Tell me, I forget. Show me, I remember. Involve me, I understand. - Ancient Chinese Proverb
Student Leadership
Building motivation and enthusiasm for the Green Cup Challenge took many different forms throughout the month. Students play a vital role in educating their school community about the importance of addressing global climate change, both as an institution and as individuals. Below are some examples of how students got involved with the Green Cup Challenge at their school.
America's Favorite Quiz Show-Northfield Mount Hermon (This event won the "GCC Spirit Award")
Two seniors at Northfield Mount Hermon put together an event for the Student Life Curriculum. They had every NMH student calculate their ecological footprint on Monday with their advisee groups, then the dorms gathered to play Jeopardy by advisee group. The feedback was very positive, and students learned a lot along the way. In order to ensure that the answers were familiar, the two student organizers posted emails for the last two weeks, almost every day, with the title "You should know..." and a fact, which was an answer to the Jeopardy questions, but nobody knew that, with a smokestack in the background. Some folks recognized the pattern and studied the facts, assuming that they were leading up to some final opportunity. Example question: If the entire ice sheet in Greenland melts, by how much will the sea level all over the world rise? Answer: between 20 and 23 feet (or 6 to 7.5 meters).
Role Playing-St. George's A student at St. George's gave life to a childhood hero: Captain Planet. This student portrayed Captain Planet to the school community during weekly announcements and other GCC related events. He was instrumental in coordinating the overall effort, garnering support for and raising awareness about the GCC.
Singing for Change-Millbrook Students from SCAPE, Students Concerned About Planet Earth, wrote and sang a song about the Green Cup Challenge to motivate the community and build spirit for the GCC.
Help, I need somebody,
Help, Not just anybody,
Help, You know I need someone…
Help!
When I was younger, so much younger than today,
I wasted energy every single day.
But now these days are gone, I’m not so unaware
That burning coal and oil will so pollute our air.
Help me if you can, I’m powering down,
And I do appreciate your being round,
Help us get our feet back on the ground,
Won’t you please, please help me.
And now our lives have changed in oh so many ways,
Our stable climate seems to vanish in the haze,
But we can change that warming road we’re headed on,
Let’s win the Green Cup, global warming will be gone.
Help me if you can, I’m powering down,
And I do appreciate your being round,
Help us get our feet back on the ground,
Won’t you please, please help me.
Help me, Help me, ooo.
-Contributed by students at The Millbrook School
Words of Wisdom-Andover On February 23rd, PA celebrated the end of the Green Cup with a minimal impact coffeehouse. At one point during the coffee house, 50+ students were singing along to Joni Mitchell’s, "Big Yellow Taxi"! To make a great event with a small impact, the event featured: All acoustic performances; 100% organic & fair trade from Dean’s Beans(Orange, MA); Green Cup Cupcakes from The Cupcake Boutique in Andover; Green Cup Talent Show; information on how you can prevent global warming.
GO GREEN OR GO HOME Jessica M. Cole ’08 ~ Windam, NH
I’d love to write a scathing rant against modern convenience
if I hadn’t just checked my facebook three times in a row –
but I do turn off my lights before I go
outside,
new idea: what if we just didn’t drive?
fossil fuels would disappear, unfortunately so would
dominos delivery and day students, but
every plan has its costs
but seriously, what will be lost
if we don’t make a change? nothing essential –
just a few hundred species and possibly
the islands of fiji
polar bears may be skating on thin ice
but c’mon, that’s just the price
we pay for stretch-hummer limousines and
besides, the U.S. doesn’t exactly care about redeeming
itself in the eyes of the world, or anything
this is just a tree-hugger thing
I know I feel significantly distressed when asked to make
any kind of effort to cut excess usage – c’mon, where will Hollywood be
if they don’t have new natural disasters to base films off of,
“the day after tomorrow” was a story more about
love found in an abandoned new york library than an appeal to this generation
tired of being shouldered with the burden of my descendents, I identify more
with those dissidents who take the elevator for the heck of it, just to fight
“the Man”…although I suppose I occasionally do give the environment a hand,
when I close my eyes and try to picture my home without trees –
new hampshire’s already lost its man in the mountain, if we lose the forests
we’re dead
and how about identity? mine, yours, the worlds
how confused would my grandchild be if in addition to unlearning the role of
Pluto in the solar system she also couldn’t use her green crayon to fill in the continents
and she’ll consider new england as a warm place to go
I refuse to deprive grandchildren of snow-
shoveling…after all, I had to do it for all of my youth
and I guess to tell you the truth I do kind of give a damn about this whole
belching harmful gases scam pop culture has cultivated within me
and maybe this resentments the key
to get us up off our asses and buying bus passes,
shutting down computers for an extra few hours a day and hey,
at least the polar bears will thank us
so excuse my teenage diatribe
I’m really not trying to alter your life in any way but this –
think twice before consuming more than you own,
for what we have is already on loan from future generations
and lest we’re later forced for our actions to atone
here’s one big suggestion –
