Join us to explore developmentally appropriate ways to discuss climate change with kids at any age. Dr. Sheila Williams Ridge of the University of Minnesota and Ariel Maldonado of The Climate Initiative will share best practices for talking about environmental issues with kids, effective solutions-based communication tactics, and youth-led climate actions you can share with kids to help them feel empowered and inspired.

Dr. Sheila Williams Ridge (She/Her) is the Director of the Child Development Laboratory School at the University of Minnesota. She holds a master's degree in Early Childhood Education from Concordia University and a bachelor's degree in Biology from the University of Minnesota, Morris, as well as experience as a business manager and preschool teacher/naturalist. Dr. Williams Ridge is a facilitator for the NAEYC Young Children and Nature Interest Forum, on the Voices and Choices coalition, a board member for the Minneapolis Nature Preschool, a board member for Monarch Joint Venture, a board member for Dodge Nature Center, a school board member for Saint Paul City Schools, and a member of the Natural Start Alliance Leadership Team. She is co-author of the book Nature-Based Learning for Young Children: Anytime, Anywhere, on Any Budget, published by Redleaf Press, and is passionate about encouraging nature-based play and the lasting developmental benefits of a relationship between children and nature.

Ariel Maldonado is the Youth Engagement Manager for The Climate Initiative. Since 2018, she has dedicated herself to teaching youth about climate change through her online Instagram platform @gogreensavegreen. She is an advocate for learning about both climate sciences and the social implications of climate change and its solutions. Ariel has a background in Fine Arts and utilizes her creativity to the fullest when approaching how to creatively educate, excite, and activate youth to engage with the climate crisis. Based in Los Angeles, CA, Ariel has seen firsthand the disproportionate impact climate change has on communities and works to educate others on the not-so-obvious impacts of climate change. In her free time, she is found in Downtown Los Angeles at her studio. Ariel is formally trained as a ceramicist (both pottery and sculpture) but is currently focused on working as a sculptural artist utilizing up-cycled materials. She is now figuring out how to weave sustainability into her art practice and how sustainability translates to the materials used in her work.

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Communicating Climate Change with Kids