Green people infiltrate San Diego Unified schools

Environmental activists are cheering the decision Tuesday (July 14) by the San Diego Unified School District to adopt a climate action plan modeled after the one commissioned by the City of San Diego.

"We applaud the school district for using the City of San Diego's draft Climate Action Plan as a model for its own because San Diego's plan will make us a world leader on climate action," said Nicole Capretz, executive director of the group Climate Action Campaign in a July 15 release. Capretz worked to author the city's plan, and her group has been among those campaigning for increased climate-change awareness in local schools.

Last year, the state PTA identified climate change as "a children's issue," and in May the organization passed a resolution urging local districts to advocate for legislation and education programs related to climate issues.

Among other items, the district says it will look into community choice aggregation as an option to lower energy costs and source power from greener sources. Energy rates at schools have soared 49 percent since 2009, and the district plans to partner with the city to conduct a community-choice feasibility study.

San Diego Unified will also continue work on "solar energy installations, LED lighting conversions, maximizing water conservation, purchasing local produce and other foods, establishing and joining large purchasing cooperatives, improving transportation sustainability, and supports the use of school gardens."