Therefore, it is extremely urgent that all California consumers of electric power should reduce their consumption immediately and substantially. The real challenge is to somehow motivate most consumers into taking action before the consequences of inaction are felt. The answer should not surprise you, for I propose that we engage all students K through 12 in an exercise of civic responsibility that can have profound impact throughout the state. I'm dead serious when I say that students can influence the actions of adults, especially when parents are concerned about their children s welfare as well as their own jobs. These two concerns become the focal points of a strictly voluntary plan designed to achieve the necessary reduction in electrical consumption.
Schools can stay open and students can be educated if the plan succeeds.
Students will take pride in what they have accomplished. The proposed structure of the plan is to ask each parent to enter into an agreement to take action on as many of the conservation measures as is feasible for them. We must rely upon the teacher to direct the message to the appropriate grade level. The teacher will explain that the handouts are to be faithfully placed into the hands of a parent, and tell each student to make a verbal request of their parent that they must conserve and that the response form must be returned to the school by the deadline. To stimulate participation, the parents are asked to check-off the agreed upon measures actually taken on an attached response form.