Friends Academy Community Engages in On- and Off-Campus Action for Climate Change
Written by Andrea Miller
On Friday, Sept. 20, the Friends Academy community joined in as young people all over the world participated in a Global Climate Strike.
On-campus, faculty and students observed a Lights Out Day, using natural light and turning off classroom and hallway lights for the day to conserve energy.
Off-campus, students were permitted excused absences to join in the Youth Climate March in Manhattan, one of 800 such marches taking place across the country that day.
The movement to bring more awareness to the dangers of climate change has been spurred in part by the work of Swedish 16-year-old activist Greta Thunberg, who delivered a powerful message to the United Nations following the march on Sept. 20. More than a dozen Friends Academy students joined their peers for the strike, carrying signs and urging change as the march moved through Manhattan toward the UN building.
Meanwhile, on campus, the Sustainability Committee spearheaded the efforts to keep lights off for the entire day, opening a dialogue about simple ways to conserve energy – and about the large-scale difference, even small changes can make when everyone's on board.
"If you think you're too young to make a difference, you're wrong," said 10th grader Faraz Lotfi, the treasurer of the Friends Academy Sustainability Committee. "We have children and teenagers making small changes in their everyday lives. It can really make a big impact on the world."
Over the past several years, Friends Academy has taken conscious steps to reduce energy consumption on campus. When the Middle School building was renovated in 2016, energy consumption was reduced by 44 percent in that building, with updates such as using only LED lightbulbs throughout the building.