Hello, hello!
I owe you an update:
1)Here's are two wonderful videos of the Youth Summit in Minneapolis last week.
In the first one, you'll see Abby speaking first (she's incredible!), I'm thrown in there, then there's Ethan, our all-inspiring coordinator.
In the second, a student-made video by my friend Taylor from the leadership team, has actual footage of the Summit and some break out sessions. Hope you enjoy, and please pass it on!
2)I am applying for the Rotary Exchange program. That means, if my interview goes well tomorrow, I will be spending my senior year of high school overseas!
It's both exciting and nerve-racking. I don't want to disconnect myself from the grassroots movement, so I want to take a new perspective: In my exchange, I hope to make connections with other leaders in climate change and youth organization. It’s empowering to solidify this movement globally, and that's what I hope to do.
10.10.10, 350.org's Global Work Party, inspired events all over the world. It's incredible! There are youth organizers everywhere! We're not alone, and they're are photos to prove it!
3) The campaign to build a green roof on the new FHS building is going really well!
The planning team had our first meeting this past Wednesday, and a second is planned for this upcoming Tuesday. Dana Smith, FHS's new Energy Corps representative, is helping facilitate the meetings, and she even got us a field trip scheduled to the roof of the public library!
(The Fayetteville Public Library was the first in Arkansas to be recognized by the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). We also have solar panels and a green roof!)
That's all for now. Thank you always for your support!
Best of luck,
Serena
Showing posts with label Youth Summit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Youth Summit. Show all posts
20101030
Green Schools National Conference + The Youth Summit
It's been a crazy week. Somehow I managed to only go to school one day of it.
Tuesday night I arrived back home after making a trip to the "Silver City" or Minneapolis. I was there for the First Annual Green Schools National Conference. The Conference included a segment entitled the Youth Summit, a chance for high school students from across the state and nation to come together for a pow-wow of sorts and inspire each other.
As a part of the National Leadership Team, we planned and facilitated parts of the Youth Summit. Beyond and more importantly than that, however, we became a team. After some ridiculously brief amount of time, I and the 20 or so others became friends. I felt safe with them, and we bounced off each other's ideas in a way that made us much more than we could've been individually. And it was so refreshing! It was so incredibly comforting and inspiring and awesome to know that there are others like me -- other teenagers who value facing the tremendous problems ahead of us. Not only can we face these issues together, but we do it with enthusiasm, creativity, and boldness that enlivens my spirit even after a full day's work.
This wasn't exclusive to the leadership team. Because the Youth Summit was so interactive, we got to hear from leaders all over the state and country. They, too, had incredible input and ideas and goals. I felt that we were part of something larger than ourselves and the group -- we are part of a movement of youth that can and will change the world. As Siiri said in her speech to the general conference, "Just try to stop us." Because you can't. Nothing will stop us.
Admittedly, amidst all this inspiration and hope I was also discouraged. We didn't reach everyone in the Youth Summit. The main workshop, the Waking Up Experience, requires strength and patience and empathy. It's hard to feel all of that when surrounded by over 100 other high school students, especially when you already know some of them. Given, that may not be true for everyone, but there were enough snickers and uncomfortable glances that I was upset that people couldn't take it more seriously. The problems presented in Wake Up -- the incredible social injustices, the overwhelming failures of the generations before us -- are not easy to recognize. It's overwhelming, and it'd be much easier to replace the shades of the modern world. It would be easier to continue life in slumber, but we can't do that anymore. Because we have been educated on what must change, we are now accountable to creating that change. And while that responsibility is daunting, it is also empowering: it is possible.
When my plane landed in the XNA runway, I realized that I didn't want to be here. My friends, now halfway across the country, were the only ones who could appreciate the intensity of the previous few days. I was exhausted, and my exhilaration became self-pity. Here I am in Fayetteville, AR, and I feel like I'm reinventing the movement. I know it's not true, but I feel so empty after leaving the Silver City. The action plan I created during the Summit seems meek, lonely, and foolish. How could a weekend be simultaneously so inspiring and equally disenchanting?
If you are out there, reading this, support me, and want to be an agent of change, let me know! Leave a comment, shoot me an email, give me a call, or contact me in whatever way you choose. Being a leader isn't always easy, and we all need support now and again. I could use yours now.
All the best,
Serena
Tuesday night I arrived back home after making a trip to the "Silver City" or Minneapolis. I was there for the First Annual Green Schools National Conference. The Conference included a segment entitled the Youth Summit, a chance for high school students from across the state and nation to come together for a pow-wow of sorts and inspire each other.
As a part of the National Leadership Team, we planned and facilitated parts of the Youth Summit. Beyond and more importantly than that, however, we became a team. After some ridiculously brief amount of time, I and the 20 or so others became friends. I felt safe with them, and we bounced off each other's ideas in a way that made us much more than we could've been individually. And it was so refreshing! It was so incredibly comforting and inspiring and awesome to know that there are others like me -- other teenagers who value facing the tremendous problems ahead of us. Not only can we face these issues together, but we do it with enthusiasm, creativity, and boldness that enlivens my spirit even after a full day's work.
