Earthrise
Survey Collection
Distributed via email and classroom handouts, these surveys were provided to individuals of all ages in the Western United States. All participants received the same instructions for survey completion and were encouraged to be creative in their method of response (i.e. write, type, draw their answers). If you would like to see the entirety of the collection please visit the site provided below. Roughly 220 responses have been recorded.
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Click Here for the Full Collection
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Let's try a little game. Below you will see various responses from all age groups - guess the age of the individual and hover over the picture to find out if you're right! Surprised?
Have you heard of climate change?
6th Grader
Yes I have and it is a major problem.
A simple yes or no is not enough for this 6th grader. Unlike many older responders this student specifies that this is a major problem.
How do you think we should fight climate change?
7th Grader
1. I think we should not eat as much cows or keep as much cows in the world because cows produce methane which contributes to global warming.
2. Try to trap some of the gases before they can get into the atmosphere, and study them to try to make a solution that can transform these gases into other energy (potential destroying the threat in the gases).
This is a 7th grader explaining the threats of methane released from cows! In addition to identifying this key problem, this student proposes a creative and advanced solution for climate change. His/her proposal to reuse energy extends beyond the layman's understanding of recycling. I don't know about you, but I'm impressed!
How do you think we should fight climate change?
6th Grader
TESLA should make a sea car that collects trash.
This 6th grader encourages us to use existing sustainable technology in innovative ways. This idea might need some more development but I love the creativity!
How do you think we should fight climate change?
5th Grader
There are many ways that we can fight climate change. One way that i think would be effective would be less of producing plastic products. Take a candy wrapper for example. We can turn that into a pouch and reuse it in an effective way. If we do this the factory that make the plastic will help prevent a lot of gas and smoke going into the atmosphere. As that happens the greenhouse effect will soon slow down and give us more time to figure out more ways to possible eliminate the greenhouse effect.
This impressive 5th grader knows the climate change "buzz words" and proposes clever solutions to not just recycle plastic, but find new uses for our trash.
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He/she also acknowledges the time crunch we have to address these problems and proposes immediate changes to implement before bigger adjustments are made.
How do you think we should fight climate change?
6th Grader
I think we should fight climate change by speaking up more than we usually do and try to actually make a change instead of just making sure you're heard.
This 6th grader highlights a key aspect of "response-ability." Recognizing the problems of human-impact is not enough.
How we can we act to physically bring about change?
How do you think we should fight climate change?
21
The only way to fight climate change is through a lot of policy changes, some big and some small.
Policy change is necessary for combatting climate change. Perhaps we need to encourage more young individuals to consider a future in environmental politics.
How do you think we should fight climate change?
69
That’s asking a lot since I don’t have a science background. I also believe that climate change is a cyclical thing that has been happening for centuries. The earth going through warmups and cool down cycles.
Note how this adult implies that climate change is normal. He/she is right that the Earth does fluctuate in temperature, however we are currently in the greatest temperature fluctuation in our planet's history. Even scarier is how fast we got here.
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This is also a reminder that it's time to demystify climate change as only a problem for scientists!
How do you think we should fight climate change?
5th Grader
I think we should start with using clean energy and try and shut down the buisnesses that aren't using clean energy.
This 5th grader already recognizes the necessity for systemic change and monitoring of big businesses!
When did you first hear about climate change?
57
2005
It's important to recognize that many adults only heard about climate change recently. How can we offer guidance and education to help adults understand this global issue?
How do you think we should fight climate change?
69
That’s asking a lot since I don’t have a science background.
Unfortunately this is a common misconception - climate change is a problem beyond the field of STEM.
How do you think we should fight climate change?
74
I think that humans are evolutionally good at planning for the short-term future, especially about things that affect them directly. They are less able to grasp long term dangers that affect future generations. Perhaps a push in our education system to teach from an early age, a feeling of responsibility to the future might be a place to start.
Thankfully these surveys reveal a trend in increasing education on climate change. While earlier implementation of environmentalism curriculum could be encouraged, most participants under the age of 30 received education in elementary or middle school.
When did you first hear about climate change?
58
I would say in the early 90's when I was teaching science. I taught a unit about the water cycle and clouds and animals.
It's interesting that this adult's first exposure to climate change required him/her to teach it.
How can we help educators develop knowledge base prior to providing education?
How do you think we should fight climate change?
1st Grader
put blimps in the sky with suns on it to look like it is sunny
This answer may seem funny (and a little adorable) but let's take a closer look...
Do you think this first grader realizes he/she just proposed a new way to distribute and use solar panels? Mobilization of this invention could allow the solar panels to move with the sun and receive maximum stimulation over longer periods of time!
How do you think we should fight climate change?
6th Grader
One idea is installing solar panels in areas that use the most energy, and then moving on from there to install them in houses and apartments.
This 6th grader suggests advancements on a large scale in the public domain prior to individual attempts to combat climate change. This is an important thing to realize - little changes aren't going to cut it. We need systemic change.
What is climate change?
5th Grader
global warming driven by human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases
This 5th grader may have more advanced knowledge than the average 10 year old but it's refreshing to see such an adept understanding of climate change at a young age!
What is climate change?
53
Damage to the ozone layer due to pollution. Melting glaciers, unusual temperatures, higher sea levels all a result.
This adult clearly understand the basics of climate change.
Pay special attention to his/her phrasing and note how they list the effects of climate changes, rather than the causes. This is an important and unique difference in perspective.
How do you think we should fight climate change?
6th Grader
We could have a certain department in the government devoted to climate change, maybe doing something as simple as organizing more beach cleanups or something more difficult like trying to spend billions of dollars on wind powered/solar energy.
This 6th grader provides simple and advanced solutions for climate change and recognizes the role of environmentalism in policy. His/her proposition encourage immediate efforts as well as long term goals.
How do you think we should fight climate change?
6th Grader
I think we should use greenhouse gases to power things instead of burning things into greenhouse gases. We could use carbon dioxide and filter it into clean air to prevent climate change.
This may not be the most scientifically feasible plan but it's important to recognize the basic message of this 6th grader's idea: find alternative energy sources in unexpected places. Perhaps we can repurpose greenhouse gases like we recycle trash...
How do you think we should fight climate change?
44
This question stresses me out. I don't know.
Some adults found this question nearly impossible to answer.
Survey Results
While the results of these surveys were widely varied I noted a few obvious trends:
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1. Students under the age of 20 produced more creative solutions to climate change. This observation is due, in part, to the increased number of responses for this age group.
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2. Adults with a clear understanding/definition of climate change struggled to create new/imaginative techniques for combatting these issues. Most adult proposals focused on existing solutions for climate change.
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3. Education efforts targeting climate change curriculum are offered at progressively younger ages over time.
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4. Younger participants were more likely to emphasize the temporal significance of evoking action now to combat climate change.