HR 81: urging the Department of Education to establish an annual climate week in all public schools across the state to spread climate awareness, education, and participation in sustainability initiatives.

HOUSE RESOLUTION

urging the Department of Education to establish an annual climate week in all public schools across the state to spread climate awareness, education, and participation in sustainability initiatives.

     WHEREAS, the State's youth are confronting a rapidly changing world due to the effects of climate change, which directly impacts the Hawaiian islands through coastal erosion, rising sea levels, and more frequent and intense storms, and poses a serious risk to the State's native ecosystems and cultural practices; and

     WHEREAS, the State's youth currently experience climate anxiety and uncertainty about their future due to the threat of rising sea levels and environmental instability; and

     WHEREAS, fewer than twenty-five percent of teens with climate anxiety receive the help they need; and

     WHEREAS, the State's Climate Week does not include activities or initiatives at Department of Education schools, resulting in limited effectiveness in promoting climate awareness among public school students; and

     WHEREAS, as a result, not all public school students in the State learn the basic causes and impacts of climate change; and

     WHEREAS, climate education in youth has been shown to be one of the most effective ways to combat climate change; and

     WHEREAS, teaching the State's youth how to navigate the legislative system to preserve their future will empower them and allow them to take direct action in initiatives that will help secure their future and protect the planet for themselves and future generations; and

     WHEREAS, similar initiatives, such as New York's Climate Week and the United Nations' Regional Climate Week, have succeeded in fostering youth engagement, allowing for amplified youth voices in climate-related initiatives; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2025, that the Department of Education is urged to establish an annual Climate Week in all public schools across the State to spread climate awareness, education, and participation in sustainability initiatives; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is requested to collaborate with environmental organizations and policymakers to develop an opportunity for interactive climate action and support student-led initiatives that result in positive climate action; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Superintendent of Education, and Chairperson of the Board of Education.

Report Title: 

Department of Education; Climate Week; Public School Students; Climate Awareness

STAND. COM. REP. NO.  1635

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2025

RE:   H.R. No. 81

Honorable Nadine K. Nakamura

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2025

State of Hawaii

Madame:

     Your Committee on Education, to which was referred H.R. No. 81 entitled:

"HOUSE RESOLUTION URGING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO ESTABLISH AN ANNUAL CLIMATE WEEK IN ALL PUBLIC SCHOOLS ACROSS THE STATE TO SPREAD CLIMATE AWARENESS, EDUCATION, AND PARTICIPATION IN SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to urge the Department of Education to establish an annual Climate Week in all public schools across the State to spread climate awareness, education, and participation in sustainability initiatives.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Climate Change and Health Working Group; Coalition Earth; and six individuals.

     Your Committee finds that Hawaii's youth are confronting a rapidly changing world due to the effects of climate change, which directly impacts the State through coastal erosion, rising sea levels, and more frequent and intense storms, and poses a serious risk to the Hawaii's native ecosystems and cultural practices.  Your Committee further finds that the State's Climate Week does not include activities or initiatives at Department of Education schools, resulting in limited promotion of climate awareness among public school students.  Your Committee believes that the establishment of annual Climate Week in all public schools in the State will increase student awareness, education, and participation in sustainability initiatives that combat climate change.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Education that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of H.R. No. 81 and recommends its adoption.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Education,