Inconvenient Youths

Ellen Gamerman:

Jim and Robyn Dahlin knew replacing the roof of their home in Greenbrae, Calif., would be expensive. But they hadn't planned to spend an extra $15,000 on solar panels. For that, they have their 8-year-old son, Luke, to thank.

After Luke acted in a school play about global warming, he went on a campaign to get his parents to install the panels. He routinely lectured his dad from the backseat of the minivan about how reducing their energy consumption could help save the planet.

Mr. Dahlin says he put Luke off at first, not wanting to "just give in and sound like a big wet-noodle parent." But after doing more research about the energy savings, he relented. Luke, he says, "is proud that we're trying to do our part."

In households across the country, kids are going after their parents for environmental offenses, from using plastic cups to serving non-grass-fed beef at the dinner table. Many of these kids are getting more explicit messages about becoming eco-warriors at school and from popular books and movies.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at October 3, 2007 12:00 AM
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