This wasn't exclusive to the leadership team. Because the Youth Summit was so interactive, we got to hear from leaders all over the state and country. They, too, had incredible input and ideas and goals. I felt that we were part of something larger than ourselves and the group -- we are part of a movement of youth that can and will change the world. As Siiri said in her speech to the general conference, "Just try to stop us." Because you can't. Nothing will stop us.
Admittedly, amidst all this inspiration and hope I was also discouraged. We didn't reach everyone in the Youth Summit. The main workshop, the Waking Up Experience, requires strength and patience and empathy. It's hard to feel all of that when surrounded by over 100 other high school students, especially when you already know some of them. Given, that may not be true for everyone, but there were enough snickers and uncomfortable glances that I was upset that people couldn't take it more seriously. The problems presented in Wake Up -- the incredible social injustices, the overwhelming failures of the generations before us -- are not easy to recognize. It's overwhelming, and it'd be much easier to replace the shades of the modern world. It would be easier to continue life in slumber, but we can't do that anymore. Because we have been educated on what must change, we are now accountable to creating that change. And while that responsibility is daunting, it is also empowering: it is possible.
When my plane landed in the XNA runway, I realized that I didn't want to be here. My friends, now halfway across the country, were the only ones who could appreciate the intensity of the previous few days. I was exhausted, and my exhilaration became self-pity. Here I am in Fayetteville, AR, and I feel like I'm reinventing the movement. I know it's not true, but I feel so empty after leaving the Silver City. The action plan I created during the Summit seems meek, lonely, and foolish. How could a weekend be simultaneously so inspiring and equally disenchanting?
If you are out there, reading this, support me, and want to be an agent of change, let me know! Leave a comment, shoot me an email, give me a call, or contact me in whatever way you choose. Being a leader isn't always easy, and we all need support now and again. I could use yours now.
All the best,
Serena
20101026
Crazy exhausted after a crazy awesome weekend
Hello friends!
While I speak to you all, this post is a special shout-out to my friends from the leadership team this weekend. After planning, facilitating, and participating in the Youth Summit (more to come, ahh!), we gave a presentation to the general Green Schools National Conference. We were presenting to our elders, so we wanted to come off as both professional and passionate about the movement.
This is the initial brainstorm regarding the National Leadership Team, what we did, and how more students can be involved. Yay to Elea for working with me, and maybe she can post the final speech?
LEADERSHIP TEAM:
ask Ethan about application process/ team characteristics
speak?
-everyone needs to do it!!!!
-we ahd totoo msososo muicfuffnfufnfufnf!!!!!
-you!! come!
-application through summit website
-(Ethan?) ....National Leadership Team
-Next year you should do it, really easy to apply
-we're all leaders, you can be on the other end
-gateway to trust
-Within 24 hrs., we built a TEAM!
-Next year, you can be a part of this team (have anyone in mind? encourage them to come!)
- Introduction (green schools youth summit??)
-application process
-group success what we did
-we are all leaders
- leading to the wake up
I am delusional from a very long, very exciting weekend. (To prove this, the lights on the ground from the plane seemed to be spelling (jibberish) to me. "Fight, jest, FOF.") I have much more to say about this weekend, the team, and the cities, but for now I am headed straight for bed.
Lots of love to all you folks readin', especially my friends in Minnesota, Maryland, California, Wisconsin, New York, and Iowa. I hope you all got home safely.
Best!andbest and best of all~!!!
-Serena
P.S. And boy are those photos nice...
While I speak to you all, this post is a special shout-out to my friends from the leadership team this weekend. After planning, facilitating, and participating in the Youth Summit (more to come, ahh!), we gave a presentation to the general Green Schools National Conference. We were presenting to our elders, so we wanted to come off as both professional and passionate about the movement.
This is the initial brainstorm regarding the National Leadership Team, what we did, and how more students can be involved. Yay to Elea for working with me, and maybe she can post the final speech?
LEADERSHIP TEAM:
ask Ethan about application process/ team characteristics
speak?
-everyone needs to do it!!!!
-we ahd totoo msososo muicfuffnfufnfufnf!!!!!
-you!! come!
-application through summit website
-(Ethan?) ....National Leadership Team
-Next year you should do it, really easy to apply
-we're all leaders, you can be on the other end
-gateway to trust
-Within 24 hrs., we built a TEAM!
-Next year, you can be a part of this team (have anyone in mind? encourage them to come!)
- Introduction (green schools youth summit??)
-application process
-group success what we did
-we are all leaders
- leading to the wake up
I am delusional from a very long, very exciting weekend. (To prove this, the lights on the ground from the plane seemed to be spelling (jibberish) to me. "Fight, jest, FOF.") I have much more to say about this weekend, the team, and the cities, but for now I am headed straight for bed.
