John Howard, a 2006 Edina High School graduate, is “A Breath of Fresh Air” according to his campaign site, johnhoward3.com. The 24- year-old has major concerns about climate change, and will be running as a Republican candidate for the 3rd Congressional District.

What sets Howard apart from other Republican candidates is his strong focus on the environment. “It seems like Congress isn’t dealing with a lot of the long term issues that are going to be impacting our generation,” said Howard.

Being a young party leader at the Will Steger Foundation, along with Paul Thompson, they both work with the United Nations in climate negotiations, finding advance solutions for evironmental organizations.

Howard is leader of the Citizen’s Climate Lobby, member of the City of Edina’s Energy and Evironment Education, and a board member of Cool Planet. All of these organizations work towards improving the international and global problem of climate change in the UN climate negotiations.

Howard’s time at Edina High School greatly impacted his decision to run. “A very important class for me was A.P. Environmental Science which [had a strong impact] on my beliefs on the importance of climate change. It also gave me the knowledge to deal with these issues that aren’t going to solve themselves.” Another important class for Howard was A.P. United States History, which gave him “a good understanding of United States history, political tradition and government structure.”

“It also taught me that the best political leaders are ones who decided to do something with real issues, like Abe Lincoln” said Howard.

So what lies ahead for Howard? Howard will be running against incumbent Eric Paulsen, who has been serving since 2009. “My campaign is a lot smaller [than Paulsen’s] but I’m bit more willing to take on issues that aren’t politically easier to deal with,” said Howard. Howard will be having a campaign event on Saturday, March 10, at the Edina Davanni’s