The following is a C and a podcast. I'm Jamie home, and thanks for listening to the climate conversations. Today's episode is kind of special. I speak to three very important people two students and a teacher from Company Secondary School, and we'll talk about what schools are doing, what students and cells are doing and what the youngest of Singaporeans among us really think of climate change. But while schools
go green, what about students and teachers? How do they see climate change and how can they prepare for it? Very different world from parents. My three guests are secondary students Alexander Traa and Pratibha Naidu and a teacher, Mrs. Preeti Sherry. Welcome everyone.
Hello. Oh, hi. Hello.
Hi, all of you. I like their party by the first question is going to be for you guys, OK? Tell me what climate change means to each of you. What does it look like? The future when you think about the future and climate change, what comes to mind? And also, when was it you first really began to think about climate change as something serious that needs to be addressed and needs to be talked about and what you guys could do about it? Alex, maybe you first.
Climate change to me is something very serious. I first learned about it in primary school. I was originally in science class, in science class. I learned a lot about the environment. To me, climate change is the change of environment in the world and climate change. Global warming is also increasing and the temperature in the Earth is also increasing. And I think it's very sad because something serious is
happening to our world. What I can do as a student is to advocate more and speak out more on this issue. One way I can do this is to educate people, and I can do it through my closest people, like my family members and my friends. For example, my grandparents usually feature on the air conditioner at night because
it helps them to sleep more comfortably. But air conditioners are quite harmful to the environment because I've learned in chemistry that excellence in air conditioners can produce chlorofluorocarbons and cause harm to the environment. And my grandparents actually listen to me and they have reduced the usage of air conditioners. They only do it on a really hot night because Singapore is really hot because it's a tropical island. You? Yeah,
good point. In one week, they only use it around about four times instead of every day.
OK, I'm going to ask Pratibha now, when did you start thinking about this? I mean, Alex raised many good points. I'm going to jump into that later on, maybe. But you start us off as well. When you first started thinking about this,
I feel like climate change is generally in primary schools. My teachers usually talked about it a lot. You know, it's just something we all know about, but I don't know enough about it. But I found out more about how serious it actually is because as a green ambassador, I get like many opportunities to learn about the environment and know how to control me all the ways. But I never really thought about how climate change might actually be. Until a few months ago, I joined the climate webinar
on nine. Not doing it for fun because honestly, I just wanted it in my own end of year results. But then I joined it in a different perspectives on the climate change. You sure from different experts. And it's when I realized how serious actually is because they were talking about how the increase in global temperatures is not a lot. Issues for Singapore, such as raising water levels,
increase in rainfall. That's why there's been a lot of rainfall recently and it made me think is quite serious and we should actually take more steps to help with the issue. I feel like a lot of people my age like you or people like new students, they think that being your plot you won't have as much of an impact as like the new water like Xylem, what
they do to help educate the situation. I feel that the the Echo just influencing and just like knowledge about it is very important because I respect awareness is that it really does ignorance and Alexis is spreading through his friends and family. I feel like that's very important as well because our family, we all use the same household.
And if all of us grew up with the issue and reduce our overall carbon footprint and the carbon emissions was like, it really does help, and it should be taken more seriously by, especially in youth, because our generation is the next generation of helping us globally to help solve issues such as this one, because I'm all creative and I'm more like open to like serious issues like this.
Alex managed to convince his grandparents to use their cordless. That's very impressive. How about you guys? What sort of lifestyle changes have you done for yourselves in terms of your use of aircon or whatever it is? And then do you use that as an example to then? Fluenz, as I say it, like Alex did with his grandparents. What else do you think? Youth and in general, Singaporeans can do more
like Alex Cohen, a lot rather lost in 0.2sec with a high crime rate. I used to use my phone and it seems like, OK, cool. But then I think after I learned about the seriousness of it, I minimized my use of acorn. And just like they're not often my grandparents. I was passionate about watching the news. So and in news, as part of a lot of it's about the climate, you know, like the melting of the
ice and floods in Japan and Western Europe. So my grandmother, she told me to like just every time she was constantly nagging me to just off the lights, the all your electricity around because of know what's happening in the world now. Thanks to a few months back, I took part in this sustainable habits competition that was happening in my school. I actually learned a lot from doing that.
