SRO News | Updates: Rising to the Climate Challenge: Thousands Expected At First-Ever National Youth Summit on Global Warming

Rising to the Climate Challenge: Thousands Expected At First-Ever National Youth Summit on Global Warming

Published Tuesday, October 09, 2007 by SROmgmt | E-mail this post

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Power Shift 2007 to Take Place November 2-5, 2007 in College Park, MD

Washington, D.C. On November 2, 2007, thousands of young people will converge on our nation's capital for Power Shift, the first-ever national youth summit to solve the climate crisis. The conference will engage high school and college students from all 50 states about solutions to global warming and how they can put those solutions into practice on their campuses, in their communities, and in the political arena.

At Power Shift, young leaders from all backgrounds will share ideas, learn new skills, make connections and ultimately use their collective experience to create a fresh, inspiring vision of the future, one focused on America's poten

tial to build a clean energy economy, achieve energy independence, create millions of green jobs, increase global equity, and revitalize the economy.

Power Shift's agenda includes issue briefings from the nation's leading scientists and policy experts, training sessions on organizing, advocacy and media relations, an "opportunities fair" featuring some of the country's leading environmental employers, and built-in networking opportunities for attendees. Conference participants are also urged to attend a Lobby Day November 5 on Capitol Hill, aimed at urging elected representatives to embrace bold, meaningful, and comprehensive legislation to solve the climate crisis and put America back on the path to a clean and just energy future.

"Special interests have taken precedence over human interests for far too long," said Richard Scott, a student at the University of Maryland studying political science, public administration, and theater. "By joining together to share our ideas and passion we will be establishing a national voice for our generation. We need to raise this collective voice to reach our elected leaders and demand that they take global warming seriously." Along these lines, event organizers have invited 2008 presidential candidates and influential environmental advocates to address the conference.

"Our world is at a crossroads," added Craig Altimose, Power Shift Organizer. "The actions we take today as a society to address the challenge of climate change will determine the future of our generation and generations to come. The time has come for us to make a change."

About Energy Action
Energy Action Coalition is a group of over 40 leading youth environmental and social justice organizations working together to leverage their collective power and strengthen the clean energy movement in North America. In August 2006, Energy Action launched The Campus Climate Challenge, a joint campaign by 37 organizations from the U.S. and Canada focused on uniting students to pass 100% clean energy policies on their campuses. Since its inception, the Climate Challenge has spread to students on more than 500 high schools and college campuses.

For more information on Power Shift, including a full conference agenda, registration guideline, and how to be a campus recruiter for the conference, please visit powershift07.org.

Labels: Campus Climate Challenge, carbon neutrality, Energy Action, Power Shift 07, Power Shift 2007, Powershift, Youth Activism