For Susan Harris reading Bill McKibben’s “Falter: Has the Human Game Begun to Play Itself Out?” was her call to climate action.

After hearing McKibben’s warning about climate change through her book club, Harris decided it was time to up the ante. As a member of the New York State Public Health Association, she went to the association’s president to ask about creating a Climate Committee. “Be my guest” the president told her.

At the APHA 2024 session “CoA Best Practices 1: How APHA Affiliates Are Working to Expand and Support a Public Health Workforce” on Monday, Harris spoke on how the NYSPHA Climate Committee is working to address the climate crisis across her state.

An overarching goal of the committee is engaging youth in climate conversations and action. 

“(Previous generations) knew about climate change decades ago and we failed to do anything about it,” Harris said. “We have to get with the times, bring them to the table and really pass the baton in a way that’s informed and meaningful.”

New Jersey and Connecticut are currently the only states with climate education policies. The Climate Committee is working to meet the need for youth climate education by creating the “Youth Climate Resource Guide.”

The guide includes a collection of resources, including climate camps, summits, organizations, climate news and podcasts, movies and documentaries, climate fiction and nonfiction, climate music and art.

“What we have to do is to include this climate education for everyone, regardless of where they live, so that they have an equal chance, an equal opportunity and equal access,” Harris said. 

The Climate Committee has hosted several focus groups across the state to learn how youth and their families are affected by climate change. Harris said youths have been actively engaged throughout these 90-minute groups, sharing their angry, worry and hope.

The committee is expanding daily. To amplify a large and trusted voice in climate action, the Climate Committee has partnered with New York State Association of County Health Officials, the New York State Association of Rural Health and several other public health-focused organizations across the state. 

“We have a whole bunch of partners,” Harris said. “And I think you can’t do it without collaborating. That’s the name of the game.”

This growing coalition has been advocating for state-level legislation, including a bill aimed at introducing climate education in classrooms and securing proper funding for the New York State Climate Act, which was enacted in 2019.

Harris envisions the NYPHSA Climate Committee as a model for affiliates nationwide. The Climate Committee’s section on the NYPHSA website details the association’s strategies for promoting climate health and equity for all New Yorkers, along with current initiatives taking place across the state. 

“We can’t just sit back,” Harris said. “Climate is urgent; climate can’t wait.

Photo by Markus Spiske, courtesy Pexels.