Leaders in media, education, climate, and more to engage in Aspen Institute summit on April 9-11, showcasing the power of media to help children understand a changing climate.
Contact: Jon Purves
Media Relations Director
The Aspen Institute
jon.purves@aspeninstitute.org
Los Angeles, CA, March 31, 2025 – Organizers today shared initial programming information for the Planet Media Summit, taking place in Los Angeles from April 9-11. Organized by the Aspen Institute’s This is Planet Ed initiative in partnership with the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, Los Angeles Unified School District, and the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, the Summit will focus on the vital role of media and education in developing children’s climate literacy.
Participants will collaborate to underscore the power of positive storytelling and solutions-driven messaging, with the aim of creating media that leaves young people better equipped to understand and succeed in our changing climate.
Speakers include:
- Gary Knell, Senior Advisor, Boston Consulting Group (BCG); Former Chairman & CEO, National Geographic Partners, NPR, & Sesame Workshop
- Dean Willow Bay, USC Annenberg School for Communications and Journalism
- Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, Los Angeles Unified School Disctrict
- Joe Hanson, Host, Writer, & Creator, Be Smart (PBS Digital Studios)
- Wendy Abrams, Co-founder & CEO, Eleven Eleven Foundation
- Dr. Lori Bettison-Varga, President & Director, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
- Sean Decatur, President, American Museum of Natural History
- Amy Friedman, President, Redhead Consulting
- JJ Johnson, Founding Partner, Sinking Ship Entertainment
- Janti Soeripto, President & CEO, Save the Children
- Justin Worland, Senior Correspondent, TIME
- Call for Pitches Awardees: leaders in media, gaming, and more
Additonal speakers will be announced in the coming weeks. Programming takes place across three days:
April 9, 6:00pm-9:00pm PT, The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
Night at the Movies: From anime to music, podcasts to geocaching, the Planet Media Call for Pitches Awardees have developed exciting content to help kids understand our changing world. The evening includes a reception, a special screening of this content, and a conversation with the awardees.
April 10, 8:00am-6:00pm PT, University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
Planet Media Summit: During a day of conversation, speakers and attendees will discuss a broad range of issues, including climate resiliance through storytelling; climate learning in informal spaces; spotlight specific content examples; climate action in gaming; climate literacy through education; and more to be announced. View the latest agenda here.
April 11, 8:30am-11:30am PT
LAUSD School Visits: Attendees are invited to visit a LAUSD school to see climate learning in action.
Journalists interested in attending the summit or speaking to organizers should contact Aspen Institute media relations director Jon Purves: jon.purves@aspeninstitute.org.
Planet Media was established by This Is Planet Ed at the Aspen Institute to harness the reach and influence of media to support children and their families in building scientifically-grounded awareness and understanding of climate science and solutions to empower them to take action. It is co-chaired by Gary Knell, former President and CEO of National Geographic and Sesame Workshop, and Katharine Hayhoe, Chief Scientist at The Nature Conservancy.
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This Is Planet Ed is an initiative of the Aspen Institute Energy & Environment Program that intends to unlock the power of education as a force for climate action, climate solutions, and environmental justice to empower the rising generation to lead a sustainable, resilient, and equitable future. This Is Planet Ed works across Early Years, K-12, Higher Education, and Children’s Media to build our societal capacity to advance climate solutions. Visit www.thisisplaneted.org and join the conversation by following This Is Planet Ed on X (Twitter) and Instagram.
The Aspen Institute is a global nonprofit organization whose purpose is to ignite human potential to build understanding and create new possibilities for a better world. Founded in 1949, the Institute drives change through dialogue, leadership, and action to help solve society’s greatest challenges. It is headquartered in Washington, DC and has a campus in Aspen, Colorado, as well as an international network of partners. For more information, visit www.aspeninstitute.org.