What a way to start Earth Week. Today two ACE student leaders – Shreya Indukuri and Daniela Lapidous – are currently meeting with Aneesh Chopra, the Chief Technology Officer of the United States, in Washington to discuss how their carbon-cutting projects can be replicated all across the country.

Two years ago, Shreya and Daniela were two students sitting in an ACE Assembly at the Harker School in San Jose, CA. Inspired by our presentation, they started an ACE Action Team and planted a school garden as their first project. They used the food in the school cafeteria, sparking hundreds of conversations about the impact of food production on climate.

Next, they won an ACE grant and installed smartmeters at school. Soon, they detected a series of anomalies in their school’s energy usage – such as air conditioning left on in the gym over the weekend – and, with a few simple tweaks, lowered their school’s energy bill by 13%.

It’s an amazing story, but it wasn’t enough for Shreya and Daniela. They went on to found their own nonprofit, SmartPowerEd.org, and are actively working with other schools in San Jose to implement energy-saving programs. They joined ACE’s Youth Advisory Board, where they advise us on our programs.

Today, they’re meeting with the White House to explain how they were successful and discuss how to scale these energy-saving projects to thousands of schools across the country.

Shreya and Daniela are why ACE was created.

Many are skeptical that high school students can do much about climate change. They say students are too young, that they can’t vote, that you can’t count on them. Well, we see every day that students can drive big changes. There are hundreds of students taking on carbon-reducing projects through ACE’s program, and we’re proud to support their efforts.

ACE needs your help to continue to support the Shreyas and Danielas of this world. We have a unique opportunity now through the end of April to match every dollar you give to support ACE’s work. With your help, ACE can reach one million students by the end of the year – and continue to identify and train inspiring leaders like Shreya and Daniela who can drive the change we need around the issue of climate change.

Have a terrific Earth Day, and thanks for your support.

Pic Walker
Executive Director | Alliance for Climate Education

PS: Be sure to check out the ACE Blog to hear more about Shreya and Daniela’s trip to the White House.