By Maddie Papcun – Staff Reporter

The Environmental Club at Jonathan Law is back and better than ever, working to raise awareness on the current pressing environmental issues.

After a long hiatus, the small club was reintroduced last year by students who have since graduated from Law: Ming-May Hu and Krutikka Gopal. 

“I advised an Environmental Club over 10 years ago, it ran for a few years, and then it stopped,” club advisor Ms. Bouchard said. “Basically Ming-May and Krutikka approached (history teacher and co-advisor) Miss Mannion about starting a club, so I offered to advise it as well.”

Many of the people involved in the Jonathan Law environmental club are extremely dedicated to stopping climate change and reducing environmental impacts. 

“I’m very passionate about the work that scientists and environmentalists are doing currently to prevent the continuation of global warming,” club advisor Miss Mannion said. “I just wanted to help out.”

Previously, the club has created a pollinator garden surrounding the flagpole in front of the school, and run many local clean-ups. They hope to continue with projects such as these in the current school year. 

“This year we’ve been tossing around the idea of an environmental fair for earth day, where we educate people on environmental friendliness and what climate change actually is,” senior co-president Sam Papcun said. 

Overall, the Environmental Club has big plans for the year. They constantly discuss current movements such as climate strikes, and what the school can do locally to help the environment. 

“During meetings we will cover anything from current events to current projects we are working on,” senior co-president Caroline Chesson said. “Some days we go outside to maintain our garden as well.” 

The club highly encourages underclassmen to join,especially if they want to have an impact on the local community. Meetings are right after school on Tuesdays in Bouchard’s room. 

“Come to a meeting, if you’re interested. It’s worth a shot,” Papcun said. 

A small group of underclassmen are already involved in the Environmental Club. These younger members are just as passionate as their older counterparts. 

“I want to be able to make a difference—however small—within our community,” sophomore club member Melanie Filippone said. “This is happening now. Although things are bad, we can still save the earth by raising awareness and putting in the effort.”

Largely, the Environmental Club advisors, presidents, and members alike are fighting to have a lasting impact. 

“I want to see students who are in the club enjoy what they learn, incorporating it into the practices they do and the decisions they make,” Bouchard said. “I believe it’s their generation that’s  going to help fix the messes we’ve all created.”