The Drama II and Studio Art II students embarked on the Walter Munk Research Facility of Oceanography on Thursday, October 21st. This field trip was created to research the ways in which climate change affects the Marine environment, which is of great importance since San Diego is a coastal city. This trip also supports the artwork they are creating, different angles of documentaries, and portraits of environmental activists. They found ways they can help combat climate change right in their community.

The Art students gained new insight on how climate change is affecting places they hold so dear, and areas of their hometown that are vital to what makes San Diego so great. Ms. Noorzay, art teacher, gave her students the opportunity to learn a lesson of a lifetime.

Ms. Noorzay explained, “Students learned the specific needs of the marine animals in La Jolla canyons as well as anthropogenic effects upon them and steps we can take to relieve these effects. We learned about the oil spill off of Huntington Beach, the tar that washed up on the La Jolla Shores, it’s toxicity and effects on marine life.”

Although Drama and Art are very different from climate change and oceanography, looking into the bigger picture you will see exactly how beneficial this is to students of their respective classes. For example, the drama students are in the midst of learning about different documentary angles.

“Every drama group was tasked with different angles with the intention of making a documentary, and we each had the chance to approach this field trip in a unique way,” Yabi Tsegaye (‘22) asserts. “It taught us real world examples of how directors use their own creativity to convey their experiences.”

Art students embarked on this trip because as an artist, appreciating the beauty of the earth should be second nature. As of right now, there are devastating threats to our world, such as oil spills and overfishing that destroys nature’s beauty. They gained new insight on how exactly they can preserve nature and make the world a better place.

Heaven Trinh (‘22) expressed, “There is so much going on in just my own city alone, and to ignore how it’s affecting all the different plants and animals is cruel to me. I learned ways about what exactly is causing climate change in San Diego, and I’m putting effort into spreading awareness on these topics, using instagram and twitter.”

“Each of our community partners not only teach us about the issues, they offer ways in which we can all participate in activism and sustainable practices, ” Ms. Noorzay emphasizes. “Anyone from an accountant to an artist, a scientist to an engineer can find a place at the table, and for Preuss scholars I feel this is invaluable.”