CFACT Collegians Archives - Page 2 of 3 - CFACT

Spin to Win: Southwest Students Learn Nuclear Facts

CFACT Collegians are proving once again that meaningful conversations about energy don’t have to happen in lecture halls—they can start with something as simple as a spin of the wheel and a piece of candy. At the University of Arizona, campus representative Ashlee Mendola (pictured above) brought nuclear energy education straight to the heart of campus life. Setting up on the busy mall near the student union, Ashlee invited passing students to test their knowledge with a colorful prize wheel featuring nuclear energy trivia. The concept was simple: answer a question, win some candy—but the impact ran much deeper. Ashlee reported [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T16:30:18-04:00April 15th, 2026|Comments Off

Birdhouses, Not Blades: Chicago Students Rethink Wind Energy

CFACT Collegian Pearl Beyer attending University of Illinois Chicago hosted a birdhouse painting workshop last week designed to highlight an often-overlooked consequence of wind energy: its impact on bird populations. The two-hour event brought together 9 students at Pearl’s home for a hands-on activity paired with a frank discussion about the dangers wind farms pose to our feathered friends. While painting and assembling birdhouses, attendees learned about the documented toll wind turbines take on wildlife—particularly birds, which are frequently killed by turbine blades operating at high speeds. Estimates suggest turbines in the United States kill between 140,000 and one million birds [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T16:23:09-04:00April 6th, 2026|Comments Off

Chattanooga Students Refuse the Climate Hustle

If students only hear one side of the climate change debate, do they ever realize there’s a debate? CFACT Collegian Markus Fee set out to answer that question at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga, hosting a screening of Climate Hustle 2: Rise of the Climate Monarchy for a group of twelve other students. One room. One film. A conversation that didn’t follow the usual script. The setup was simple: a campus library, a screen, and a group of twelve students willing to sit down and watch. But the response wasn’t passive. Students reacted in real time—laughing at the film’s comedic moments, leaning in [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T16:13:17-04:00April 5th, 2026|Comments Off

Sounding the Alarm: Real Estate Broker Warns UTK of New ESG Threat

More than 30 people gathered at the University of Tennessee for a guest lecture and dinner hosted by CFACT campus representatives Emma Arns and Jude Abernathy (left and middle in photo above holding flag), featuring real estate broker and accredited land consultant Stephanie Cross. Her presentation focused on how ESG-related metrics are beginning to influence the housing market, particularly through third-party “climate risk” scores assigned to residential properties. Cross explained that private organizations such as First Street Foundation are increasingly generating property-level “climate risk” scores using proprietary models. These ratings are now being integrated into major real estate platforms, influencing how [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T16:16:59-04:00April 3rd, 2026|Comments Off

Brick by Brick: Alabama Collegian Deconstructs the Climate Narrative

At Troy University, CFACT Collegian Caitlyn Harris brought a creative edge to energy education with her “Guess What’s in Your Solar Panel?” Jenga event—proving that sometimes the best way to spark conversation is with a simple game. Hosted on March 11th, the setup quickly became a focal point on campus. Curious students stopped to see what was going on, and before long, many decided to stick around and play a round of Jenga. What started as a casual game quickly turned into something more, as participants realized each block held a lesson about the materials behind modern energy technologies. Each block [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T16:05:17-04:00March 30th, 2026|Comments Off

Beanbags & Biodiversity: CFACT Collegians Take Aim at Invasive Species

When it comes to conservation, CFACT Collegians aren’t content to sit in a classroom and theorize—they bring the message straight to their peers in ways that are engaging, memorable, and rooted in real-world impact. That spirit was on full display as students at two major universities put their own creative spin on the “Invasive Species Round-Up” event, turning a serious ecological issue into hands-on, interactive learning. At the University of Tennessee Knoxville, collegian Jude Abernathy introduced what he dubbed the “Invasive Species Cornhole Quiz.” Interacting with over 25 students throughout the day while donning an orange hunting safety vest, Jude transformed a [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-15T15:31:05-04:00March 26th, 2026|Comments Off

Heartland Institute’s Sterling Burnett Talks Energy with Texas Students

On St. Patrick’s Day at Sam Houston State University, CFACT Collegians Nicolas Walker and Nyle Torpy hosted a campus event that combined a lighthearted atmosphere with a serious conversation about energy and conservation. The turnout didn’t happen by accident. Nicolas and Nyle spent weeks promoting the event—handing out flyers, talking with students across campus, and building interest through word of mouth. By the time the day arrived, they had a solid group ready to show up, grab some food, and hear something different. And there was plenty of food to go around. Raising Cane’s chicken, pizza, and a spread of drinks [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T15:49:25-04:00March 23rd, 2026|Comments Off

