Ask a Climate Education Expert: Molly Sinnott

I'm always struggling with how to motivate students to care about climate change. Most of mine seem resigned to a dim future and perhaps it just my particular group (students at risk of dropping out of HS). I try my best to say that while we have this really big problem there are also opportunities to be had in solving this problem. There are jobs in the growing industries of renewable energy, environmental science, recycling, materials innovation, technology, etc. But I worry that my own fear about the size of this crisis makes my optimism sound hollow. 

Any suggestions?

Hi christine guarino —thanks so much for raising this. You’re naming something a lot of educators are feeling right now.

You’re absolutely right on both fronts: students can feel pessimistic about climate progress, and we as educators often feel that same weight. I’m definitely not here to tell you that those perspectives aren’t just or warranted. I feel them too, especially recently as it feels like we’re backsliding on some of the biggest wins that have been accomplished. The setbacks can feel louder than the progress.

At the same time, progress rarely happens in a straight line. We’re in a moment where the future isn’t fixed—we’re not guaranteed to solve this problem, but we’re also not doomed to the worst outcomes. And in a strange way, that uncertainty can be motivating. What happens next actually depends on what people do.

That might be something to lean into with your students. Young people tend to have a very finely-tuned BS meter, so if they’re given a script of all-optimism, all day, those feelings of resignation, apathy, anxiety, whatever it is are really likely to surface. But if you can hold both truths—yes, things are serious, and yes, there is real progress and possibility—it creates a more honest space.

Framing it that way can help shift students from feeling stuck to seeing where they might have agency. It’s less about convincing them everything will be okay, and more about showing that their attention, choices, and actions actually matter. It’s the question of tuning out or tuning in, and by offering the means and motivation to tune in, you’re providing the opportunity for your students at the very least to be informed, and maybe inspired to do something themselves.

At my school we recently had a college/skilled trades fair. I brought my little group of students from my Energy and Climate class. We were pleasantly surprised to see how many NY/Tri-state area schools and businesses were offering careers and job training programs related to clean energy. My students saw that there are many opportunities out there not only for good jobs and educational opportunities, but ones that will actually help us reach a positive result in terms of climate change as well. 

At my school we recently had a college/skilled trades fair. I brought my little group of students from my Energy and Climate class. We were pleasantly surprised to see how many NY/Tri-state area schools and businesses were offering careers and job training programs related to clean energy. My students saw that there are many opportunities out there not only for good jobs and educational opportunities, but ones that will actually help us reach a positive result in terms of climate change as well.