Climate Action Days

2024-25 Climate Action Days. November 19: Waste; February 5: Energy; April 9: Health, Wellness, and Green Space; May 21: Water.
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NYC Public Schools have launched Climate Action Days: four days to celebrate climate action in every school.

Climate Action Days are a fun, creative learning opportunity for entire school communities. They are also a way that any school can get started with climate action. Each day is based on a theme, and showcases the importance of climate education and sustainability practices. Every school chooses activities — or creates their own — that best serve their students and interests.

With Climate Action Days, we are engaging the next generation of leaders, in classrooms and communities. When our teachers, building and school staff, and students come together to act, we can make a difference!

2024-25 Dates and Themes

  • Tuesday, November 19: Waste
  • Wednesday, February 5: Energy
  • Wednesday, April 9: Health, Wellness, and Green Space
  • Wednesday, May 21: Water

Tuesday, November 19: Waste

Did you know? According to a 2023 study, 85% of waste generated in our schools can be composted or recycled! (NYC Department of Sanitation)

Here are two ways we can reduce waste in our schools:

  1. Prevent waste in the first place! Only use what you need and find ways to reuse materials.
  2. Properly sort items for recycling and composting. Our schools now have Curbside Composting service!

By sending less material to landfills, we can effectively reduce pollution. Learn more about how we reduce waste in schools every day through recycling, composting, and Plastic Free Lunch Days.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is this important?

Acting on climate change is important to our students and families. Climate change affects all New Yorkers, and some communities are unjustly affected. We must address climate change in a fair way. When we choose to act, we can build a better future for our students and our planet.

What are the goals of Climate Action Days?

  • Teaching solutions: There are countless ways to take climate action. Every school can show students they can have a positive impact on the world around them.
  • Celebrating victories: Many school communities already take climate action. This is a chance to show what solutions already exist in our schools.
  • Centering justice: As part of every theme, students can learn about environmental justice.
  • Empowering students: Students are encouraged to advocate for activities that matter to them. They can help lead Climate Action Days!
  • Working together as a community: Schools can include families in Climate Action Day activities. Schools can also work with community-based organizations.

What is climate change?

Climate change is a significant change in the Earth's climate. The Earth is currently getting warmer because people are adding heat-trapping greenhouse gases (GHG) to the atmosphere. "Global warming" refers to warmer temperatures. "Climate change” is a change in the average conditions in a region over a long period of time such as temperature, rainfall, and weather patterns. (US Environmental Protection Agency).

What is climate action?

Any activity that responds to climate change can be climate action. Most climate actions fall into two groups (NASA):

  1. Reducing polluting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This is called “mitigation.”
  2. Adapting to climate hazards that we face, like very hot weather or storms. This is called “adaptation.”

We are already taking many climate actions in school! Here are some examples:

  • Working together as school communities to maintain school gardens and outdoor space, like street tree beds.
  • Composting our food scraps – every NYC Public School has composting service!
  • Showcasing student essays and art about their communities’ experiences with climate change.
  • Serving more plant-based meals with Plant-Powered Fridays, and reducing waste with Plastic-Free Lunch Days.
  • Leading schoolwide energy reduction days.
  • Preparing students for careers in clean energy through Career-Connected Learning.
  • Teaching school-based staff and students about climate change.

Learn more about climate action in our school facilities.

What is environmental justice?

Environmental justice means that everyone has the chance to live the healthiest life possible (National Institute of Health). Everyone deserves to live, work, learn, and play in a clean, healthy place. And everyone deserves to live on a clean, healthy planet.

There is a history of unequal burdens on low-income people and people of color. This has led to health disparities in some communities. Climate action can help address these burdens.

Resources for Families

What do YOU want your child’s school to do to take climate action?

Every school can customize Climate Action Days to suit their students, and we encourage families to take part in Climate Action Days. Do you have ideas for climate action in your child’s school?

Connect with your child’s school

  • Ask your Parent or Parent-Teacher Association (PA/PTA) about Climate Action Days.
  • Talk to your parent coordinator and ask them how your child’s school is participating.
  • Every school has a “Sustainability Coordinator” - it can be a teacher, an assistant principal, or another staff member. Ask your principal who is the Sustainability Coordinator for your child’s school.
  • Plastic Free Lunch Day: Many schools will also take part in National Plastic Free Lunch Day on November 19. If your child brings food from home, pack it in reusable containers, paper bags, or aluminum foil. Unlike plastic bags or wrap, these items can be composted or recycled.
  • Food Donation: Ask your principal if they have opted into the food donation program. Schools can provide unopened food and beverages to families and local organizations, preventing food waste.
  • Learn more about getting involved and the contacts at your child's school.

