Developing tomorrow’s leaders with Northern Michigan climate families | Features

Local group creates space to talk to young children about major environmental problems

By Art Bukowski | June 22, 2024

Most parents of young children can attest that simply surviving from day to day and week to week can be a real ordeal.

Keeping children safe, healthy and entertained while maintaining a busy schedule of sports and other activities can be overwhelming, especially for working parents who also have a long list of commitments outside of the kids. This busy life leaves relatively little head space or energy for activism on any issue, let alone such daunting topics as climate change or other major environmental problems.

Lauren Teichner and Jen Beuthin understand that. As mothers of young children, the two Traverse City professionals know what it’s like to run out of gas. But they also constantly think about the world their children will inherit, and doing nothing in the face of major environmental problems just didn’t seem like a viable option.

Last year, the two founded Northern Michigan Climate Families, a group dedicated to “playing, learning and protecting the Earth.” The first goal is simple: to create an education and action program on climate change and other environmental issues that fits into the fragmented and volatile world of parenting.

“We wanted to enable parents of young children who are concerned about climate change and other issues to come together in a community where the concerns of others about their children’s future are understood, while at the same time being able to take action themselves in small bites that fit into the afternoon nap schedule, for example,” says Teichner.

The second goal, however, is what really drives Teichner and Beuthin. They want to raise the next generation of environmental activists by engaging children in the most engaging and inspiring way possible, and encouraging them to find – and use – their own voice in the process.

“We bring our children closer to activities, campaigns and information about environmental issues and environmental protection in a child-friendly way,” says Teichner. “We want to teach them to fight for something that is really close to their hearts.”

One bite at a time

Teichner, a Chicago-area native, is an environmental lawyer who moved to Traverse City from Brooklyn several years ago to find a better place to raise her children. Beuthin is from Southern California and now works as a consultant after spending several years in journalism and union leadership. Like Teichner, she recently moved here after seeking a better place to raise her children (and both women had friends or family in the area).

And while they love the Grand Traverse region, both Teichner and Beuthin bring important things with them from their previous homes. In New York, Teichner first encountered Climate Families NYC, a (as yet) unaffiliated group that inspired her to start a similar group here.

“I knew it was very eye-opening for my own daughter when she was taken to protests in Brooklyn at age three. She knew what a protest was. She knew how to chant. She knew how to make signs,” Teichner says. “And she could see that she was part of a group trying to make change – she knew the power of her voice. It was empowering on many levels to connect with other families in that way.”

Northern Michigan Climate Families is less about protesting and more about educating and inspiring. So far, there have been several meetings, including ones focused on food and agriculture (with food sampling from local farms and visits to local farmers) and “play meetings for the planet” that have covered a variety of topics.

The focus is always on learning and “strengthening civic education” by teaching other parents how to have an impact politically and otherwise.

“It’s not just about taking action – it’s about understanding the situation and then seeing that your actions make a difference,” Beuthin says. “And so even now, when we’re at a game meeting, we’re (talking about something) going through the state legislation and explaining how the budget process works or letting people know when they want to get involved.”

That’s not to say that there might be one or two protests in the future, but from that perspective, things are slowly getting going.

“We’re really trying to understand our group and find out what the desires are of the parents we meet and whether they want to be more politically involved,” Teichner says. “I think ultimately we want to create opportunities for all kinds of influence. We could organize a protest event that anyone can come to if they feel comfortable, and we’ll try to make it as kid-friendly as possible with bubbles, chocolate and snacks.”

One thing is certain: the pattern of working within a child-friendly schedule is not going away.

“We try to be careful about scheduling our events. So we look at school calendars and see what half days parents might be looking for something to do with their kids,” Teichner says. “And the next event in our series (a farmers market tour) is at 8:20 a.m., when most parents are ready to leave the house.”

Exactly where you live

Ultimately, Teichner and Beuthin hope to convey to other families that while climate change and other environmental problems affect the entire planet, change can and must begin in our own backyard.

“How can you influence the world? On these big, comprehensive issues? You do that on a granular level, where you live,” says Beuthin.

And where we live is the perfect place to encourage change, Beuthin says. Our children eat from local farms, splash in the Great Lakes and generally enjoy the beauty of nature. “Our children interact with the environment in ways that not everyone experiences,” Beuthin says.

The combination of local roots and passion will hopefully produce future leaders who can truly change the world, say Beuthin and Teichner.

“We want to raise the leaders of tomorrow who don’t need to be handed a sheet of paper with discussion points to know what they’re going to say,” says Beuthin. “We want leaders of tomorrow who can remember what it felt like to bite into the apple of the neighbor down the street, or who dipped their toes in the lake as small children, or who know the chirping of birds in spring.”

And as these children grow and learn in this activist setting, their parents can connect with them, show compassion, and build hope for a better future.

“It’s really important for parents to find a community around this issue because there’s real gloom and despair in the back of many parents’ minds, and when you’re worried about your child’s future, you feel very alone,” Teichner says. “I think this group has a lot of power in talking openly about things we’re all afraid of and then putting positive energy into efforts that allow us to exert some control or create change.”

Want to join? Find them on Instagram at @nomiclimatefamilies.