Reimagining Schoolyards to Improve Health and Learning

Some European schools have long championed free play in the woods as a way to combat the increasingly mainstream idea of "nature-deficit disorder." In Finland, enthusiastic teachers dedicate all of Friday to outdoor "secret" education - students don't even realize they are learning academic lessons. Inspired by these models, scattered American schools are experimenting with the idea, with some finding reductions in bullying and improvements in test scores and focus issues.

A startup is making buildings more eco-friendly by converting their energy needs from oil and gas to electric heat pumps. BlocPower is a Black-owned clean tech startup that provides a no money down lease option, making it financially accessible.

Surge Africa is a nonprofit helping Nigerian farmers learn about and implement agroforestry and agroecology practices to more sustainably manage their land and improve their yields despite the negative impacts of climate change.

The nonprofit Coombs Outdoors runs summer and winter camps for youth to experience and learn about the outdoors. The camps are in high demand because of the affordable price made possible by donor subsidies.

A student-developed course at the University of California-Berkeley, Solutions for a Sustainable and Just Future, focuses on both individual and systemic strategies to address the climate crisis. More than 1,800 people have taken the class, and more than 70 percent of them said the course content inspired them to get involved in environmental work.

Led by Native Hawai’ians, Kamehameha Schools owns thousands of acres of land dedicated to stewardship and conservation. The school partners with Native Hawaiian organizations and conducts eco-cultural education programs for students and members of the community to foster connections between them and the environment.

The nonprofit Mahila Housing Trust provides women in India who are particularly vulnerable to extreme heat and heat-related illness with white solar reflective paint for the roofs of their homes. Painting the roofs white cools the inside of the homes by several degrees.

New Jersey schools are working to make climate education widespread by implementing general education standards that include climate change education in every grade and subject. These new education standards have been inspiring students to brainstorm solutions to climate-related issues like reducing food waste and increasing coastal resiliency. The state has also earmarked $5 million to help local teachers attend professional development sessions to teach them how to create new climate change-focused lesson plans.

The Office of Heat Response and Mitigation works to address the urban heat effect caused by intense summer temperatures. The Office has worked on several practices like coating streets and surfaces in light-colored, water-based asphalt treatments that reflect sunlight and absorb less heat than standard pavement. So far, 100 miles of residential roads have been covered in the treatment and roads with the treatment have an average surface temperature that is 10.5 to 12 degrees Fahrenheit lower than traditional asphalt.

A neighborhood group and a roofing company in Los Angeles, California, painted streets, parking lots, and a schoolyard with a “cool pavement” coating that reflects the heat from the sun. The coating keeping the surface cooler and providing relief from the urban heat island effect.