From the Screen to the Classroom: New Tools for Climate Education

Highlighting opportunities for the next generation of climate leaders.

Marisa Guerrero, Alec Turnbull, and J. English Cook

Jul 06, 2026

As all of the films we feature at CFF demonstrate, storytelling can be one of our most vital tools for climate education. Films don’t just document what’s at stake, but also shape how we understand, discuss, and respond to the climate crisis.

In today’s newsletter, we’re highlighting three initiatives that bring that idea to life: a new lesson plan project that brings the story of America’s current climate migration into classrooms, an opportunity for young climate leaders to participate in a global accelerator program, and a hands-on programming pop-up recap from CFF’s next gen cohort.

In this Newsletter:

📚 Climate Curriculum Project with Lowland Kids
🌎 Partner shoutout: Stay tuned for announcements about The World Around’s Young Climate Prize
👋 Meet CFF’s Next Gen Climate Film Collective
🌱 Opportunities & Events

📚 Climate Curriculum Project with Lowland Kids

This Spring, the Climate Film Festival partnered with Together Films, who designed the impact campaign for the feature documentary Lowland Kids and represent it for international sales, and New York City science teacher Shannon M. Richardson to develop a classroom discussion guide and lesson plan for the film. CFF would like to extend thanks to the Earth Rising Foundation for its critical support of the project, alongside other global partners, extending the impact of the film beyond the screen and equipping educators with tools to engage students in conversations about climate migration, resilience, and environmental justice.

Lowland Kids (2025, Sandra Winther) follows the story of the last two teenagers living on the once thriving Isle de Jean Charles, Louisiana, their strikingly beautiful ancestral home that is now being swallowed by the sea. Surrounded by lush, crumbling landscapes, the protagonists—part of the community deemed America’s First Climate Refugees—navigate the emotional journey of growing up in a place that is soon to be lost forever.

Designed for upper high school classrooms, the week-long curriculum invites students to explore the human dimensions of climate change through discussion, critical thinking, and storytelling.

Below, Shannon reflects on developing the curriculum and why she believes film can be a powerful tool for climate education:

My name is Shannon M. Richardson, and I’m a high school science teacher in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, New York. When I was first introduced to the Climate Film Festival in 2025, it was through the climate documentary Black Snow (2024, dir. Alina Simone). Prior to watching the film with a friend, I had always experienced science through direct instruction, firsthand observation, and volunteer work. I had never considered film as a powerful way to experience and engage with science.

Black Snow left such a lasting impression on me that when the opportunity arose to develop a curriculum around Sandra Winther’s debut feature, Lowland Kids, I was thrilled and honored. After watching both versions of the film, I recognized its relevance not only to coastal communities across the United States, but also to inland communities that may one day welcome those displaced by climate change.

Lowland Kids tells the story of North America’s first climate refugees from the Isle de Jean Charles, Louisiana. Through my collaboration with the Climate Film Festival and our partner, Together Films, I developed a week-long curriculum for upper high school students that both honors the deep connection Isle residents have to their ancestral land and helps students understand how climate change is already reshaping communities today. The curriculum encourages students to think critically about resilience, adaptation, and the human stories behind environmental change.

While my current students are only in ninth grade and are not yet ready to fully engage with the curriculum, I plan to implement it during Earth Week in April 2027. My hope is that it will help students build resilience, recognize opportunities for meaningful action, and thoughtfully navigate climate-related information and misinformation. Ultimately, I hope this curriculum demonstrates how film can transform climate science from something students simply learn about into something they genuinely connect with, question, and carry forward into their own communities.

Learn More

The Lowland Kids discussion guide and lesson plan are available for schools interested in bringing the film into the classroom. For more information on how to request a screening, please find details here or reach out to screenings@togetherfilms.org.

🌎 Partner Highlight: The World Around Young Climate Prize

The World Around’s Young Climate Prize received 490 applications from 85 countries, reflecting a truly global pool of emerging climate leaders. The 2026 cohort of 25 exceptional changemakers under 25 will be announced on September 15, 2026. The program supports leaders from communities on the front lines of the climate crisis through a mentorship and award initiative that accelerates their work and visibility.

CFF is proud to be an Institutional Partner of this initiative.

👋 Meet CFF’s Young Climate Leaders

Did you know that CFF has an ambassador program for young climate leaders in NYC? Meet CFF’s Next Gen Climate Film Collective, a community of emerging storytellers, filmmakers, and advocates, all NYC residents age 18-26. The group meets bi-monthly to explore environmental issues, grassroots organizing, and the raw power of cinema to drive real-world change, and contributes to CFF’s year-round activities and our September festival.

Last month, this year’s cohort kicked off their first official event: a takeover at Anew Cafe! The Collective organized a screening of Hot Soda (2023, dir. Nello DiGiandomenico), a brilliant film that screened at last year’s festival and won the 2025 CFF Youth Choice Award.

Keep an eye out for what’s next for the Next Gen Collective, including curating the Youth Choice Award for our festival this September, a brand-new online zine for CFF, and more!

🌱 Opportunities & Events

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