The Arcadia Quill The Arcadia Quill

Editorial Board

Editors-in-Chief: Catherine Chan, Lillian Chong, Enzo Goebel

News Editors: Stephanie Wang, Madison Yee

Opinion Editors: Ashley Chan, Chloe Wong

Features Editors: Darin Buenaluz, Pamina Yung

Arts & Entertainment Editors: Anna Odell, Maryam Sadeghifard

Sports Editors: Sophia Li, Sohana Sahni

Media Editor: Amanda Chang

Campus Focus Editor:

Michelle So

Publicity Manager:

Vritti Godani

General Staff

Staff Writers:

Ryan Chai, Nathan Chen, Niyah (Elliot) Davis, Harini Devaguptapu, Juliette Fang, Jose Gama, Eleanor Gladson-Pang, Michelle Ho, Michael Hum, Amish Jha, Annie Jiang, Emily Lee, Caroline Li, Lisa Li, Justina Liu, Zhilin Liu, Samantha Luan, Victoria Thalia Mair, Emmaline Pan, Breeanna Pham, Ava Shaw, Sofia Payan Siegrist, Clarissa Suryapranata, Kaitlynn Trinnh, Ziming (Sarah) Wang, Kathy Wong, Lin Zhang

Media Staff:

Lauryn Chao, Skye Escobedo, Veronica Meyers, Ainsley Najafzadeh, Katrina Reghitto, Lorin Teng, Vanessa Valentino, May Wang, Olivia Zheng

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Policy

The Arcadia Quill acknowledges the systemic inequities persistent in our country and community, and therefore we maintain a dedication towards equity, diversity, and inclusion. As a student-led organization, we strive to inspire high school students to use their voices to discuss issues that affect them in conjunction with our goal to provide a space of journalistic integrity and professionalism. We expect ourselves to be inclusive and respectful of everyone regardless of identity—including but not limited to race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic identity, immigration status, socioeconomic status, ability, and religious belief. We strive to put our values into action by doing the following: Highlighting the stories and experiences of students from backgrounds that have historically faced inequality. Assessing how The Arcadia Quill can improve by taking steps to avoid contributing to cultural appropriation and systemic injustice. Working to educate our staff on the impact of systemic inequality, and equipping them with tools on how to advance equity, diversity, and inclusion within their own means. Following standards set by Arcadia Unified School District to confront systemic injustice including racial inequity. We hold ourselves to high standards in advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion. If you have any questions or concerns regarding these efforts by The Arcadia Quill, please email eic.arcadiaquill@gmail.com.

Social Media & Comments

Social media will be used to promote appropriate media, to promote published content, and to engage with Arcadia and Arcadia High School’s community. The Editorial Board reserves the right to remove comments deemed inappropriate, offensive, or threatening. The information posted on social media platforms (i.e. Instagram) will be held to the same standards as all other reporting in terms of information gathering and fact-checking.

Bylines

If more than one person works on a story or an editor has to rewrite a significant portion of a story (as determined by the editor), all names of contributing writers will be listed on the byline of the article. All articles, graphics, photos, and other media, with the exception of staff photos, will be bylined with the photographer or contributor’s name. All bylined writers will be held accountable for their work and the information contained within.

Editorial Policy

The Arcadia Quill will not print anything in our publication (online or print) that is deemed libelous, obscene, or otherwise offensive or inappropriate, in accordance with the Supreme Court’s justified standards. Rights are reserved to postpone, edit or withhold from publication anything submitted which does not meet the specifications.

Unsigned editorials represent the view of The Arcadia Quill Editorial Board. It does not necessarily represent the view of other Quill staff members. The Arcadia Quill refuses to print criticism which is not constructive and not supported by fact or evidence. The editors and adviser will make the final decision on all material appearing in The Arcadia Quill

The Arcadia Quill will not intentionally invade the privacy of any person or publish facts and quotes given off the record. Opinions will be clearly marked and found on the editorial pages or as designated on other pages (i.e.- front page). Signed opinion articles and commentary are the expressed opinions of the author and not of The Arcadia Quill and its editorial board, adviser, or Arcadia High School’s faculty or school board.

Staff members are guided by the Canons of Journalism of the American Society of Newspaper Editors, a code of ethics which outlines the principles of responsibility, fairness, and accuracy.

Corrections Policy

Corrections will be printed when brought to the attention of the staff. Original stories will carry bylines but additional contributors to a story will be listed on the byline.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism of any form will not be tolerated. Story ideas and article content are to remain completely original with the exception of the use of outside graphics/images/quotes, which are to be duly credited.

Quotes

Quotes are representative of a single opinion; they do not represent the beliefs of the student body and staff. Quotes are to be written in past tense with the correct style guide format.

In Sept. 2020, residents of the Foothills area of Arcadia received an urgent notice: Prepare for evacuation. Overnight, the Bobcat fire had grown from a small blaze to a snaking line that spanned the entirety of the mountains overlooking the San Gabriel Valley. Fueled by dry shrubs and even more arid conditions, the Bobcat Fire had progressed rapidly and dangerously, putting property and lives at risk.

