Tim Muhich is a PhD candidate in the School for Environment and Sustainability at the University of Michigan, co-advised by Drs. Michaela Zint and Kai Zhu. He graduated from Michigan State University in 2012 with a BS in Biological Sciences, minoring in Chemistry, and a BS in Zoology with a concentration in Marine Biology before teaching high school chemistry and climate change classes for a decade. Tim’s research interests revolve around how to increase access to impactful climate change educational experiences for high school students through building teacher agency. Outside of academic pursuits, Tim is an avid canoeist, sailor, birder, and potter.
Climate Change Education Vision:
I envision a world where every public school nurtures the conditions for all students to develop authentic agency, capacity, and resilience in the face of climate change. In this vision, climate education goes beyond imparting scientific facts. It empowers every child through locally relevant and timely experiences that illuminate the reality and complexity of our global condition, explain how we arrived here, and, crucially, emphasize what must be done about it while students show themselves how their actions are part of the solution.
This approach recognizes that the world will neither revert to the way it once was, nor must everything we cherish perish; rather, students learn to understand the nuanced possibilities and diverse pathways to our collective future. I believe every educator, no matter their subject area, should embrace the role of climate educator by supporting students as they wrestle with the emotions, challenges, and uncertainties that climate change brings. By encouraging critical thinking, dialogue, place-based learning, and hands-on experiences, students discover their own capacity to act and adapt within their communities.
The following sources have strong materials for teachers to use in their CCE efforts.
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Subject to climate has lesson plans on climate change that can be filtered by grade, subject and topic.
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En-ROADS is a very powerful climate simulator that can help students develop an understanding of potential paths towards a sustainable future.
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Addressing climate emotions explicitly in the classroom can help students see positive futures and empower them to become longterm climate actors. The Climate Mental Health Network has resources to support use of the climate emotions wheel in the classroom. For a hard hitting look at how to manage climate emotions, The Field Guide to Climate Anxiety is a must read.
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The Existential Toolkit for Climate Justice Educators does a wonderful job of helping teachers develop a good headspace for approaching their climate educational efforts.
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For those located in Michigan like me, the Michigan Climate Education Hub is a wonderful starting place.
During Covid induced virtual learning, I made recordings for my students to watch asynchronously before Zoom discussions. While remote and hands off instruction is not the ideal way to learn about the topic, the videos may still prove useful.
From 2021 to 2024, I served as the advisor for the High School Climate Symposium, which was hosted by the Battle Creek Area Math and Science Center. The symposium brought in climate scientists, philosophers, and activists such as James Hanson, Robin Wall Kimmerer, and Bill McKibben to talk with high school students round the country about their place in on a changing planet.
