January 9, 2008

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Ramapo College Joins Largest Teach-In in U.S. History

Thousands of campuses help focus nation on solutions to global warming

  
(Mahwah) - On January 30 and 31 Ramapo College of New Jersey will participate in Focus The Nation, a teach-in model on global warming solutions.  Focus The Nation has created a teach-in model centered on the three most essential pillars for today’s youth to embrace solutions to global warming:  education, civic engagement and leadership. 

Focus The Nation will take place at more than 1,000 universities and colleges in all 50 states.  As the largest teach-in in U.S. history, Focus The Nation will prepare millions of students to become leaders in combating global warming. Ramapo College will be conducting informal teach-ins in various classrooms on January 31.  Paul Coraggio, who describes himself as an impassioned student, has been instrumental in generating on-campus participation.  He has provided professors with resources and opportunities to enhance the educational experience by incorporating sustainability and environmental issues into course disciplines.  “The challenge is to show students how these issues correlate directly with a plethora of fields and majors, and can have an influence on their professional and personal choices,” he says.

The teach-in will kick off the night of January 30, with the 2% Solution Web cast produced by the National Wildlife Federation and aired by the Earth Day Network.  The next day, January 31, will include a range of global warming curricula presented by faculty and guest speakers before culminating with a Green Democracy roundtable discussion.

The final piece of Focus The Nation’s teach-in model will be the Choose Your Future vote.  All students, faculty and community participants will be encouraged to vote on what they think are the top five solutions to global warming from a list of ten to 15 that will be available at www.focusthenation.org.  Vote results will be presented nationally in mid-February.

In addition, several Ramapo College student organizations including the Environmental Alliance, the Women’s Center, Student Government Association, the Irish Club, R-CORE and The Honors Program will be hosting a series of events in February to highlight the importance of sustainable development on campus.  These events will feature energy reduction techniques and will include concerts, contests and movie nights.

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