The Snack that Gives Back: UTK Collegian Challenges CO₂ Myths

Sometimes the most effective way to challenge a misconception isn’t with a sophisticated marketing or detailed presentations—it’s with a snack. That was exactly the strategy employed by CFACT Collegian Emma Arns at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, who recently hosted “plant-based snack giveaway” tabling event designed to tackle one of the most persistent myths on campus: that CO₂ is a pollutant rather than an essential building block of life. College students rarely get to hear perspectives other than climate alarmism, making tabling events like Emma’s invaluable opportunities to challenge narratives and dispel misconceptions. Emma transformed a simple table into a platform [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T15:36:38-04:00March 20th, 2026|Comments Off

Marc Morano Brings Climate Reality to Maine Students

Under a crisp Maine evening sky, students gathered at the New Beginnings Church of God in Waterville for a powerful and timely discussion on the future of climate policy—one that challenged the narratives they hear every day in the classroom. Hosted by the Leadership Institute at Kennebec Community College and featuring CFACT’s own Marc Morano, the event drew a motivated audience eager to hear a different perspective on one of today’s most debated issues. University of Maine Orono student Payton Warren coordinated and transported a group of 7 students from his campus an hour south to attend the March 10th event—an [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T15:30:50-04:00March 19th, 2026|Comments Off

Conservation, Not Panic: Texas CFACT Students Debunk Land-Usage Anxiety

CFACT Campus Representatives are continuing to prove that when it comes to environmental stewardship, facts—not fear—drive meaningful change. Three students in Texas recently brought that principle to life through the “Conservation, Not Panic!” campaign, each taking a unique approach to the same powerful message. To educate their fellow peers, Nicolas, Noah, and Sofia utilized colorful maps displaying the locations of land dedicated to conservation, owned by either land trusts, non-profit organizations, or individual landowners. At Sam Houston State University (SHSU), Nicolas Walker demonstrated the versatility and depth of the campaign by executing his event in two distinct settings. First, he hosted a classroom-style [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T13:01:03-04:00March 17th, 2026|Comments Off

TX & NY Students Submit Comments on Energy, Minerals, & Land Transparency

Students with CFACT Collegians continue to make their voices heard in the federal rulemaking process by submitting formal public comments on policy proposals affecting energy reliability, mineral supply chains, and agricultural land ownership. Public comments give citizens an opportunity to weigh in on regulatory decisions before agencies finalize new rules, ensuring policymakers hear directly from those who will live with the consequences. Recently, three students — Nicolas Walker of Sam Houston State University, Skyler Perez of the City University of New York (CUNY John Jay College), and Silas Pearson of Liberty University — each submitted comments addressing separate federal proposals. One [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T12:45:03-04:00March 10th, 2026|Comments Off

Gabby Hoffmann at AU: Conservation IS Conservative

In early March, students at University of Arizona had the opportunity to hear from one of the leading voices in free-market environmentalism when policy expert Gabriella Hoffman visited campus to speak about the conservative roots of conservation and the future of sensible energy policy. Hoffmann’s visit began the day before her presentation with a small group of students eager to spend time with the visiting speaker outside the classroom. On Thursday afternoon, Hoffmann joined a group of students, including CFACT campus representatives Elliot Taylor and Ashlee Mendola for a hike through the breathtaking desert landscape of Saguaro National Park, giving students [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T12:33:00-04:00March 10th, 2026|Comments Off

KS & SC Students “Bake” the Case for Nuclear Energy

Throughout the country, CFACT student “Campus Representatives” are finding creative ways to start conversations about one of the most misunderstood energy sources of our time: nuclear power. Recently, two students—one in Kansas and another in South Carolina—hosted “Nuclear Cookie Giveaway” events that proved a simple sweet treat can spark meaningful dialogue about reliable and clean energy. At Washburn University, CFACT Collegian McKrae Masters set up shop inside the campus Memorial Union to highlight the many advantages of nuclear energy. What started as a simple tabling event quickly turned into a lively hub of conversation as students and faculty stopped by to [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T12:27:49-04:00March 6th, 2026|Comments Off

Collegians Speak Up for State Authority on Clean Water

Earlier this year, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed revisions to Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, a provision that governs how states and authorized tribes review federal permits for projects that may impact local water quality. The proposal seeks to restore a broader interpretation of state authority, allowing certifying agencies to evaluate the full scope of federally permitted activities—not just narrow point-source discharges such as pipes or ditches—and giving states greater procedural flexibility to approve, deny, or condition permits in ways that align with their own water quality standards. The proposed changes would reinforce the Clean Water Act’s original [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T12:23:36-04:00March 5th, 2026|Comments Off

Chalk, Not Chaos, at UT Chattanooga

If you happened to be walking across campus at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga last week, you may have noticed something unusual under your feet. Not profanity. Not doom-and-gloom warnings. Not apocalyptic predictions in red paint. Instead, bright chalk lettering declared: “I Love Nuclear.” “Green Energy, Red Results.” “Science, Not Scare Tactics.” That splash of color was the handiwork of CFACT campus representatives Sophie Fuller and Markus Fee, who launched the semester with a simple but highly visible sidewalk chalk campaign that tied in topics and issues from each of CFACT’s four core policy focuses. With more than ten students [...]

By Emma Arns |2026-06-10T12:16:45-04:00February 20th, 2026|Comments Off