Some of the smallest visitors to the Alcantara Magic Garden-Connect4Climate pavilion had big ideas about climate.
"What if you stop eating cheese? Will that help the planet?" asked one girl from Annunciation Catholic School, one of the many school groups from the Washington, D.C. area that visited the pavilion. "The decisions you make about the food you eat have an impact the planet," said Max Boykoff, professor at the Center for Science and Technology Policy at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and Connect4Climate advisor. "What kinds of foods contribute to the warming of the planet?," he challenged. "Meat!" Correct.
The ideas kept coming—and we posted them to our #TakeOn board. Save water! Turn off the lights! Recycle!
"Turn off the lights and take shorter showers," said Rachel, 8, when asked by her father what he reminds her to do each night.
Recycling was a tough issue for one of the schoolgirls. "I try to get my family to recycle, but they don’t listen to me!" says Betel, 10. "They use the first trashcan they see. But I’m working on them."
The children of today are the men and women of the future!Protect the planet and #TakeOn #Climatechange pic.twitter.com/AclrMNu5kx
— Connect4Climate (@Connect4Climate) April 17, 2015
Other kids declared they would create less trash in general—and pledged not to litter. They pledged to ride their bikes more rather than ask their parents for rides in the car. They also said they’d walk.
"Use solar panels, instead of gas," said Malyk, 13, from Sacred Heart Bilingual Academy. Malyk was thrilled to learn that the whole pavilion he was standing in was powered entirely by solar panels, the first one ever on the National Mall. "Wow! Really?," he said as he went to inspect the panel farm.
With young minds aligned in such a way, the future is looking up.
The @Connect4Climate team is waiting for you on the National Mall! Discover how we #TakeOn #Climatechange! pic.twitter.com/nZP80nG0XT
— Connect4Climate (@Connect4Climate) April 17, 2015
