The indifference of our community left PA with a mediocre eighth place finish in the Green Cup Challenge. A substantial part of the student body was either apathetic or outright antagonistic, and Andover should address this disinterest with a more comprehensive educational approach. The Green Cup Challenge measured percentage reduction, a barometer of student enthusiasm. Real energy use should be measured by per capita consumption. But these numbers mean very little, as prep schools are not actually “preventing” the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. PA produces a negligible amount of greenhouse gases, but its graduates can have far greater effects on the sustainability of corporations and governments. The true impact of the GCC and other sustainability efforts is the awareness they raise in students. As a method of raising awareness, education is more important than competition. Phillips Academy should add more classes on ecology and environmental science to the schedule, placing more emphasis on the profile of the environment in the classroom. Environmental stewardship should be emphasized as much as FCD week, Life Issues classes and Philo Forums, all of which seek to teach valuable information as well as to instill core values in students. Additionally, these environmental science classes contribute diverse and creative input to the “greening” of PA. We look forward to realizing tangible benefits to campus from students’ projects. The Green Cup Challenge bills itself as a challenge, not a competition. The greatest challenge of all is to educate our generation to face the problems of global warming; our challenge here at Andover is to convert the unenthusiastic and the uncommitted. We are all in this together; we only have one world. The lights will stay off in the stacks, but we must also keep working to illuminate the minds of our generation. This editorial represents the views of The Phillipian Editorial Board CXXX.
