Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1463867
not just students writing a paper ; it's real science." Students are also concerned about the vast increase of plas- tic in the ocean, its impact on marine life, and the fact that plastic is created by fossil fuels. ey have created public ser- vice announcements about the threat to the world's oceans. VanMeter conducts Socratic seminars where they have deep discussions and look for solutions. "It's important that students see there are solutions. If we tell them there are no solutions, why would they care? We need them to care, because they will hopefully be the generation that can change things." Tahoe students face the new normal Sierra College's Truckee campus sits in a location where extreme weather is becoming the new normal. Jon Larson, a professor who teaches environmental studies and a class on energy and the environment, points to recent extremes of too much snow or too much drought. He explains that natural variability in the climate system is becoming more pronounced with a clear human influence. L ars on c onduct s und er wat er re search in L ake Taho e, which draws thousands of vacationers. He believes higher temperatures and invasive species are causing the once crys- tal-clear water to become murkier. He recalls the Caldor Fire came close to devouring the bone-dry Lake Tahoe Basin last year, resulting in mass evacuations. Larson encourages students to calculate their carbon foot- print and lower it with the help of e Nature Conservancy at nature.org. (See resources for teachers, page 23.) A carbon foot- print is the total amount of greenhouse gases that are generated by one's actions. "My m o st p opul ar l e cture i s h ow I a c c ompli sh ed thi s myself," says the Sierra College Faculty Association member. "I finally decided to change my lifestyle after teaching about this over a decade." He installed solar panels on his house, with local subsidies that made it more affordable. He bought an electric car, figuring that money saved on gas would more than compensate for the cost of the car, which has proved true. His philosophy is: " You can't change the world unless you change yourself first." Some college students tell him they believe climate change is part of "God's will" or that God will take care of the Earth, so people needn't worry. "I say, ' You may be right, but meanwhile, let's move VanMeter's students study the changes and threats to our oceans and sea life. "It's important that students see there are solutions. If we tell them there are no solutions, why would they care?" —Pia VanMeter, Riverside City Teachers Association 21 A P R I L / M AY 2 0 2 2