With 2014 shaping up to be the hottest year on record globally, the phrase “global warming skeptics” seems like an oxymoron. Still, the majority of America’s population does not consider climate change a significant problem. At West Linn High School, the Green Team aims to bring awareness to this global issue, and help the environment locally.

“I think that living in Oregon, we’re conditioned to take our beautiful environment for granted and its hard to picture it as anything but thriving,” Gabrielle Bullen, senior and co-president of Green Team, said. “But there’s a real problem threatening to take it all away.”

Bullen decided to lead Green Team last year after taking an Environmental Science class with Jim Hartmann, science teacher and club adviser.

“He basically told me and Emma Waibel (senior and co-leader of Green Team) that we should do it because we were super enthusiastic in that class,” Bullen said.

Bullen has been passionate about helping the environment for as long as she can remember, and hopes to educate others. “It frustrates me that 64 percent of Americans don’t recognize global warming as important, when really it’s the biggest problem our world faces,” she said.

Co-leader of Green Team Emma Waibel, who spends much of her time outdoors rock climbing and hiking, also wants to raise awareness on climate change.

“Being in nature has been a huge part of my life,” Waibel said. “It’s important to me to try and conserve it so that others might have that experience too.”

The club will be organizing local events such as ivy pulls and trash pick-ups throughout the year. They are also working on bringing guest speakers to Green Team meetings to discuss more specific topics.

“We already have a large number of people on the team, which is awesome,” Bullen said. “But I want to educate the whole school, not just those who signed up.”

For those interested, Green Team meets monthly on Thursdays in the 700 building.