Learning with Leaders comes to Scarsdale High School

The message from the “Learning with Leaders” (LwL) symposium sponsored by the Children’s Environmental Literacy Foundation (CELF) recently held at Scarsdale High School was pretty straightforward. Renewable energy is an expanding and exciting field and its long-term growth will be spurred on by scientists, engineers and business leaders who are still in their teens. In other words, today’s students.

 

The program drew over 80 students, teachers and parents, some of whom came from outside of Scarsdale to listen and interact with the three main speakers, whose engaging presentations and question and answer sessions drew out the students.

 

“I was as impressed by the quality of the answers, questions and insights by the students as I was by our very learned and experienced panel members,” said Katie Ginsberg, Executive Director of CELF. “I found it a very engaging program.”

 

The program was moderated by Robert Preston, a portfolio manager with Merrill Lynch GlobalPrivate Client Group, who has over 30 years of experience in the energy field. One of the points he raised was a recent study that showed 85% of all scientists in recorded history are alive today and that the world needs more scientists, more engineers and even more bankers to solve our global energy and environmental issues.

 

He acted in some ways as devil’s advocate to get the panel and audience members to interact and to also raise issues. “We want to engage you tonight, make you think,” said Mr. Preston, “Decide what problems you want to solve.”

 

That message was driven home by the other members of the panel.  Rosi Kerr works for Juice, an energy company that combines sophisticated energy risk management with greenhouse gas solutions for corporate clients. She began her presentation by describing her own first experience with devising solutions to environmental problems she had encountered. While working in Alaska she learned about 40% of a salmon caught to be eaten is not utilized and is tossed into waterways, fouling the environment. What she did was create a system that turned that waste product into environmentally friendly, low emissions fuel used to power diesel engines. “It not only helped the ecology, but also provided a usable benefit to people in that remote part of Alaska,” she said. A career was launched.

 

The third speaker was Jonathan Koch, founder and managing director of US Renewables Group. He has led an entrepreneurial business life focusing primarily on the biofuels industry. Geothermal power, solar thermal power and biomass power are some of the emerging technologies his company invests in.  The meeting at Scarsdale High School was a homecoming of sorts, because Mr. Koch is a graduate of that highly regarded high school.

One of his major points was that while the renewable energy field will always need scientists and engineers it also needs investment bankers, lawyers and other fields not traditionally associated with the environment. When asked how his industry was doing during the financial turmoil our economy is currently experiencing, he said with a big smile, “My industry is flying!” He said he expects the renewable energy sector to continue to grow, allowing our dependence on non-renewable fuel sources to shrink.

 

Many of the students attending the seminar were happy to learn about these issues and industries from people on the front lines.

 

 

Learning with Leaders comes to Scarsdale High School (continued from page 1)

 

“It was good to hear different perspectives,” said Tess Sherman, a senior at Horace Greeley HS in Chappaqua. “I am interested in sustainability and there was a lot of useful information here tonight.”

 

Nina Cooperman, a junior at Scarsdale HS, said the seminar was also useful and informative. “I have an interest in looking at the green movement as part of my profession,” she said. “The speakers tonight laid out some of the possible ways for me to do that.”

 

The LwL program is a free educational series open to 8th through 12th grade students, teachers, and community members. This well-received series is designed to provide experts from numerous fields a forum to speak directly with students on topics related to sustainable development. Our goal is to introduce concepts and career opportunities in the emerging green economy and ignite student interest in supporting fields.

Our five-part series culminates with CELF’s Students for a Sustainable Future Expo at Pace University on April 30.

 CELF was founded in 2002 in response to an understanding that the world’s dynamics are moving faster than its educational curricula. Our call to action recognizes environmental literacy and education for sustainability are not mandated in the U.S. and public funding for new programs is limited. Organizations like CELF are trying to bridge that gap.