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The Teenager’s Guide to Environmental Action

By Kara Tebeau

I am a teenager.

I include myself among the youth of this planet who have inherited a climate crisis — and I know it will become our responsibility to fix as we become adults and politically involved citizens of this nation.

As I gaze into the future, I see famine, catastrophic loss of species, more flooding, more extreme weather, and a check from Social Security for zero dollars and zero cents. Well, that last part is unrelated to my main point, but you see where I’m headed. We’ve inherited a big mess that I sometimes feel will be impossible to clean up.

The issue of global warming is difficult to address, and we know that the time to step up is now. But becoming part of the solution seems much more difficult for people my age. By this age, we have become more independent, have our own energy needs, places to go, and things to be purchased, but we don’t have much control over many of these factors. We can’t choose which kinds of cars our families buy. We can’t ask for energy audits for our homes. We generally don’t have a say in the purchase of appliances or groceries. We can’t insist that our parents invest in environmentally friendly businesses. In short, we are not in direct control of our households’ carbon impacts, and since we are not yet adults, we cannot vote for leaders and policies that are environmentally progressive.

So what can we do? I suppose the first step is to inform ourselves about climate change, and to become passionate about it. Too often I read and hear the comments of people who remain ignorant about the subject. When their unsubstantiated argument that global warming isn’t anthropogenic gets tired out, many revert to something along the lines of “Al Gore is an idiot, and you’re an alarmist.” This “climate” of apathy must come to an end.

So first things first: Be informed. But then what? What else can teenagers do? Environmentally progressive lifestyle changes can help us become part of the solution. Think about your impact. Susie buys clothes at Value Village, is a vegetarian, bikes, and drinks from a reusable water bottle. Jonathan leaves his computer on overnight, buys heavily packaged goods, and enjoys watching Susie’s pained face as he drinks from a Styrofoam cup. Obviously, Susie has a smaller carbon footprint. An online footprint calculator, with adjustments made for personal footprint calculation (rather than household) can give you an idea of how much you contribute to global warming. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency provides a personal carbon calculator at: www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/ind_calculator.html.

The following suggestions include other ways for teens to lessen their impact:

1. Be a responsible shopper. Buy goods and foods that haven’t traveled across the world to get to you, and aren’t heavily packaged. You’re reducing your impact this way, supporting local business, and sending the message that wasteful goods aren’t desirable ones. Teenagers are a strong shopping force. Our choices influence the choices of businesses.
2. We all know the three Rs: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. These options reduce net energy used to make products. Buy used clothes. You get another pair of jeans, with no new manufacturing. Whenever you can, use eating utensils, bags, drinking containers, etc. that can be reused. Make sure that the option to recycle is widely available at your school.
3. Ride the bus, carpool, or bike if possible.
4. Unplug all your new-fangled hip electronics when not in use. Even when these are turned off, they still use electricity when plugged in.
5. Use less energy by keeping the heat low when it’s cold. Use less hot water by taking shorter showers and washing your clothes in cold water.
6. Eat less meat — the digestive processes of cattle, the clearing of forests for ranches, and the meat’s packaging and transport all have environmental impacts.
7. Teens are not completely politically powerless! We can write to representatives and attend global warming community events.
8. Visit Treehugger.com and other websites for ways to become greener, green gift ideas, information on green politics, and much more. #}

   This period in life between being a child and an adult is a transition into being a responsible global citizen. The development at a young age of the skills necessary to take responsibility for personal impacts is a springboard for conscientious behaviors as an adult. As a teen, I am trying to learn these skills for myself.

   Kara Tebeau is a senior at River Ridge High School, and is studying environmental activism with regard to climate change as her graduation project.  Send feedback to speech@zhonka.net 

   
   

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