Wednesday, Nov. 15 HSE’s Eco Club held their annual climate change panel. The result was dozens of students from HSE listening to speakers Jim Poyser and Fishers Parks and Recreation director, Tony Elliot, talk about their experiences with environmental activism. The HSE students were joined by students from surrounding high schools who came to show support and their interest in becoming more involved with their communities.

The Eco Club was started during the 2016-2017 school year by Haeli Juthani. She was then joined by several other students one of whom was Martha Abbadi.

“The original goals were to spread environmental awareness, and become involved in the environment as the youth within our community,” Abbadi said. “Now, we are planning to get more involved with the legislature of our state to possibly get a resolution passed for carbon neutrality.”

Taking steps to achieve this, the club as stated before hosted two speakers, each of which looked at activism from a different standpoint, Poyser statewide and Elliot locally. 

“I met your Eco Club at a climate march in Indy earlier this year,” Poyser said. “That connection led to further communication. What I hope to accomplish is two fold. One: We have a successful, proven, program that establishes youth-led climate recovery resolution projects in cities throughout Indiana; two: I am involved with the club to support them in the project ideas they come up with.”

The amount of participants and connections made at the panel last Wednesday gives both Abaddi and Poyser hope for the environment.

“I was glad to see and hear engaged students of this topic,” Abbadi said. “I personally wanted to get involved in this club because I wanted to get more involved in the environment because I knew of the terrible consequences our Earth is facing today. It is our only home, so why not take care of it while we are here?”