It’s Getting Hot In Here

Guest post from Matt Kazinka, leader with the Twin Cities Summer of Solutions. Cross posted from WeArePowerShift.org. 

Sometimes the quickest way to a clean energy economy is to get a little dirty. That’s right, it’s time to get our hands in the dirt and physically build the clean and just energy economy we want. And that’s exactly what young people across the country are doing this summer. We’re stepping up to get our hands dirty creating local clean energy solutions like community gardens, home weatherizations, and clean energy cooperatives.

This summer, youth leaders across the country are launching a host of community-based projects that will revitalize our economy in an environmentally sustainable and socially just manner. These projects range widely from building community gardens in Oakland to stopping the construction of a dirty coal plant in Georgia. But they all have one thing in common: DIY. Young people aren’t waiting for the government to act. We are stepping up to show our elected officials that we have the power in our own communities to create what we want and demand that they put dirty politics aside and follow our lead.

Changing the way our policies system works means changing our relationship with our communities. Through these projects, young people are working in partnership with diverse local organizations and coalitions to build the green economy from the ground up. With creativity, collaboration, and hard work, they are demonstrating that there is endless potential for prosperity at our fingertips. This summer, we will pilot ground-breaking strategies for energy efficiency, urban agriculture, renewable energy, sustainable transportation, waste reduction, and green industry.

We want a clean energy economy that supports everyone in a way the dirty energy economy never could. The era of segregated neighborhoods, polluted politics and economic apartheid has been played out. We have inherited deep-seated problems – climate change, political turmoil, social inequities, and economic disparities of mass proportions. Nothing about these challenges is simple, but nothing about them is inevitable, either. We have the power and are creating change. Continue reading ‘Launching Summer Projects: We’re Getting Dirty to Go Clean’

Cross-posted from WeArePowerShift.org. Guest blogger, Mallory Flowers, University of Alabama.

The only thing I know for sure right now is that I’m very lucky. I live in campus housing—on the side of Tuscaloosa that didn’t get touched by the recent tornados. In the moments after the storm, my friends and I knew it must have been bad, but it took hours, even days, for the full impact to be realized. Many are dead, and many more have had their lives forever changed.

I cannot accurately describe the way it felt to see my city destroyed—seemingly attacked, with no enemy to blame. Neither can I express the way it felt when I realized that my campus was now more of a refugee camp than a school. Waiting in lines for sandwiches and cups of water, the only available food, we hoped our phone batteries would last long enough to keep bringing us updates until power was restored.

Driving across parts of town that were once bustling hubs of business and student life, and seeing them now dark, deserted, and destroyed was completely surreal. Traffic was worse than it is on Game Day—and if you’ve ever been in Tuscaloosa for a football game, you know that’s saying something.

As we watched the death toll climb, and as we heard news, good and bad, of our friends, armed guards watched us from every street corner, preventing looting in our normally peaceful college town. But over the roar of helicopters piloted by news teams and the National Guard, of generators providing emergency power to campus, and of sirens continually sounding in the distance, there was laughter.

Somehow, despite the feeling of helplessness as we sat in the dark not knowing what to do or how to help, the Tuscaloosa spirit was preserved. Within hours of the double-vortex EF-4 tornado gorging a 1.5-mile wide scar through our town and others, it was evident that it had not destroyed our sense of community. We in the South are known to be resilient, and this time is no exception. Much has been lost, but with it, much opportunity to serve, grow, and move forward.

Tuscaloosa is not the only town affected—much of north Alabama is devastated, with some towns wiped clear off the map.  And as we rebuild, we will do so with a purpose. We will replace the damaged police and fire stations, the water towers, the homes, we will clear the roads of the trees that were thrown, fully uprooted, into the road.

To outsiders, the South is often known more for its poverty and “backwoods” culture than for the beauty and hospitality those that live here enjoy every day. But we now have the chance to rebuild our aging, and in places failing, infrastructure. We will take this chance to rebuild our town, and reclaim our state. We will rebuild Alabama efficiently, with better technology, and do so using less energy.