We had to draw a poster of poetry about the climate and sustainable habits that I don't think you win anything and get a first or second place or a robot. I got a certificate of appreciation and it's open and I was with metal straws really like the metal straws. So I stopped using plastic straws so that every time I go out, I would carry this metal so it's not in my bag. So when I go to buy a drawing, I'll use the metal straw. Instead of thinking
of plastic straws from the shop at home. See my parents like you are passionate about the environment because you usually try not to waste anything. We try as much as possible to recycle, sell out all our cooking, like all bottles or whatever. We try to make sure they're going to go in. And then we also reuse the plastic bricks that we get from the supermarket as like the ones for our rubbish bins over. And now you start bringing tote bags so that it's easier for us to carry stuff.
So, Alex, you know, from what Pratibha is talking about, do you think her family is unique? Do you think more Singapore is less like that, you know, less environmentally conscious? How about your family and your friends? Do you see other people out there whom you think actually could do better and do more like party bus family, you think?
I think our family is doing really well because not many people are as investor in the news as our family, because she mentioned about how her grandparents are really passionate about keeping up with the news it's related to the environment. And I think that's really important because many people are not aware of the environmental changes and the climate change
and how many human activities are affecting our environment. But through the news, it can spread awareness to more people and it helps to raise consciousness about conserving the environment. And I feel that many Singaporeans should also pay attention to news because the news can educate many people on environmental knowledge and how to conserve the environment. I also wish to keep out of the news more often. I do sometimes, but because of my busy lifestyle, I don't
really have much time to do so. But I will try to make time sometimes to keep up the news and my geography teacher. So Cherie also shares a lot about the news. She follows news around the world to our good, and I think that's really helpful because it shows about many things that's happening around the world, such as volcanic eruptions, tourism, and I think it benefits us because we gain more environmental knowledge on it.
I'm going to ask the two of you one more question before I get to musician real pretty. And since you raised the subject, and maybe this is where she'll jump in later too, right? So, you know, you guys on set three and share your geography teacher. I presume you learn most of the stuff we are talking about through geography, maybe some science to maybe some chemistry, as you say, but you talk about the HFCs since you're
so interested. Do you think maybe schools and we can teach climate change differently or do you think is actually quite all right now? If I were to give you a magic wand to say, Hey, let's try and teach climate change in an entirely different way? Do you think that can be done? Would that excite you?
What this could mean for my experience in peace, as the school has that in many ways that they try to educate the students about climate so through different exhibitions. My school has exhibitions a lot. And one of the exhibitions set up by the sheriff, she wants attendees in our school that will place like near the walk. We wouldn't walk by this lady with the class, any anything educational, but let you know about the horrors about global warming
and its effects. Any of those and anybody who doesn't mean we have a lot of lessons, but they tell us more about impacts. Climate change, greenhouse gases in subjects like chemistry, geography, there are so many in the future because none about what would you do? Plus, we actually get very light sensitive to these kind of topics, and it's not like a regular digital class. We tend to talk about environment and all that, and we talk about it in poetry and fun stuff. And I like schools
are actually doing really well right now. But I feel like there should be more hands on activities because I remember primary school is quite long ago. My classes like to plant a tree outside of our school and I really enjoy the experience. Like, like now in secondary school, especially, this would be more hands on activities. According to the current restrictions. It will really help students get the sense of nature and understand actually how beautiful nature is and
that how it is really important to us. Because even though they educationally we're learning about your experience really does make a change in our lives.
Very good. I'll make sure Minister Chan hears this. OK, Alex, how about you? Do you have a take on that?
It's not pretty, but it's really included in many subjects that we take. I really appreciate that because if you do environmental knowledge the water, and it definitely should be covered in a lot of subjects that we take so that we can apply them in our daily life. I learned about environmental knowledge in chemistry, biology, geography, and one
example is in chemistry. I've learned the carbon cycle is the mechanism to maintain a level of comfort outside analysts fear and to lessons like this and gain more knowledge because information like this can really be obtained so easily. And I think through schools and the education system, it's a lot easier to obtain this knowledge because it's presented to us by our teachers and we tend to remember them more easily because in exams, you have to remember
all this information anyways. It's quite efficiently costly to our brains, and it reminds us on how important the environment is and what we can do to help the environment. It's a good idea to cover so much environmental knowledge to
the syllabus. The amount of environmental knowledge, including the different subjects, is quite equally balanced, but I think more chapters should be included because there are more environmental knowledge being presented to students and as part of our hands on activities can be conducted to assist the EIA projects because students really learn about a lot of things from the EIA projects and these lessons because they get to bond people and bonding, these people will make them have a sense
of happiness, and they'll better remember the activities more because of the people that they bond with, and they also remember the information that they get from the activities.
