Editorial Remarks: Inspired Teaching Inspires Action

On March 15, 2019, students from more than 100 countries around the globe walked out of school to protest climate inaction and declared that governments have failed the current generation of K–12 students by not cutting emissions and curbing global warming. These young climate activists, inspired by their peers in Parkland, Florida, who led a national conversation about gun control following the tragedy at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas School, intend to stimulate a widespread dialogue leading to action on climate change. This generation of students understands that curbing human-generated greenhouse gas emissions within 11 years is critical for avoiding disastrous levels of global warming. If emissions are not reduced, the planet faces a great risk of extreme drought, wildfires, floods, and food shortages for hundreds of millions of people (UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2018).