What does the state of the climate and environment look like and feel like for today’s youth? A stroll through campus reveals composting and recycling bins. We see bottle fillers and a reusable water bottle in nearly every student’s backpack. Increasingly, electric vehicles and charging stations are present at our school and in our communities. We can even see solar electricity projects emerging at many of our schools. Are these harbingers that we have awoken to the challenges of climate change and are making progress? Or, are these omens that it has all gone too far and a very different future lies ahead. The Hope River Project at Da Vinci Junior High School (DVJH) allows students to explore this dichotomy and communicate their views through the medium of poetry and interactive art. 

Davis Poet Laureate Emeritus and retired therapist, Julia Levine, wanted to create an opportunity for young people to develop their views and express their voices on the world that past generations have created. Through a grant funded opportunity, she created Hope River and brought it to teacher Alison Kimmel at DVJH. Julia and colleague Bethanie Humphreys, also a poet and educator, visit Abby Wolf’s 7th grade English classes and work with students and teachers to learn different styles of poetry and to engage in discussions about the current state of the climate. Simultaneously, DVJH Science teacher Heather Vickery facilitates a climate unit with local climate expert, Garth Lindley, who discusses how we can get to a better place with the current climate crisis by:  addressing the underlying issues; changing our mindset and talking with others in a productive way; finding peace in our own lives: and envisioning a better future so we can build it. This curriculum allows students to become grounded in the scientific facts of climate change and how they are relevant at the local level. Students are able to collaborate effectively with professionals and with each other, learning to respectfully among those with differing opinions. 

Throughout the project, students are provided the opportunity to create five poems on the topics they encounter, using a free verse, Haiku and any other form of poetry that fits their voice to communicate their ideas with clarity and purpose.  Once their collection is complete, they select one that they would like to share at the culminating event of the project, and DVJH teachers Kaitlyn Griggs, Kevin Farris and Abby Wolf support students in incorporating media to enhance their ideas in the form of an artistic poster and a link to an audio recording of their poem accessible via a QR code.  At the final event, these student-created expressions are arranged like a flowing river of yard signs, allowing visitors to stroll through, taking in and reflecting on what our youth are expressing. Visitors can get a glimpse of how young people understand their role as contributing members of a diverse society.

This multifaceted project develops several components of the DJUSD Graduate Profile - Communication, Collaboration, Civic & Cultural Awareness, and Creativity - which are reflected in the annual Hope River book published by Sixteen Rivers Press.  You can listen to student poems here:

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“Anything that gives students the voice and power to share their feelings at this time in their life – such as discussions, written expression, artistic pieces – is extraordinary. This project gives them a vehicle to show the depth that so often goes unrecognized in our youth.”
- Alison Kimmel, Teacher

 “This project helped students be prepared to share their poems out loud. Hope River was eye opening and helped me uncover a piece of me that I didn’t know I had. I knew climate change was ‘a thing’ but didn’t know how much of a burden it really was.”
- Mariam, student



 “I liked seeing the variety of interpretations – some were haikus, some were funny, some were deep with meaning. The opportunity to present to a crowd made me nervous but also build my confidence.”
- Alba, student


“It was fun and eye-opening to see what other people felt about these topics and what they wanted to express. We were able to relate and connect to the people who expressed their poems and feelings in different ways.”
- Oliver, Student