening of our free, live interactive webcast, THE 2% SOLUTION, the night of Wednesday, January 30th. (Showing The 2% Solution is also the way to kick-off your teach-in)
Finally, K-12 schools can also look to curricular ideas from Focus the Nation’s RESOURCES page, The Earthday Network, or at Climate Change Education.
that neither supports nor opposes specific legislation or any candidate for political office.
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