Fighting for Our Future: Careers for the Climate Crisis

Fighting for Our Future 2024 will introduce students historically underrepresented in STEM fields to careers that will help solve the climate crisis through two complementary activities. The first is a half day event held in the Spring in partnership with the San Bernardino Community College District to introduce students (at least 200 in the first year) to the optimistic outlook that there are technical solutions to many of the climate change challenges and that they can personally make a difference. The second phase of the program will explore STEM opportunities to provide solutions with an intensive summer workshop. Students from the first round can apply to participate where they will work with scientists exploring various climate fields.

Studies show that an overwhelming majority of young people want to address the impacts of climate change but don’t know how. The featured STEAM career paths address the variety of challenges that face us, including:

  • Physics and Engineering:
    • Renewable energy development
    • Battery technologies
  • Earth science:
    • Carbon sequestration
  • Disaster psychology and sociology:
    • Emergency management
    • Risk communication
    • Disaster resilience
  • Environmental Science Policy

Research has also clearly shown that to inspire students to enter a field, role models of people like them in that field are critically important. Thus we plan to offer the program to all students but we intend that the scientists and mentors in the program will be women and people of color. The project is structured to empower high school students to recognize that STEAM career paths are viable and that they are able to act on climate change now. This will include:

  • Learning how climate change is increasing the risks in their communities and how we all can combat the impacts of climate change
  • Recognizing that there are solutions to the climate crisis and they can be a part of them
  • Exploring STEAM career opportunities
  • Connecting with mentors working in various climate solutions sector and seeing themselves represented in these spaces
  • Sharing this information and actions with their communities
  • Forming connections with other interested students

This program is supported by Edison International.