Flash Dance: The Un-Official Chant of the Youth Climate Movement

In true It’s Getting Hot In Here fashion, the international youth performed a flash dance during the first day of the UN climate treaty negotiations. We made our presence felt outside the the first open plenary session of the conference.

Over 100 youth gathered for the action and we were literally surrounded by press. The message was clear: these negotiations will determine whether we will inherit a world with clean, safe energy and we must not delay action.

The “it’s hot in here” chant used for this flash dance has become the un-official chant of this movement. And if I’m not mistaken, this blog takes it’s name from that chant.

Memo to President Obama: Climate Change Policy Recommendations

young people with EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson

United States youth with EPA administrator Lisa Jackson during the COP15 climate negotiations


(Cross posted from the Cascade Climate Network COP15 blog)
As a final assignment for a climate course that I am in, I had the opportunity to write a memo to President Obama outlining what his climate goal should be and what policies/strategies he would use to reach those goals.

Below is the full text. I think it does a good job of explaining where we are at with the current COP15 negotiations and where we are headed with a climate bill.
_____________________

To: President Barack Obama
From: Mr. Jeremy Blanchard
Date: 7 Dec 2009
Subject: Climate Change Policy Recommendations

As a young person in the United States, I feel an obligation to ensure a healthy, prosperous future for my children and for all future generations. Because of this, I have spent the last year organizing campuses and communities to take action on the largest challenge that our species has ever faced: global climate change. To avoid catastrophic climate change, the United States must take the lead in reducing greenhouse gas emissions while simultaneously revitalizing our economy with clean, safe energy. To achieve this goal, the country must pass ambitious climate legislation and negotiate a strong international climate treaty. Mr. President, you must lead the way to ensure that these goals are met. The strategic recommendations outlined here are meant to be ambitious yet still politically realistic.

Continue reading ‘Memo to President Obama: Climate Change Policy Recommendations’


Jeremy Blanchard


Jeremy Blanchard is an environmental studies major at the University of Oregon. He co-directed PowerShift West in 2009 and attended the UN climate negotiations (COP15) in Copenhagen, Denmark. He co-founded the Climate Justice League on the UO campus, an activist group. He is passionate about organizing campuses and communities to find solutions to the climate crisis.

Community Picks