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A Meeting with the Doomsday Clock Timekeeper
Eighth grade students recently participated in a virtual experience with President and CEO of the Bulletin of the Atomic ScientistsRachel Bronson, also a Parker parent, that helped connect lessons from nuclear risk and climate change in the past with the current pandemic.
A media organization with a mission to equip the public, policymakers and scientists with information needed to reduce man-made threats, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists focuses on three main areas: nuclear risk, climate change and disruptive technologies. Linking these topics is a driving belief that, because humans created them, we can control them.
Each 8th grade section gathered with history/social studies teacher Stephanie Nishimoto-Lorenzo in a Zoom session with Dr. Bronson to learn more about the history of nuclear weapons, the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists and its activism around nuclear risk, climate change and today's global crisis.
Reflecting upon the experience, Nishimoto-Lorenzo shared, “Dr. Bronson’s activism is exemplary. The 8th graders made essential connections to the importance of science and we should not only listen to the experts but act on their recommendations. It has been such a rich learning opportunity for students to learn from parents in the Parker community, like Dr. Bronson, about the work they have dedicated their lives to.” Eighth grader Kumiko Muro, an 8th grade student, ties her studies about the atomic weapons in WWII with the nuclear risk today: “Something we’ve learned is that no one will win a nuclear war if the occasion arises. Ronald Reagan said this, and people have different views on it, but the big takeaway is that the weapons that especially the U.S. and Russia hold can destroy all of mankind in a flash. A lesson we’ve learned from nuclear risk is that it’s still present today, and especially with an election coming up, the way that nuclear weapons are handled will also depend on the president.” In listening to Dr. Bronson, 8th grader Grant Koh reflected,“We are learning in this pandemic that measures need to be taken internationally to prevent global catastrophes, and the costs of those measures are much less than the costs of reacting to a pandemic such as COVID.”
This is another great example of our students connecting the experience of the classroom with the wider world, despite social distance.
Francis W. Parker School educates students to think and act with empathy, courage and clarity as responsible citizens and leaders in a diverse democratic society and global community.