Newsletter - Spring 2008

Adventures in Outreach

At Harper Junior High, Yumiko Henneberry (Hydrologic Sciences Graduate group) and Pauline Nhamo (Soils and Biogeochemistry Graduate Group) compare the world’s average carbon footprint to that of Americans, which is about 5 times higher.

The Davis Junior High Global Warming Project and Bike/Walk to School Challenge

Junior high school students in Davis, CA, were targeted in an outreach project combining interactive and hands-on information about global warming and carbon footprints with a bike/walk to school challenge.   The  project was conducted by the Kearney Foundation of Soil Science, the Department of Land, Air and Water Resources and the John Muir Institute of the Environment at the UC Davis in the spring of 2007. It was the culmination of Professor Kate Scow’s five year term as Director of the Kearney Foundation of Soil Science, which focused on “soil carbon and California’s terrestrial ecosystems.”  Her vision was to create a community outreach project that started a conversation about global warming, and to target students before they have their driver’s licenses, to get them thinking about alternative transportation choices before they start driving.  The project involved approximately 70 undergraduates, graduate students, post-doc researchers, faculty and staff from UC Davis and the city of Davis.

The project began with workshops in the 7th, 8th and 9th grade science classes in Davis’ 3 junior high schools, reaching a total of 1700 students.  Our team of volunteers took over each science class for one period and played Climate Change Jeopardy, an interactive game we developed to teach students the basics of climate change and spark discussion about possible solutions.  Following Jeopardy, students calculated their personal carbon footprints based on daily activities that they have some control over, such as the use of electronics, diet and transportation choices.  Students entered their addresses in our custom carbon calculator to calculate the emissions associated with their commute to school by car.  Biking or walking to school, instead of commuting by car, was introduced as an important and feasible activity that could reduce one’s carbon footprint.

Biking or walking to school was then encouraged through a 2 week long Bike/Walk to School Challenge at the junior highs following the global warming workshops.  The Davis Bike Church helped launch the challenge at each school by hosting a bike clinic, where members assisted students with basic bike repairs and safety checks.  Participants from UC Davis monitored car traffic at the schools, including the number of carpoolers and car idle times, to calculate each school’s carbon footprint associated with the morning commute.  They also counted bikes in the bike racks throughout the challenge, and prizes were awarded to students for biking or walking to school.  All three schools were recognized and rewarded for their efforts at reducing their carbon footprints during the two week challenge.