It sounds as if you guys are doing really amazing things and especially at your school now, Peter, you've been in high school for, what, six years? Tell us how this all started, and it sounds as if this has been in the works for quite a while, wolf in the curriculum, but also in key activities. Give us a bit of background into how this started does seem as if you are making quite a big impact.
It's like a cliché to say, you know, it takes a village to raise a child. Our teacher doesn't exist. It's really role modeling. So what happens is the teachers in the science department, the geography department, all of them have the curriculum to run, but they bring into the curriculum. A lot of perspectives be shared with the children, their belief systems. I think then we realize that it makes
an impact on the children. So if we see that exactly what we doing in the school, I think we started off, you know, everybody who will are doing their part, but we didn't really know what each departments were doing. And over the years we saw many opportunities to collaborate. So the science used to do their thing, the geography used to do the thing and the literature department, the music department used to do their thing. But as we moved along, as we work together and as we showcase
students work, we saw tons of opportunities to collaborate. So this year, when we actually had to process Green Week, Earth Day, what we actually did is we collaborated between the departments, right? So the kids got to experience environmental education, not need the hot knowledge of us and things, but also the softer things to music, to art, to conversations. So all these things, actually, because it's repeated across and is the daily experience of the students, somehow sinks into them.
It makes a week into their hearts, right? Had knowledge we into their hearts.
Yeah, yeah. I mean, this really sounds quite enlightened and it's so glad. To hear that you've been able to sort of embed all of this into so many different subjects, and there is the common theme to it, which really makes the kids excited about it. But frankly speaking from a teacher, do you ever see that there are offs and do you feel pressure to keep with the regular curriculum? Let's say that, you know, sometimes still needs to be covered. Are you able to marry the two quite well?
There is no pressure. There is no pressure. The subjects itself, the curriculum itself lends itself to topics on sustainability. So when they actually studied the science, we're not talking to the children and extended the shows, the company's chemistry and how we learned about carbon and methane, right? Alex learned about methane to the LP, which is our school applied
learning program, Creative Engineering. The kids actually learned about UN development goals, and one of them was actually energy and water. So there is really no pressure to. I must do this. So to meet the exam needs, I think it can be really naturally done. And the for example, the jiofi syllabus in step one is to talk about rainforest books, about flooding. So for our students, it's like, where's our forests?
We don't have forests in Singapore. So that's an opportunity when we bring in the exhibits like Pratibha talked about that Singapore is actually an urban forest and where we actually plant and then the kids see the relevance of some of the things we are doing in Singapore with some of the things that are happening out in the world. I think it's actually a very beautiful fit and no pressure.
In fact, as a teacher myself, I really enjoy carrying out the lessons and the conversations we have in the classroom with the students.
I also want to talk a little bit more about the school itself in some of the things that you're actually doing, you know, various smart fans I hear or solar panels, you're also partnering with Japanese Town Council, right to do some food composting. I would imagine this is changing the way that students think that it's all students, right? Not just those who take geography, for example. What do
you think has the biggest impact? Is there one initiative that you're really, really proud of or do they all add up together for you?
They all add up. So in our school, we take the A's approach to it, to the East, meaning authentic expression and collaborative. So when we plan our activities, whether it's cyber wellness or environment, education or mental health, we're very conscious of the approach in how we do it. We talk about working with partners and partners is very
important for schools. So let me just share a bit about the tie up with Tenctonese Town Council when they approached the school because the vertical farm was just behind the school. They have a tilapia on analytical farm, so they came into the school and a part of the school I shared with the students health. Food waste from the canteen or even from their homes can be actually fed to the actual fly and how the excreta can actually be used to fertilize the vegetables and also the
larvae that can be fed to the fishes. And we also had an exhibition run by a company or toilet. And when the student saw it, you know, it was very eye opening. So we talk about authentic, experiential. After that talk, we had the exhibition and in fact, it motivated my teacher and for other students to find out more. So what they did was they went to find out more. They visited the site and did a bit more research, and the plan is actually to share this. I was
forced to share it with our one. So when we actually bring in partners, we learn as the school community, teachers learn, students learn how canteens. Stallholders also learn because they are part of that foot race, right? Even our own Emlen, because he helps us coordinate so we learn as a learning community and. And then what is very beautiful that there are students will get excited who find out more. They teach it to the next year. One. So it's circular. So what in the process we do
is we bring and pull more people along. So that's the school we really appreciate, and value is our partnership with external community because they have the expertise. So whenever possible, we try and bring them in so that the enthusiasm of students so they hear from people apart from teachers.