Lots of love to all you folks readin', especially my friends in Minnesota, Maryland, California, Wisconsin, New York, and Iowa. I hope you all got home safely.
Best!andbest and best of all~!!!
-Serena
P.S. And boy are those photos nice...
20101024
Operation Minnesota
Hello friends!
I am typing from my brother's macbook in my cousin's house outside of Minneapolis. I am here for the Green Schools National Youth Summit, which starts tomorrow. I'm so excited!
I arrived last night around 8:45, and I made a point to sit on the left side of the plane to see the sunset. It was glorious! I wish the earth were molded like clouds, or perhaps I wish I could see the earth in all its expansiveness. For a while the plane sat between layers of clouds, so everything around us was highlighted in the dying golden light. Magenta, golden, brilliant clouds. There was a darker cumulonimbus fit for Zeus. Amazing I can be so high up above it all; I'm sure our ancestors would think it impossible.
Later, after the sunset, I began reading the training packet for The Waking Up Experience, which will be a section of the conference on Monday. As part of the National Leadership Team, we will be facilitating Wake Up, which I'm very much looking forward to. One of its parts is about looking to future generations for support amidst the epic systematic problems that we face. I hope that our children's children will be living in a safe, sustainable, thriving world, and on that hope we may act to create change.
Right now my second cousins, Maddox and Finn, are "tickling" my brother Ben on the couch. (I quote that because they are really jumping on him and screaming.) Maddox is dressed up as Daphne from Scooby Doo for a costume party in the neighborhood, and Ben and I are going to go to dinner and a movie with Monica later. I can't stay up too late, though, because I've a busy day tomorrow.
In the morning, Monica and I are going to attend a portion of the Northland Bioneers Conference at Macalaster College. Timothy, a friend I met at August Gathering and one of the founders of Grand Aspirations (the program in which Summer of Solutions is based), will be talking about our moment of choice in this rapidly deteriorating society. I heard a speech similar to this one in August, but I want to share with Monica more of what I've been working on in the past few months. (For those of you who have just started following The Paper Year and my project, Summer of Solutions that sparked my activism and Green Food Solutions -- learn more about it here.)
It's getting a little hectic, so that's all for now. Hopefully one of the people on the team will bring a laptop and let me borrow it for more updates. Thank you all for your support and kindness. I am able to pursue this incredible opportunity because of your consideration, interest, and donations. Please come back for more updates on my project (or, to make it easier on you, just follow me on Blogger or through Google!).
Thanks always!
Best,
Serena
P.S. I brought the camera but forgot the card, so you'll have to be patient for photos. (They're worth it!)
I am typing from my brother's macbook in my cousin's house outside of Minneapolis. I am here for the Green Schools National Youth Summit, which starts tomorrow. I'm so excited!
I arrived last night around 8:45, and I made a point to sit on the left side of the plane to see the sunset. It was glorious! I wish the earth were molded like clouds, or perhaps I wish I could see the earth in all its expansiveness. For a while the plane sat between layers of clouds, so everything around us was highlighted in the dying golden light. Magenta, golden, brilliant clouds. There was a darker cumulonimbus fit for Zeus. Amazing I can be so high up above it all; I'm sure our ancestors would think it impossible.
Later, after the sunset, I began reading the training packet for The Waking Up Experience, which will be a section of the conference on Monday. As part of the National Leadership Team, we will be facilitating Wake Up, which I'm very much looking forward to. One of its parts is about looking to future generations for support amidst the epic systematic problems that we face. I hope that our children's children will be living in a safe, sustainable, thriving world, and on that hope we may act to create change.
Right now my second cousins, Maddox and Finn, are "tickling" my brother Ben on the couch. (I quote that because they are really jumping on him and screaming.) Maddox is dressed up as Daphne from Scooby Doo for a costume party in the neighborhood, and Ben and I are going to go to dinner and a movie with Monica later. I can't stay up too late, though, because I've a busy day tomorrow.
In the morning, Monica and I are going to attend a portion of the Northland Bioneers Conference at Macalaster College. Timothy, a friend I met at August Gathering and one of the founders of Grand Aspirations (the program in which Summer of Solutions is based), will be talking about our moment of choice in this rapidly deteriorating society. I heard a speech similar to this one in August, but I want to share with Monica more of what I've been working on in the past few months. (For those of you who have just started following The Paper Year and my project, Summer of Solutions that sparked my activism and Green Food Solutions -- learn more about it here.)
It's getting a little hectic, so that's all for now. Hopefully one of the people on the team will bring a laptop and let me borrow it for more updates. Thank you all for your support and kindness. I am able to pursue this incredible opportunity because of your consideration, interest, and donations. Please come back for more updates on my project (or, to make it easier on you, just follow me on Blogger or through Google!).
Thanks always!
Best,
Serena
P.S. I brought the camera but forgot the card, so you'll have to be patient for photos. (They're worth it!)
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