Honors Community Ready to Host 2024 USF Climate Teach-In

In an effort to increase climate education, students and educators at the University of South Florida (USF) are spearheading a campuswide event to raise awareness and accessibility for sustainability solutions. With a week-long series of events across the USF Tampa campus, students will have the opportunity to educate each other about the challenges caused by a changing climate and develop interdisciplinary connections that will help them work towards tangible solutions. 

Part of the Worldwide Climate and Justice Education Week originally founded by Bard College in 2019, the USF Climate Teach-In is built on cross-campus partnerships with over 18 student environmental organizations and the Judy Genshaft Honors College, working together to host an array of events.

Now in its third year, the Climate Teach-In concept was introduced to USF by Judy Genshaft Honors College faculty member Dr. Andrew Hargrove, who serves as the USF director of the initiative. 

A sustainability expert who teaches Honors courses like “How to Save a Planet” and “Solarpunk: Imagining Sustainable Futures” in which students engage with scientific literature or art to learn how to overcome feelings of powerlessness in the face of problems like climate change, Hargrove stresses the importance of inclusion and cooperation when it comes to climate education.

“There’s no discipline that isn’t touched by the environment and sustainability because we live in our environment, we live in our world,” said Hargrove. 

Initially an effort led by the Hargrove and staff in the Honors College, the Climate Teach-In has evolved to incorporate events and activities designed by students from across USF.
 
“We have events like the Off the Wall art gallery, campus cleanups, a student research fair, a career and internship fair ... We have crafts, labs, cooking demos, a crocheting event where you can learn to crochet with recycled plastic bags, a farmers’ market and even a 5k run,” said Hargrove. “We really want this event to feel like it’s by students and for students, to amplify the good work that these student organizations are already doing.”

CULTIVATING STUDENT LEADERS 

One of the Climate Teach-In's event organizers is Honors student Morgan Mathews. An environmental science and policy student in the College of Arts and Sciences School of Geosciences, Mathews is also the president of GLOBE (Global Leaders Outreach for a Better Environment), a student organization dedicated to environmental advocacy and service projects on and off campus. 

Under Mathews leadership, GLOBE will be an active participant in this year’s Teach-In, teaming up with the USF Marine Biology Club and Tampa Bay Watch to lead a microplastics lab which will offer students insight into the impact microplastics have on our health and daily lives. 

“We are really big on having an educational aspect and a hands-on aspect to each of our events,” said Mathews. “This semester we are focusing on wildlife, ecology, and restoration.”

For Mathews, GLOBE’s increased involvement in the Climate Teach-In was a natural fit and one that mirrored her own climate education journey.

“I got involved my freshman year as a general member and the president at the time was a really great mentor,” said Mathews.

This experience led her to start her own recycling project on campus and to work to pass a resolution through student government that demonstrated students were supportive of improving USF infrastructure. 

Mathews attributes her heightened involvement in climate advocacy efforts to her involvement in the Honors College and to her experience as part of the “Systems of Sustainability” study away course in the spring of 2023.

“We really want to open this up to anybody from any major.” – Honors Professor Dr. Andrew Hargrove 

During this course, she met Professor Hargrove, who encouraged her to expand her sustainability efforts in more interdisciplinary and collaborative ways.

“Dr. Hargrove reached out to me and my organization and I immediately wanted to get involved,” said Mathews. “I am open to any collaboration with any student organizations, and this was the next step to participate in a campuswide event.”

SUSTAINABILITY WITHIN REACH 

The student-run events during the Climate Teach-In will help remove barriers for students as it brings them together to actively participate in open dialogues with assistance from experts in the field. 
 
“It’s trying to teach people in a more casual setting how to engage with this big problem. It’s hard for people to have these conversations because maybe they don’t feel that they have the knowledge or they don’t feel comfortable doing things because they don’t know how effective it’s going to be,” said Hargrove. “This is a space for students to come and learn and engage in a conversation and just try things out and see what works.“ 

According to Matthews, one of the most important features of the Teach-In is how accessible all of the events are.

“I suggest going to a couple of events that you are interested in, each one is meant to be fun and engaging and you get to meet new people,” said Mathews. 

Ultimately, the goal of the Climate Teach-In is to inspire collective action that can make a greater impact. Hargrove knows the only way to make a difference is to work together:

“One thing that’s really important that we’re trying to emphasize with the Climate Teach-In is that it takes everybody to solve a global problem, and that this isn’t just the responsibility of environmental scientists, legislators or people who own major corporations,” said Hargrove. “This is about everybody. So whatever group or student organization you’re a part of, there is a way where your expertise or your interest can contribute to building a more sustainable future.” 

Interested students and USF community members can visit the 2024 USF Climate Teach-In webpage for a full list of this year’s events and information on how to get involved on and off campus.