How easy or difficult do you think this is going to be to replicate to other schools? I mean, you guys sound really, really forward thinking really ahead of the curve. If you look at other schools in other neighborhoods. What is the X Factor that you think you guys had at Epenesa Secondary that allows you to do this X Factor?
I think X factors exists in the whole teaching fraternity. There are so many sparks out there when we started and it's really started by my colleagues in company say many, many years, even before I came in, after we have done some of the things we have done, it actually got us more excited. So tied up with a friend in Single-Sex and because our kids and we we started talking about this more. I think they realized and we
realized they wanted more experience. And this is in line with how we plan our curriculum, give them experience, let them touch and let Alexa feel need to be in nature. So we actually went to us on All-SEC to share with us how we actually started their garden, their farm and how they grew vegetables and how they donated to the community. So there are a lot of beautiful things happening in schools, and that's a good thing because then we learn from each other. We all have different strengths.
Being the same is actually not a good idea, but being organic and trying out and then learning from each other based on our student needs to profile our student interests. I think that is a strength. So I wouldn't quite like the photocopying machine, kind of. But really, let's try. Let's try, and I am grateful to have that community of teachers who say, Yeah, let's try.
I'm going to bring Alexa and Pratibha back into the conversation. And I mean, a lot of what we've spoken about so far is really positive and really nice to hear. But let's talk about habits and the way things actually
are in Singapore. I'm sure you guys, as you look around, you may see poor environmental practices, you know, things that we could really do better on both as individuals, you know, me, you as as well as a larger country, you know, as an economy, as whatever, name me, one or two things that you think we really should either do better or just stop doing some of these really bad environmental practices.
My. I always see this because when I go down for like a war river, I always see many people in through. It's a lot of people dithering in my house, even if there's a new secretary alive for things that you're right there and people are still constantly finding ways to be thrown to the floor. And this is where you always need the initiative. So I think many South Koreans have a trash and like people, we're doing many things you don't do this country, our it all the penis.
I would agree it wasn't winter. We can't just put all of the responsibility on them. Singapore is our country and we shouldn't do it ourselves. And it is all about the policy and is the ways that us, you know, always see like people going the know, dispose their trash properly because I always see the recycling bins in my house are always full and it's all full of stuff
that they recycle. You know, people, you know, want more aware of what they recycle and how they really like the issue properly do what you want to do if they want. And I hope the Roman, at least the best they can do is do it the right way, especially e-waste. You know, Chris, e-waste is very hard to dispose of burning it like how we burn plastic. It was just really a lot of carbon emissions which contribute
to greenhouse gases. So I feel like if people do their part properly, we should be more aware of the action, especially if they should really consider the impact it really has not only on Singapore but actually globally. Because climate change is not really something that affects Nepal is a global issue, and we should really be more aware.
Very nice. Well, since you raised the issue of e-waste, I'm going to ask you and Alex then related to this. Are you able to then tell your friends and your family and yourselves, you know, let's not change our phones that regularly, you know, just because there's a new model of a phone or change our laptops. You think everyone can do a little bit more in really changing their habits there?
Alex, I agree on e-waste and she did mention this, but you're also a great ambassador of my class last year, and she gave us showing on e-waste. And I still remember the details that you gave. And I think what really struck me is the consequences of e-waste sharing of e-waste. I learned that us is very hard to dispose of, as you said. So I am more aware of the
electronics that I dispose off now. For example, if my episodes, I suppose I wouldn't just throw them in the rubbish bin as I did before, because in the past I really didn't know that throwing off electronics could lead to global warming and carbon emissions, and I didn't know that it it could lead to such a big issue. But now that I know about this issue, I actually am more careful of how it is both my e-waste. I
know that they can be recycled now. So on the day that the green ambassadors were collecting e-waste, I also tried to play a part in it and I got some of my e-waste to be recycled.
Very nice. OK. Besides e-waste, that is there is that habit that you think Singapore and Singapore have, that it's really environmentally unfriendly that you really want to change. And if you could change overnight, what would it be?
Although it's also a very precious and limited resource. And I think that many people really just ignore the existence of water because they think that or, you know, water can just come out of that dance and they are sorry, just just like that. It's very easy, but they don't know that it's a very limited resource and also very valuable. And I was one of them who didn't really pay attention to water as well, and some habits that I've
developed from learning about environmental knowledge. Closing that day when I'm brushing my teeth because it only takes that one minute to brush your teeth. But people are very lazy and they do not want to get that. I think that every second counts, every second of water that comes up from that matters. And even the intervals between washing our teachers, also the methods that you should also take when the water is not needed.