As droves of volunteers take to the streets, the one thing everyone can see is that it is students taking the reigns on this effort. The youth will not wait patiently for others to fix this problem. We are here to take back Tuscaloosa, bring back Birmingham, and aide all the small towns in between, and make them truly better than ever before.

I lied when I said I only know one thing. I know I’m lucky, but I also know that we’ll move forward from here. I know that Alabama will work together to become better. I know that we will move towards solar energy—so that next time a storm like this happens, millions don’t sit without power. I know we’ll seek real climate solutions, to ease the risk of more of these storms happening. I know that Alabama will be a better state, that our communities will become stronger, and that our youth will step up to the challenge that has been placed before them.

Roll Tide Roll.

Post by Janina Klimas, Coordinator for Ohio Student Environmental Coalition. Cross posted from Energy Action Coalition’s blog.

In Tuesday’s State of the Union President Obama promised to give 80% of Americans access to high-speed rail in the next 25 years. This is huge! And a far cry from the struggle we are facing with the Governor of Ohio to get rail in the Rustbelt.

Ohio students have wasted no time in registering their disenchantment and disapproval of our recently-inaugurated Governor, matching the speed with which John Kasich began undermining Ohio’s recovery, environmental progress and industrial sector-development with a slew of austerity measures, anti-environmental policies, and conservative attacks on public services, upper education, and organized labor. Even before being formally inaugurated as one of the least popular starting governors in our state’s history, Gov. Kasich was overseeing the wreckage of our infrastructural aspirations through the unabashedly-nonsensical and lopsidedly-partisan initiative to kill the ’3C rail corridor;’ a project designed to not only provide alternative transit to one of the most densely traveled corridors in the U.S. currently not served by high-speed rail, but also to provide jobs for Ohio’s families and beleaguered construction sector, and mobility and access both to Ohio’s young talent and elder residents.

The wash out from his success in killing 3C before even taking office? 16,000 jobs lost, $400 million federal stimulus dollars shipped to other states, and Ohio students joining the rest of the state in their lack of interest in any kind of honeymoon. Continue reading ‘Ohio’s Callin; It Wants It’s Rail Funds Back!’

“Nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time; the need for mankind [sic] to overcome oppression and violence without resorting to oppression and violence. Mankind [sic] must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression, and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.” – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

We live in violent times. Our generation has come of age under the specter of terrorism and war, and Millennial youth continue to be the majority of the force currently fighting two wars aboard. Our charged political atmosphere and vigorous finger pointing came to a head last weekend in Tucson. There’s the ongoing destruction by the dirty energy industry, the violence that it’s wrecking on our communities…the list goes on.

Amidst all of this it seems appropriate on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day to reflect on his legacy, message for peace and nonviolence and how Dr. King’s wisdom can inform the climate movement and our collective struggle for liberation today.

The challenge of the climate movement is not solely to address the environmental impacts of the climate crisis but to build a social movement strong enough to deal with its consequences. Many climate activists, myself included, hesitate to acknowledge that the question is now not whether we’ll “stop climate change” but whether we can stave off the worst of it.

One of my greatest fears is how our government will respond to the systemic collapse of our climate and economy. If our nation’s past behavior is any indication, we’ll respond with militarism, racism, and war. As sea level rise displaces millions and clean drinking water becomes an ever more scarce resource, what will our government do in the name of “national security?” Lock down the borders, occupy other nations, and seize land to squeeze the last drops of oil from the withered Earth? (I’m not one of those doom and gloom activists, I promise. Keep reading.)

It doesn’t have to be this way. I remain optimistic because I have felt the power of our movement. Now more than ever we need to draw from the bravery, wisdom and leadership of past movements and embody Dr. King’s vision.

“Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.” — Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Civil Rights Movement’s achievement was not merely passing the Civil Rights Act but reinventing the moral fabric of our country and giving hope to those living in the shadows of centuries of oppression.

Here are six lessons from Dr. King that can help guide the success of our modern movements:

1. Nonviolence and Love: In the face of unspeakable hatred Dr. King remained dedicated to the principles of nonviolence. We act because we love our fellow beings too much to see them mired in the violence of climate change. We must answer the forces of destruction with the liberation of love and compassion.

2. Spiritual and Moral Courage: Our crisis is not only ecological but deeply spiritual. The destruction of native lands, holy mountains, and sacred rivers like the Ganges is spiritual death. We are disconnected from the natural world and live in alienation from that which sustains us. Seeking to reestablish that connection we fill the void with consumption and destruction. Dr. King recognized the importance of this connection and was deeply devoted to prayer and meditation to guide his actions. We must continue to talk about climate change as a moral crisis and invite the wisdom of the world’s faith traditions.
Continue reading ’6 Lessons the Climate Movement Can Learn from Dr. King’s Legacy’

Cross posted from Energy Action Coalition’s Blog

In the final days before the election, young people across Ohio are breakin’ it down, literally. They’ve got three objectives in mind: (1) turning out the youth vote, (2) making the case to revitalize the Rust Belt with clean energy solutions like high-speed rail, (3) and having fun.

On Sunday we headed to a rally to pull it all together. President Obama, Gubernatorial Candidate Ted Strickland, and Senatorial Candidate Lee Fisher we’re all going to be there, so we knew we had to make it big! Since it was Halloween we stormed the crowd with “mass transit train” costumes and talked to hundreds of people about why we’re voting for clean mass transit in Ohio, and got them signed up on the Power Vote pledge. (We even got Governor Strickland to sign the pledge!)

Things really started to heat up when the rally got started. Rolling deep with lots of Power Voters we caught the attention of the speakers and they mentioned clean mass transit several times. But the leadership we were looking for came from one of our own ranks! When the musical guest, Common, took the stage, Gabe Morgan from Bowling Green University decided it was time to literally “break–it–down.” He cleared a spot in the crowd, and busted out some ridiculous break-dancing moves. The crowd went wild, and he captivated the entire audience around our message for clean and just energy! Reporters came up to him afterward wanting to get a quote and learn more about the Power Vote campaign. It was epic! Everyone left amped up and ready to turn out the youth vote from across Ohio.

Young people across the state have been raising their voice and turning out the youth vote for clean and just energy. Last night we took our “mass transit costumes” to Bowling Green State University where they had a Trick Out the Vote event and led a major dorm storm.

Politically Ohio is known as the “Bellwether State” and sets the tone for the entire country. With all the leadership the Ohio Student Environmental Coalition (OSEC) is showing, I’m hopeful about the direction of our country!

Cross-posted from EnergyActionCoalition.org

“We want safe jobs and clean energy
No more oil spills – Arrest BP!”

Was the thunderous chant echoing off the monolithic walls of BP’s DC headquarters today when hundreds of protestors turned out in force to deliver them a “Crude Awakening.” From the mouth of our megaphones BP got a strong dose of people power as we rallied and called for a “Citizens Arrest” of CEO Tony Hayward on the charges of criminal negligence.

More than a dozen network news cameras captured our outrage at BP’s criminal negligence to prevent and stop the unfolding disaster in the Gulf. (Check out the initial report from ABC News). Under the hot sun the energy of the crowd was palatable as we chanted and carried images of BP CEO Tony Hayward in a striped prison jumpsuit.

I MC’ed as speakers from Public Citizen, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, and Hip Hop Caucus (video) read aloud the charges against BP that included: polluting the political process, disregard for worker safety, price-gouging consumers and taxpayers, and violations of environmental laws.

The timing of the action couldn’t have been better; this week Attorney General Eric Holder announced he was opening a criminal probe of the oil giant. Holding BP criminally accountable is a bold step toward ensuring that the families on the Gulf get compensation for the vast damages to their lively-hoods.