Tips to take climate action in your community

  • Reduce wasted energy by turning off unnecessary overhead lighting, and unplugging appliances when not in use.
  • Host or join a litter cleanup in your neighborhood.
  • If your child’s school has an indoor or outdoor garden, ask if you can visit or help maintain the garden over the summer.
  • Care for a nearby street tree or rain garden.
  • Wait to use water during heavy rain.
  • Enjoy your local park and waterway! There are lots of opportunities for recreation and activities in our rivers, beaches, and parks.

    Resources for Students

    What do YOU want your school to do to take climate action?

    Climate Action Days are a chance to shape the future you want to see. Raise your voice and tell your teachers what matters to you!

    Here’s how to get more involved in sustainability and climate action in your school:

    • Join your school’s Green Team
      • If your school doesn’t have one, ask a teacher if they will help you create a Green Team student club!
    • High School Students: there are opportunities to engage in climate action beyond Climate Action Days. Learn more about opportunities for high school students.

    Book List

    Early Readers (Pre-K–2)

    • Iceberg: A Life in Seasons, by Claire Saxby; illustrated by Jess Racklyeft
    • Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle, by Claire A. Nivola
    • No More Plastic, by Alma Fullerton
    • Our Planet! There’s No Place Like Earth, by Stacy McNulty; illustrated by David Litchfield
    • She Heard the Birds: The Story of Florence Miriam Bailey, Pioneering Nature Activist, by Andrea D’Aquino
    • Snow Angel, Sand Angel, by Lois-Ann Yamanaka; illustrated by Ashley Lukashevksy
    • The Brilliant Deep: Rebuilding the World’s Coral Reefs, by Kate Messner; illustrated by Matthew Forsythe
    • The Leaf Detective: How Margaret Lowman Uncovered Secrets in the Rainforest, by Heather Lang; illustrated by Jana Christy
    • The Secret Garden of George Washington Carver, by Gene Baretta; illustrated by Frank Morrison
    • Zonia’s Rain Forest, by Juana Martinez-Neal

    Elementary (3–5)

    • A Green Place to Be: The Creation of Central Park, by Ashley Benham Yazdani
    • Elsie Mae Has Something to Say, by Nancy J. Cavanugh
    • Greta’s Story: The Schoolgirl Who Went on Strike to Save the Planet, by Valentine Camerini
    • Operation Redwood, by S. Terrell French
    • Rachel Carson and Her Book That Changed the World, by Laurie Lawlor; illustrated by Laura Beingessner
    • Summer of the Tree Army: A Civilian Conservation Corps Story, by Gloria Whlan; illustrated by Kirbi Fagan
    • The Last Bear, by Hannah Gold
    • The Last Beekeeper, by Pablo Cartaya
    • The Wisdom of Trees: How Trees Work Together to Form a Natural Kingdom, by Lita Judge
    • World Without Fish, by Mark Kurlansky; illustrated by Frank Stockton

    Middle Grade (6–8)

    • Empty, by Suzanne Weyn
    • How to Bee, by Dren MacDribble
    • How to Change Everything: The Young Human’s Guide to Protecting the Planet and Each Other, by Naomi Klein
    • Me and Marvin Gardens, by Amy Sarig King
    • One Small Hop, by Madelyn Rosenberg
    • Paradise on Fire, by Jewell Parker Rhodes
    • Primates: The Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas, by Jim Ottaviani and Maris Wicks
    • Rescue at Lake Wild, by Terry Lynn Johnson
    • The Story of Seeds: From Mendel’s Garden to Your Plate, and How There’s More of Less to Eat Around the World, by Nancy F. Castaldo
    • Turn the Tide, by Elaine Dimopoulous

    Upper Grades/YA (9–12)

    • Don’t Call Me a Hurricane, by Ellen Hagan
    • Eyes Wide Open: Going Behind the Environmental Headlines, by Paul Fleischman
    • Green Rising, by Lauren James
    • If Not Us, by Mark Smith
    • It’s Getting Hot in Here: The Past, Present, and Future of Climate Change, by Bridget Heos
    • Love in the Time of Global Warming, by Francesca Lia Block
    • The Carbon Diaries 2015, by Saci Llyod
    • The Renegades: Arctic Meltdown, by Jeremy Brown, David Selby and Katy Jakeway; illustrated by Katy Jakeway, Libby Reed and Ellenor Mererid
    • The Summer We Turned Green, by William Sutcliffe
    • We Are the Weather Makers: The History of Climate Change, by Sally M. Walker

    Resources for Educators

    All NYCPS staff and faculty can access resources for Climate Action Days—visit the Sustainability Coordinators page on the employee InfoHub for additional information.