Millions of dollars have been poured into climate legislation with little to show for it. Simultaneously, few resources have been devoted to preparing the next generation with the knowledge and tools they need to effectively address climate change. A study conducted by Yale University revealed that only 1 in 10 Americans believe they have a strong understanding of climate science, while 75% of Americans say that schools should teach our children about climate change. Now, more than ever, we need a program to educate America’s high school students on climate science and potential impacts on their future.
At its core, POW is a rider/skier led community, within which athletes are powerful influencers.
Working to engage youth on the discussion of climate change and inspire them to be our future environmental leaders has been at the core of who POW is from Day 1. In 2010, we realized that if we were going to truly break through to the next generation, we needed to take climate change out of the science class and re-think how this complicated subject was communicated to young students. And we need to not just to educate them on the science, but also inspire them to become more involved. As we well know, the messenger is just as important as the message, so it became very apparent that in order to break through, we needed to make the connection between pro athletes, powerful social influencers and the high-school students who idolized them.
Hot Planet/Cool Athletes is a multi-media presentation available to any pro snow sports athlete interested in speaking to teens about climate change. The program gives any athlete the opportunity to deliver in-person, energizing, and powerful climate assemblies to high schools aimed at educating and empowering students to address global climate change.
With pro athletes as powerful messengers, students learn climate science basics, anecdotal stories about first-hand impacts on winter sports and discuss real solutions, leaving with a clear sense of purpose and building a movement of passionate youth leaders. With the right information, students can catalyze change. With the right support, we can help them.
Launched at X Games in 2011, we’ve already reached 52,000 students in schools across the US and Canada.
This Earth Day, we’re focused on the next generation – those who will be left with the real impacts of climate change. We’re providing the assembly free to as many schools as possible via an in-person athlete appearance or a classroom DVD and it’s our hope that through this program, we’ll inspire thousands of young kids to better understand and think differently about the causes of climate change, and the most effective ways to address it.
To learn more, request an assembly at your school or a free DVD or download, visit: http://hotplanetcoolathletes.com/