Continue reading ‘Hundreds Stage BP “Citizen’s Arrest” – Demonstrate the Power of the People’

Media coverage of coal mining has been everywhere lately. From last weeks tragedy in West Virginia to today’s protest of young people disrupting the testimony of Coal Company CEO’s on Capitol Hill. All of this reminds me of my most recent trip through the West Virginia coal fields and the two images that left an unshakable impression on me: the devastating moon-like crater that was once a living mountain and a billboard I saw on my way there advertising “Clean, Carbon Neutral Coal”. I almost drove off the road straining my neck for a double take. Really?! “clean and carbon neutral”?! By definition coal is carbon.

As corporate green-wash schemes continue to co-opt the word “clean”, will we retreat from the term or rightfully reclaim it?

Historically the power to define is inextricably linked with the power to control. For centuries oppressed people have struggled to reclaim agency over their own lives through redefining their identity in society. This is also true of our national energy debate and the battle over control for what is “clean” and what is “dirty”. In an attempt to draw this distinction I define “clean energy” as energy sources that are infinite and do not have a negative impact on human health and communities.

There are many examples of divergent definitions, from the classic so-called “clean coal” to the nuclear industries branding of their dirty fuel cycle as “Clean Air Energy”. Lets face it, the dirty energy industry is very good at what they do. They have a lot of money and their big PR firms know that the fundamental designation of “clean” in the minds of average Americans is visceral image.

Continue reading ‘Reclaiming “Clean”’

Last weekend I had the opportunity to speak at a national conference of young Jesuit’s gathered in West Virginia as part of the Ignatian Solidarity Network’s national Teach-in on Environmental Justice and Sustainability. Inspired by the powerful history of social justice work of the Jesuit community I spoke to them about the importance of Environmental Justice, the Energy Action Coalition, the need for urgent action, and of our latest campaign: Define our Decade. During the Q&A one question really stood out: “What’s so special about THIS decade? Why focus on defining the next ten years?” After pausing to reflect, I simply said: “Because we have to.”

At first the student questioner probably thought my answer sounded like a mother answering her seven year old on why she couldn’t eat the cookie for breakfast, “Because I said so.” But really, it’s true that we have to make this decade one of the most transformative in American history. Period. Anything short of that is morally inexcusable. Over the next 10 years our generation will unleash the full power of the clean and just energy revolution and secure our climate from the duel threats of the economic and climate crisis. Why? Because we have to. This is not just a campaign slogan but the reality that we have inherited an insane global emergency and failure to rise to the challenge will result in the suffering of millions of our fellow human beings. We cannot continue to live under the corporate polluter domination that is poisoning our communities and disproportionally affecting communities of color the world over. I for one can’t live with it. And I keep going because I know that everyday there is a movement of people out there that feel the same way. Let us now let us speak with a unified vision for Our Decade. Continue reading ‘Our Decade Starts Today: Events Across the Country Kick-off Efforts to Define It With Clean Energy’

Yesterday morning before the Youth Clean Energy forum I awoke at 6AM and couldn’t sleep. The anticipation of our movement’s historic opportunity swirled loudly in my head.  This was our chance to talk directly to the Obama administration and let them know what we think. In the dim early morning light I wrote this letter to our President and was encouraged to hear that many of the other leaders at the forum felt the same way.

*****************

Dear President Obama,

I have one question for you: When?

When will you seal your place in American history and announce your bold vision to unite this nation behind an Apollo Project for clean energy or a Green New Deal?  When will you launch the “Obama Plan” to defend America from one of the greatest threats to our national security, our nation’s health, and our economy?

Our country’s greatest Presidents have emerged to lead us through times of crisis.  Mr. President, the solutions to the energy and climate crisis should be your greatest legacy. Continue reading ‘Dear Mr. President….When?’