Energy: Past, Present, and Future

Rationale – what? why? & who?

This unit, for high school students, will explore the many roles the agriculture, food and natural resources realm can play in required shifts in energy use, renewable energy production, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and sequestration. 

Figure 1 Imagining a near future where all students learn to grow, share and eat food using regenerative practices, make and use alternative energy at school.

Most people have a general understanding that fossil fuel use is “bad” for the environment.  Many have some understanding that excess emissions of carbon dioxide, and other greenhouse gasses (GHG), are causing climate change.  The perils seem to be ever clearer, as we experience and/or read about record high temperatures and catastrophic weather events. These are caused by the many human activities which have, and continue to, spew GHG into the air.¹  Between writing the first and second draft of this paper, the earth has broken the global average surface temperature ever recorded two days in a row.² We can all look with horror at the temperature anomaly map video that NASA has produced, to visualize the planet’s long-term warming trend from 1880 to early 2024.  As this video timeline progresses, the earth’s surface, starts out appearing white and blue.  These colors represent average temperatures of the baseline period from 1951-1980. As time progresses, the map becomes ever more yellow, then orange, then red - indicating an almost 2 degree increase in temperatures from the baseline.  June, July, and August of 2023 combined were 0.41 degrees Fahrenheit (0.23 degrees Celsius) warmer than any other summer in NASA’s record.³  Heat, storms, wildfires, floods.  Human caused climate catastrophe can no longer be ignored, and the only time left to work on this problem is now.

What seems less clear is how we humans, living in distinct places – interconnected by air, water and weather patterns – but politically separate, will pull off making the many changes that are so obviously required to coordinate reductions in GHG emissions.  We need to onboard proven technologies, innovate and coordinate research and implementation at the scale required to solve this huge problem.  We want temperature regulated homes, and the freedom to drive where we want in cars we can afford. We expect cold ice cream and hot coffee, and for the most part do not want to know how much methane the cow that provided the cream belched into the atmosphere, nor whether the coffee beans came from shade grown permaculture plantations.  The scope of the problems feels so vast, and the impact of any of our individual actions so limited. 

Education is potentially the most powerful tool to address climate change. One of the main requirements of change is understanding what is possible, and having the tools to implement, evaluate and iterate new technologies.  Having a community of support, in the form of classmates and colleagues with whom to collaborate, navigate and instigate change is also an important key to changemaking.  “The current global challenges need strategic, creative optimists who are willing to demand more radical approaches and identify pathways for action.”⁴ 

High school students are not (yet) decision makers at either the household or political level. Even if they were, they are no more equipped than the average politician to decide when or whether to install solar panels or a heat pump, whether to support investment in hydrogen cell technology or biofuel.  But decisions are being made that impact our collective future, and more decisions need to be made.  Political will, start-up funding, and research and implementation priorities will need to be influenced by expertise.  Given how complex and interconnected the issues of climate change and the challenges of making change are, it is imperative to build expertise in renewable energy technologies and climate mitigation strategies. 

The goals for this unit are to help students to consider themselves stakeholders in our shared future. When armed with knowledge, ideas and problem-solving practice they can then take on an active role in designing, building and advocating for greener and cleaner future.

The “what” of this unit is to co-create with students a practical toolkit for reducing GHG emissions within the food and agriculture sector.  They will be invited to explore and demonstrate understandings of several ways to reduce fossil fuel energy use, produce alternative energy, and shift agricultural practices to be part of the solution, rather than part of the problem.

Who Needs to Know?

The U School is a comprehensive laboratory high school with just under 300 students in the Philadelphia School district. Founded in 2014 through a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York to re-imagine schools to prepare youth for college and career, The U School is a competency-based model that requires young people to demonstrate their learning through tangible performance tasks. We leverage strong relationships with our students to grant students the agency and support needed to successfully make the college and career leap.  This unit is designed for our Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources (AFNR) Career and Technical Education (CTE) program, which has evolved to be the primary class for almost all our U School 12^th graders.  In addition to science, social studies and agriculture CTE competencies, students explore what we call “Green Collar Careers” and “Sustainability Studies.”  The program is meant to grow citizens who understand complex interconnected issues and participate in community improvement.  This is CTE for the 21st century, teaching a range of problem solving, technical, and academic skills which are transferable to a range of post-secondary pathways. 

Many of the lessons, labs and activities from this unit would fit well in high school science courses, while other activities from this unit might better align with social studies or civics classes.

An overview of how agriculture (and the rest of society) has been using energy, and what options there are for changes to energy production and consumption, will fill an important gap in our current offerings. It will also offer students several optional opportunities for additional certifications, credentials, and internships.