Very good. I'm going to get in two last questions for all of you guys, and maybe it's this one same question for the three of you. You know, Pratibha and Alex youth are really, really passionate about this issue about the environment and climate change. Have you thought into the future, whether it's in your further studies or even
when you go to work? Is this something that you want to continue to champion to maybe work in even one fine day because you do sound very, very passionate and pretty well when you see students like Pratibha and Alex, do you feel encouraged and would you want them to go into the field of environment and looking at a two of them? I'm quite encouraged as well. What would you advise them for their future prospects? But first, the students. So Alex, first?
Oh, yes, definitely, because I really love caring for the environment because I feel that caring for the environment really not just once a character, for example. For me, developing sustainable and green habits has also changed my character, and I feel that it really has helped me become a better person. And I would love to be working in
a few where the environment is constantly there. And personally, I aspire to be a doctor, but there are also other job opportunities that I am also interested in that is related to the environment and because I'm still young, so I'm really not sure of my future job. I don't know what to. I'll end up in, but whether or not I get my dream job, I think that it's really excellent to be working in a field where
caring for the environment is always a requirement. I feel that if people working in this field, more people will be encouraged to care for the environment.
Well, my advice to you is so long as you enjoy doing it, that's already a dream job. So good luck to you. I hope you do it, Pratibha. How about you?
Personally, I'm also a salesperson. My goal right now is that my future job is to be a biochemist mostly is because I really want to help people. But right now, as I learn about sciences in my school right now, I can say, is that actually a lot? Because she thinks a lot about the environment? I may not be someone I as passionate about the environment as I am now, maybe in the future. I think that I'll continue like doing the sustainable habits that I am doing right now.
There is the opportunity for me to actually get into the industrial environment because as Alexa, I'm a great investor and in Green Bay, you race presentation that I did some of my friends, they came up to me. And since our class is a class, they were like, You have any other extra emails you like you can use and all great whites, you know, like, I don't know why you need it. So. And the issue to me about how they use the old battery pots in their uniforms and in the phones is a new way of
ensuring they can actually use it. For that, I could join batteries, the power up their joints and learning about that, I'll say, Oh, that's so cool. You know, what I see is actually influential for them actually making environmental change to isolate the feeling that I got, like I really personally like, felt really proud that I'm actually advocating for a change. So maybe like some kind of future, you know, like,
I'm still young. I'm thinking about is know, helping people, you know, bio I like him because it's like the subjects I'm a bit better in as I spend my time in school. You know, as I continue growing, I think my love for the environment will still continue to grow and nourish. So maybe there is a chance in the future that I might become an educator for it, and I'm going to be a stage three stage and all of the students
pretty listening to all this you. You must be even more encouraged and then invigorated by the future that these young adults seem to hold for us. What would you advise them then to continue this through their studies and through their careers next time
the kids really make me feel young every day for the kids nowadays? And if you hurt election, they said, I am still young, I'm still young. So sometimes at this age they feel very overwhelming. People actually ask them, What careers would you go into? So in our school, you would usually ask them, What do you think is your gift to the world? I agree. And your gift to the world, you know, what are you passionate about? Because I think that would actually make them more purposeful.
So what we try and do is we just expose them to as many fields as possible. My colleagues for and. Expose them to as many areas because we need expert, passionate people in all areas, whether it's environment, whether it's wellbeing or electrons to be a doctor. I hope that whatever their passion or whatever career, they want to go into being environmentally conscious being and remain mentally friendly. And it can also be your career because you volunteer there
on a regular basis. You just don't get paid for it. So that's why we we actually tell our kids sustainable habits, beautiful world, because we really want them to to think green is sustainable, whether it's your career or not. But if you are mindful that whatever job you do, you not waste food in water, in energy. I think that would contribute to all the efforts that every other group is trying to do for climate change.
Well, pretty Pratibha and Alex, it's been a really inspiring conversation. Thank you very much. Thank you for speaking with me. And thanks for listening to the climate conversation, stay up to date on CNN's coverage of climate change on CNN. You can also find this and other senior podcasts on our website and on iTunes and Spotify. Team behind this podcast. Christina, Robert Insulin and every law. I'm Jamie Horton next week.