Educating ourselves as if life depends on nature

While another school year begins, I look for teachers and students exploring how to live within their bioregion's offerings by the fuel, food, water and ores provided within their watershed. I want to study with communities that prepare for power outages, dry taps, dirty water and Internet shut-downs. I look for people growing and preparing healthy food and encouraging healthy water cycles. I look for building skills to resolve conflicts within ourselves and with others. I need places that support us in decreasing our society's ecological harms. Id welcome meeting neighbors dedicated to decreasing their dependence on international supply chains. I look for schools with room for mistakes and questions. I welcome teachers who know about human-to-human relating with humility and humor.

SCHOOL PROJECT IDEAS: START WITH YOUR BIOREGION

(Each project could take a semester or two.)

Take this bioregional quiz.

Test what you know about your region's mineral deposits

Map a favorite meals supply chain and move toward eating within your means.

BEFORE ENGAGING A DEVICE OR SERVICE, ASK HOW IT AFFECTS CHILDHOOD

Each time a child picks up a device with a screen, it overstimulates and hyper-arouses the brain, yet American schools increasingly use VR/AR/MR headsets.

Smartphones are ruining our brains at unprecedented speed.

Childrens Health Defense reports that Mattel (owner of Barbie, Hot Wheels, Matchbox, Fisher-Price and Polly Pocket) has partnered with OpenAI to develop artificial intelligence-powered toys designed to provide emotional support to kids. Marc Fernandez wonders, What are we teaching our children about friendship, empathy, and emotional connection if their first real relationships are with machines? Meanwhile, U.S. Public Interest Research Group reports that some AI-powered toys may collect a child's iris, vital signs and fingerprints without parents' knowledge or consent.

BUILD AWARENESS OF TECHNOLOGIES CRADLE-TO-GRAVE IMPACTS ON NATURE

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