University student and ASUO Sen. Jeremy Blanchard wants to see a lot of energy — not the kind of energy that is consumed for electrical power, but the kind that makes noise and creates change.
Blanchard has been working for the past two months on organizing the youth conference PowerShift West that begins tonight at the University. More than 500 students and community individuals from eight western states will gather for the three-day conference for panel discussions and guest speakers.
Blanchard said the conference will allow participants to find and discuss climate solutions, but more importantly, it may spur action.
“I really want to see the participants create excitement about this,” Blanchard said. “A goal is for them to see that we can actually achieve some great things.”
The conference has four focuses: the Senate climate bill and the Copenhagen international climate negotiations; a high-speed rail corridor between Eugene and Vancouver, BC.; finding local community energy solutions; and a proposal to move the United States beyond coal.
The conference’s theme, “Think global, act local,” sprung from a collaboration of regional PowerShift leaders who wanted their youth participants to gain information about global initiatives and take action about the local level, said Charles Denson, second member of PowerShift’s core team.
“They will be able to hear about Copenhagen and stay informed with global actions,” Denson said. “But they also will gain the skills and information necessary to create their own campaigns and projects at their schools.”
Blanchard, Denson and third organizer Zach Stark-MacMillan have been working 10, 20, even 40 hours a week since the city of Eugene was chosen as the conference site, putting together venues, organizing speakers and creating hype within the University.
The trio has secured such speakers as Bernadette Del Chiaro, director of Environment California’s Clean Energy and Global Warming Program; Jefferson Smith, Oregon legislator and founder of the Oregon Bus Project; and representatives from The Backbone Campaign, a grassroots campaign for climate control efforts, for times throughout the weekend.
Blanchard will take some time out of organizing to address the crowd as “the youth perspective,” providing insight for those who are just beginning their sustainable efforts. Freshman Kelsey Ward, an environmental science major, will be in that audience
Ward has been volunteering as a recruiter for PowerShift this past week, encouraging more students on campus to register for the conference — a task that Denson doesn’t see as needing much help.
“I have had a lot of good reactions from students,” Denson said. “Students are really supporting this and think it’s cool that the University is hosting.”
Ward will also take time off from volunteering to sit in on the U.S. climate bill and political action panels, and she hopes to find her niche in the “green” movement on campus.
“I am definitely excited for this conference to be a jumping-off point to see what other groups there are or what group might be needed,” Ward said.
Before the opening keynote speakers at 7 p.m., conference-goers will have a chance to tour the University’s Urban Farm and the Center for the Advancement of Sustainable Living .
Following that sustainable mentality, Denson said all the flyers and printed materials for the conference are made from 100 percent post-consumer waste.
“It helps cut down on costs, but the idea is to have zero waste,” Denson said.
On Dec. 5, Blanchard and Denson will travel to Copenhagen with other students from the Cascade Climate Network to support and encourage legislators to endorse the climate treaty that will be produced there.
“We’ll use some of the skills we gained and put them into action,” Denson said. “We are there to tell our representatives that they need to stop dragging their feet and start taking action.”
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PowerShift West rallies in Eugene
Daily Emerald
November 5, 2009
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