Meet an educator-turned-climate advocate

Skip to content (Image credit: AP Photo/Nati Harnik) Transcript: Jonathan Klein says the students he met at a climate protest in 2019 were angry. He had taken his daughter and her friends to a school strike in San Francisco, where thousands of students were protesting for climate action. He says the kids were frustrated with adults for not doing more when they have the power to do so – and for not preparing students for a climate-altered future. Klein: “It was like, the rage that I heard from them, you know, the outrage and the clarity that this has to change.” Klein had spent years working in education. But after the protest, he started learning more about climate change. And soon, he cofounded the nonprofit UndauntedK12, which advocates for climate action in schools. Klein: “If our goal is to prepare young people for the future, then rising generations’ futures are going to be deeply shaped by extreme weather and climate change – and in fact, are already being shaped and disrupted by extreme weather. And so this is not somebody else’s work. This is our work.” His group promotes climate education for students, tracks the impact of extreme weather on schools, and helps schools become more efficient with new HVAC systems and other appliances – so both schools and students are better prepared for some of the challenges of climate change. Reporting credit: Ethan Freedman / ChavoBart Digital Media