School Climate Strikers and the Duty to Not Remain Neutral

By Violette Baillargeon, BCTF Member-at-Large and Surrey teacher, and Julia MacRae, 1st Vice-President of the Surrey Teachers’ Association

Adapted from an article in the Surrey Teachers’ Association publication The Advocate O n March 15, 2019, more than one million people participated in a global, student-led climate strike. Around 2,200 strikes were organised across 125 countries. In Vancouver, about 50 of our students marched to Vancouver City Hall to meet with the newly elected mayor Kennedy Stewart and demand that council declare a climate emergency.

Since then, the determination of students around the planet and of those in our own communities has not abated. A series of co-ordinated strikes has been organized and well attended. Of note is the Vancouver climate strike on September 27, 2019, when over 100,000 strikers shut down the Cambie Street Bridge and marched to the city core. Many students continue to strike every Friday, protesting government inaction in the face of what has become the most pressing social justice issue facing our planet and our youth today.

As a teacher, how can I best support students who are taking this courageous step? Are there any professional limitations?

Supporting students who are striking for climate action means taking the initial step of teaching the elements of the climate emergency in schools. The good news is that because of the work done by countless teachers before us, BC’s public school teachers possess the professional autonomy to do so without limitations. Thank you, union activists of the past!

Today we face an impending climate catastrophe that defies all predictive models. The scientific community has reached a consensus—something that is rarely achieved among scientists. Human activity is the cause of global warming, and the impact on the climate and the planet’s inhabitants, both human and non-human, will be catastrophic.

The reality is that climate change is already dramatically impacting certain parts of the world, including the global south and Indigenous communities. This has led to mass migration, species extinction, armed conflicts, fires, droughts, and food insecurity. Therefore, the work of teachers is to tell these stories or make them accessible to students, and to help them learn what they will need for their futures. In every subject area and at every stage of learning, children need to prepare for solutions that will require massive participation.

Isn’t it intimidating to wade into something as complex as climate change without the necessary qualifications?

It is certainly overwhelming, but this crisis requires all of us to act. Advocacy, education, and inquiry cannot be left only to those who have the scientific background because it is not solutions that are lacking, but rather awareness and political will. Once made aware and empowered, our students have shown they are worthy contributors to a conversation that needs to happen, and one that, if ignored, stands to deliver the harshest of consequences to those very students.

Are there supports teachers can use in their classrooms to tackle the climate emergency?

Yes! One month after the first global climate strike, Vancouver City Council unanimously declared a climate emergency with a throng of students gathered outside in support. City Councillor Christine Boyle, mover of the original motion, later suggested that the students had been integral to the resolution being passed. Our students are already leading this struggle. It is time we support their efforts and use our professional autonomy for good by both naming the crisis and advancing solutions that will determine its outcome.

Part of the response to the climate emergency requires teachers to act. Students need us to change our classroom practices by becoming more courageous, learning new things, and helping children see what lies ahead more clearly. Not only do we need to retool the entire economy and transportation system to counteract climate change, our tools, ideas, and pedagogy need to adapt.