Students Hit Vatican City

It started off like a typical school science fair, with teamwork and research for a presentation on a scientific concept. Only the fair was to be held at one of the foremost science academies in the world, and the audience was to stretch far beyond peers and parents. So maybe it wasn’t at all like a typical school science fair.

Six Ross School students spent the last several weeks preparing a presentation on environmental sustainability and its role in a school curriculum, which they delivered at a workshop at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in Vatican City on Nov. 14, in front of an international audience of scientists and educators.

“We were given the chance to do something that many people aren’t, so we had to speak for them,” said Diego Vanegas, an eighth-grade student. “It was a big role. It was very important. Being at the Vatican, I felt very joyful. This was a great opportunity.”

The students discussed issues such as animal extinction, loss of finite resources, and energy sources, and why these issues concern them. “There were many points to address,” Diego said. “At the end we talked about how it is all connected.”

Malik Basnight, a senior, said, “Over all, it was a great experience to be given the opportunity to travel to Rome not just to see the city but also to go to the Academy and speak and have your words actually mean something that could possibly change people’s minds and change society.”

He acknowledged being apprehensive going into the presentation. “Most of the nervousness came from being around people who have such influence on the world,” he said. “There were scientists who were absolutely brilliant, and they were there listening to you, so you wanted to do the best you could do.”

Carrie Clark, the Ross School’s dean of cultural history, said the students performed admirably in their presentation. “They were really, really fantastic,” Ms. Clark said. “I heard so many words of commendation from the attendees on how well the students had done.”

The students took in sights like the Colosseum and the Pantheon, observed Rome’s well-known architecture, and visited several museums. But while they were there, they were shocked to learn of the Islamic State terrorist attacks in Paris.

“It kind of paralyzed me for a moment, knowing it was so close,” Malik said. “That was a moment of wow, okay, this is a real thing that happened. It was definitely an eye-opening moment for me.”

The students were accompanied on their trip not just by teachers but by the school’s founder, Courtney Sale Ross, who had been named honorary president of the workshop. It was titled “Children and Sustainable Development: A Challenge for Education.” According to a release from the Ross School, the workshop was inspired by Pope Francis’s recent encyclical on climate change. The workshop originated with an idea to involve children in environmental education issues and was further developed by Mrs. Ross along with other academic professionals from around the world.

“I have long advocated that sustainability should be a foundational principle in the way that we teach our children, and in fact it is our ethical and moral obligation to make sure they receive this education,” Mrs. Ross said in a statement.

Diego and Malik said the idea of sustainability means a lot to them and to their classmates.

“I would like everyone to know that everyone’s actions affect the world,” Diego said, “and not just themselves.”