Two and a half years later, many of the same residents received a flash flood warning issued by the National Weather Service in the face of record-setting torrential storms blasting through the area, a bout of extreme weather that killed at least 21 people throughout California earlier this month.

Smothered by an endless cloak of rain, soils have the potential to oversaturate, leading to water running across, instead of into, the ground. The precipitation brought little respite from the extended dryspell, an unfortunate consequence of runoff mismanagement. It also added to the list of extreme weather diction—”bomb cyclone” and “atmospheric river” among the bulk of them.

From scorching summers to waterlogged winters, the dichotomy is clear. Climate change, in all of its forms, poses an increasingly dangerous threat to our world.

Greenhouse gases, those noxious emissions we have been hearing so much about lately, are responsible for trapping heat within the atmosphere. More heat means more water vapor getting trapped in that in-between space. Eventually, the moisture condenses into clouds. Global weather patterns drastically shift as a result of these misplaced clouds, with certain places receiving far more rain than others.

“California normally has rainy winters but the warming air in our atmosphere is now absorbing incredible amounts of moisture that ends up getting dumped into places like the San Gabriel Valley,” said AP Environmental Science teacher Mr. Carlos Carranza. “What worries me is that we’ve covered most of this land with concrete and suburbs. We’re left with so little soil on the ground to absorb water that large storms can easily cause flooding and risk of mudslides.”

To that end, in Arcadia, the extreme weather conditions of unbearable hot periods followed by the recent heavy rain is a sign that the Earth’s temperature is increasing as a whole. According to the Indicators of Climate Change in California report, the annual average air temperatures have increased by around 2.5 degrees since 1895, and have been warming at a faster rate since the 1980s. Not to mention, since climate change strengthens the likelihood of wetter and more intense storms, the California showers that have taken locals by surprise are no part of the expected routine.

“In California, the snow peaks that we rely on for water are not forming as often, due to it getting warmer. Over in the Pacific, the warmer air can carry more moisture which eventually ends up in California,” stated Mr. Carranza.

From a global perspective, different parts of the world face two temperature alterations— either being colder or hotter than usual conditions. Each rapid fluctuation influences the various climates in unique ways, ultimately developing to the Earth’s current state. This is one of the key steps to noticing that global warming is more present than ever, and so far, what humans have done to try and stop it has not been enough.

True, governments around the world have been far from complacent against this oncoming climate crisis. Beginning from 1972, when member nations of the United Nations convened in Stockholm, Sweden to discuss the issue of climate change for the first time at the First Earth Summit, many countries have made great strides towards tackling climate change;

Aided by international organizations such as the UN, many nations across the world have joined forces in a collective effort to protect Earth’s resources, such as reducing the production and emission of ozone-depleting substances through the 1987 Montreal Protocol, and formally tracking and holding each other accountable for reducing carbon emissions through the 1997 Kyoto Protocol.

Most recently, at the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27), held in Egypt, world leaders committed to helping countries battered by climate change, a historic step forward. In the U.S., measures under the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act also aimed to cut greenhouse gas emissions by promoting the use of green energy in major sectors of the economy.

However, despite decades of progress, past action against climate change isn’t enough, especially because climate change still isn’t prioritized as a policy item, despite impacting millions around the globe. At COP27, for example, member nations agreed to establish mutual aid for countries struggling with climate change, but stopped short of committing to cutting emissions further. Just a month after signing the Inflation Reduction Act into law, President Biden also authorized the release of 15 million barrels of oil from American reserves in response to the global energy crisis.

In fact, the Environmental Perspective to the Year 2000 and Beyond, the first-ever UN document advising international action to achieve sustainable development, was not adopted with a focus on climate change, but rather, on energy, under which climate change was marked as a secondary issue.

As governments around the world continue to hobble forward in a collaborative effort against climate change, goals for cutting carbon emissions by 2030 – as much as 45% to 50% in certain countries – continue to remain elusive. So how can we, as regular citizens, help to enact change in our everyday lives?

While the average person may not have the power to end practices like fossil fuel consumption, there are still ways we can contribute to the well-being of our planet. Electricity and heat, for instance, are primarily powered by oil, gas, and coal. By switching to energy-efficient power sources (such as LEDs), you can reduce your carbon footprint dramatically. Walking and biking also reduces CO2 emissions, as does switching to an electric vehicle. Simply throwing away less food prevents landfill overcrowding (rotting food produces methane, a greenhouse gas). And if you’re willing to make a more substantial lifestyle change, going vegetarian is also a great idea, as plant-based food production is much more efficient than the production of meat and dairy.

Given the oft-repeated warnings that time is running out for Planet Earth, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed by the looming threat of climate change. But through campaigning for preventative action and making simple changes to everyday life, we can combat, if not entirely undo, the damage inflicted upon our environment. We all must take collective action. It isn’t too late for our planet. Not yet.

Photo by CREDITS