In 2008, Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley set out an ambitious plan for the city, which aimed to cut the city’s greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050 in order to improve Chicago’s air quality, lower dangerous heat levels, and reduce its contribution to climate change.
At first, many other cities were laying out climate action plans while Chicago wasn’t taking any action. In 2008, the City Council felt the need to tackle issues within the city because of the growing concern of climate change. Other cities around the world had already set out plans, such as the Kyoto Protocol, which was an international treaty adopted in 1997 in Kyoto, Japan, under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). It helped lay out a framework for climate action, and it led many other cities to follow suit. New York had already set out a plan for this issue called PlanNYC, and Miami’s city council approved its version, MiPlan. This led Chicago and many other cities around the world to step up in climate action.
Chicago’s plan helped shape the way that the city operates today. Chicago was experiencing much warmer and humid summers. They realized that the main issue was that Chicago was releasing too much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. As a large city, Chicago consumes a significant amount of energy that is generated by fossil fuels. Fossil fuels power many things that people might not know, such as charging phones, bringing hot water to homes, and using the stove. Burning fossil fuels is the main cause of global warming. It releases carbon dioxide into the air, which can contribute to climate change and health effects. If fossil fuel use continues at current levels, Chicago’s average annual temperature could rise by 4 to 8 degrees Fahrenheit.
Parker’s Climate Science & Environmental Justice elective focuses on climate justice in the community of Chicago. The class is co-taught by Upper School history teacher Andrew Bigelow and Upper School science teacher Xiao Zhang. The class focuses on the history of climate justice and the climate-related data over time. This class aligns with Parker’s Citizenship statement, which states that “the people of Francis W. Parker School encourage one another to exercise personal and civic power by connecting reflection with action, research with creativity, wisdom with innovation, deeds with consequences, and character with citizenship.” This statement fits with the class curriculum by educating students to think in unique ways. They have spoken with climate justice advocates, explored non-profit organizations, and conducted research. “I want students who take this course to continue their interest in advocating for climate justice and to use their knowledge from this class as a tool later in their lifetime,” Bigelow said. Speaking on the course and how it embodies Parker’s mission to think uniquely, Zhang said, “I think a lot of it is because there’s no one single answer or the right answer in the course. So you have to think on your own and come up with your own ideas, and we encourage students to, you know, not kind of imitate other people’s opinions, but come up with opinions that are supported by evidence and by reasoning.” Together, Bigelow and Zhang’s class highlights how the course not only teaches students about climate justice but also teaches them how they can use these skills in life to be engaged citizens in their communities.
Upper School history teacher Susan Elliott thinks the plan is very informative, especially with how building can help the city of Chicago go net-zero. She thinks the city is overall doing a good job with that part of the plan. Elliott also said that the city has been doing a good job of treating our water, which is very important. “I think that the part of the Climate Action Plan focused on making our buildings more efficient has been very successful. I also think that the Metropolitan Water District has done a very good job in treating our water, and the new TARP (Tunnel and Reservoir Plan) is going to open soon, which will be very beneficial to many people in the city,” Elliott said. But Elliott also thinks that the city can improve in some ways. “Now, obviously, there are several areas where they are not doing well. For example, the goals they set for expanding bike paths are nowhere close to being reached. CTA ridership also hasn’t bounced back to pre-COVID levels, so they’re not meeting those objectives either. And if you look at the Climate Action Plan, their goals for improving recycling are also falling short.” Overall, Eliott thinks that it lays out a great foundation, especially for how corporations can have net-zero emissions, but with things such as bike lanes, the city needs to improve to help increase bike ridership.
Chicago continues to take steps toward its climate goals. The 2022 update to the Climate Action Plan sets a new, more realistic emissions goal of reducing emissions by 62% by 2040, instead of 80% by 2050, because of where the city is currently. The city remains focused on shaping a healthier and more sustainable future for the city of Chicago.
