I visited Palo Alto High School (or ‘Paly’ as it is often referred to) today, speaking with Ms. Brimhall’s senior environmental studies class. Palo Alto High sits directly across the street from Stanford, and literally feels like a tiny Stanford campus. I forgot the digital camera at home, which is too bad because it was ‘spirit week’ and Ms. Brimhall was giving extra credit for students who dressed up showing their school spirit. I did not know you could dress up like a Viking in so many different ways.

   On this day I presented to three environmental studies 12th-grade classes at Acalanes High in Lafayette, on the far side of the San Francisco Bay.

   It can sometimes be a challenge talking to seniors, as they show less natural enthusiasm than, say, the third graders I visited. Nonetheless, I was encouraged by their engagement on the issues and their responses to my questions, and especially by those who thanked me and talked after the class. I am targeting older students because they are closer to an age where they will be able to vote and make their own decisions about the world. For these students near college age, I also usually put a plug in for studying abroad during college.
   I was going to take the train around the San Francisco bay to save gas and make a statement about use of public transit. Then I missed the train and had to drive.