WHERE IT FLOODS: Film Premiere
“Where it Floods” follows New York City students on the frontline of climate activism in Coney Island as they participate in RiSC, a climate education program that connects schools with local residents and organizations to help build community resilience. The climate crisis represents a significant threat to New York City’s 8.4 million inhabitants, including more than 1 million K-12 students. In the coming decades, more frequent extreme weather events, rising temperatures and extreme heat, changing precipitation, sea level rise, and the loss of land, homes, businesses, and lives will impact New York City.
Our city’s young people understand this reality and want a meaningful education that prepares them for a climate altered future. Despite this, New York City students typically receive just 2 hours of climate instruction per school year on average. The National Wildlife Federation’s award-winning Resilient Schools Consortium (RiSC) program has been training teachers and educating students about climate science, climate impacts and resilience solutions since 2017. NWF staff and partners have been working in Coney Island with local residents and community organizations since 2020 to help build both social and ecological resilience.
Students from seven NYC middle and high schools learned about climate science, climate impacts, and the natural and built solutions that increase climate resiliency. They explored structural racism that caused inequitable exposures to climate risks, and used digital tools and surveys to understand their community’s vulnerability to natural hazard risks like sea level rise and coastal erosion. By revegetating dunes along Coney Island’s shoreline, they learned how to help protect nearby residents’ homes from flooding. Most importantly students interviewed longtime Coney Islanders about their lived experiences with climate change and gentrification over time, and the persistent needs of their community that remains vulnerable to climate impacts 10 years after a major hurricane laid it to waste.
RSVP by September 15, 2023. Space is limited and seats will be assigned on a first come first served basis. For questions, contact [email protected]