By: Reece Harnett

HIGH POINT, N.C. — Over 40 High Point Univeristy students attended a watch party for a panel discussion aimed at finding common ground on the issue of climate change.

Hosted by the Common Ground Committee (CGC) at the University of Southern California, the Climate Forward 2023 event allowed students to ask questions pertaining to climate change from two former U.S. representatives Val Demings and Adam Kinzinger.

HPU was one of four colleges across the nation to be featured as a watch party location for the event. The other campuses involved include: Michigan State University, Vanderbilt University, and University of Mississippi.

“These are the kinds of things that make me proud of where our country is heading,” says President of HPU College Democrats, Quinn Fletcher. “We should be able to have civil conversations like this no matter the topic or the people involved.”

And, it wasn’t just politically driven students who felt the impact of the event.

“From a professional point of view, this is such a great opportunity to be working with crews from massive schools and actual production companies,” says Jake Drew, the head of production for the HPU watch party.

The CGC University Relationship Manager, Freddie Dorn, says the addition of watch parties to the annual Climate Forward event is, “crucial to helping the youth understand that there is a right way to communicate with others who have differing views than themselves.”

While this is the first time HPU has worked with CGC, both students and professors alike say they look forward to working with them for future events.