Reaching out to neighbors to pitch in on a local beach clean up is a wonderful way to make a difference and build community. But what about when we want to work on larger, regional issues? In this session we discussed these questions:
- How can we generate widespread support for a campaign?
- How do we empower everyday citizens to get involved in state legislation?
- How do we build a diverse and engaged coalition to work towards a common goal?
Special guests Marcella Buser, UO Campus Organizer for OSPIRG Students and Ashley Audycki, Field Organizer for Rogue Climate, joined us to share their insights. 5th grade teacher Olivia Schroeder offered her reflections on working with young activists. To watch the full recording of the live meeting, scroll to the bottom of the screen. Read below for highlights and key takeaways from this inspiring session. And check out this tool for Building Diverse Community Based Coalitions developed by The Praxis Project.
Notes from Marcella:
Her role coaching students to be activists and promoting civic engagement stems from own her experience as a student. She had never done any activist work and "didn't even really know what it was." But she found a summer job canvassing and the work clicked with her. It was full of purpose yet fun.
She currently focuses on OSPIRG chapters at University of Oregon, Lane Community College, and Southern Oregon University, engaging with students who may also be first time activists. When working on a statewide campaign to ban polystyrene, they collected thousands of petitions, held musical events, wrote letters to senators, and built support from flagship schools around the state. Their colorful efforts were covered in the news. Unfortunately, that bill did not get passed, but that did not mean they were going to stop.
Generating Local Support to Create Statewide Momentum: OSPIRG decided to focus more locally on city-wide bans as a means to build momentum for statewide support. The chapter created easy ways to get involved, such as river clean ups. They worked with student government and testified at a city council multiple times, often with their giant turtle mascot. Their appearances at city council proved to be very memorable, with large groups, costumes, and well orchestrated testimony. They found it was very valuable to show that the younger generation cared and was willing to work for their beliefs. Ultimately their efforts paid off and the Eugene City Council passed ban unanimously. Other cities made similar efforts and a third of Oregonians are now living foam free. OSPIRG is currently re-strategizing to build on this momentum, including working on county-wide level campaigns.
On Canvassing: Marcella thinks canvassing is one of the best ways to build campaigns. By knocking on people's doors, you are able to connect, educate and potentially recruit. Depending on their time, people may respond by agreeing to sign petitions, donate, or campaign themselves. She agrees that it is challenging at times, but also incredibly rewarding. Many people she talks to care deeply about the issue, but don't know what to do! They need the exact guidance that her team can give. Michaela recalls that during her first summer canvassing about the statewide Extended Polystyrene ban, she spent most of her time educating people on what that material is and why it is a problem. By her second summer, she could see a societal shift as so many more people knew about EPS and were ready to take action. She noted how cool it was to witness this mass education.
Tips for Effective Canvassing: Wear your heart on your sleeve. Get to know people at the door. People will get excited if they see that you care. It can be easy to get discouraged if people don't care or don't have time, but it's more important to focus on those who do care and want to get involved.
Tips for Recruiting Students: Handing out flyers and making class announcements are good ways to get the word out. Hosting a bigger, fun events really draws students in. When OSPIRG was working on saving bees, they held a big concert with local bands and free honey sticks. A lot of folks attended, were excited, and wanted to get involved. Bigger events draw in people. And also, just asking people all the time, even if you don't think they're interested. You'd be surprised at who gets involved! Free food always helps...
Empowering Students: All campaigns are student run, and OSPIRG staff serve as advisors. This gives students the autonomy and experience to make the changes they want to see.
Tips for Communication: Try using texts, emails, phone calls, social media....All of the above! Phone calls are actually the most effective because then you can have real-time, personal conversation and be able to answer questions.
Thoughts on What Doesn't Work?: There are constantly ideas that don't quite work! Some things that she is excited about are not what students are excited about, and vice versa. Moving to remote organizing has proved a large learning curve. There is a lot of trial and error, but she keeps moving forward and learns from her experience.
Notes from Ashley
A Canadian fossil fuel corporation, Pembina, proposed to build a 230-mile long, 36-inch wide Pacific Connector fracked gas pipeline through southwestern Oregon to the proposed Jordan Cove liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal in Coos Bay, Oregon. For over a decade, stakeholders around the state have opposed this project. Through her work with Rogue Climate, Ashley Audycki has helped organize the diverse groups of landowners, commercial fishermen, foresters, Tribes, and environmentalists that have joined together in the fight.
Creating Space for Coalition: In the beginning, there were were many who were organizing, but there was not really a central space for that organizing. Rogue Climate helped create a space for a coalition. Every other week folks from all over the state would jump on organizing calls to check in about the project, coalition goals, and how to achieve them. A variety of people were coming together, both as individuals and with various group affiliations. The group thinks about who the people are that influence us and make decisions, then focus on making strategy.
Power in Numbers: In November 2019, about 1000 people showed up to Salem to make their voices heard. There was a strong collaboration between subcommittees all with the same goal: get Governor Brown's attention! There was a rally, there was singing....and there were arrests. The arrests were not intended, but were a known possibility and so jail support was well-organized. But the goal succeeded: the Governor issued a letter saying she would do everything possible to protect water quality.
Building Trust within Coalition: Maintaining integrity and developing trust within your group is crucial. People who attended the rally in Salem and practiced civil disobedience were educated about their rights ahead of time and knew that there was support for them. The education about how to speak to officers and what to expect made participants confident in their actions and gave them faith in Rogue Climate as an organizer.
Empower People for their Skills and Contributions: There were so many people helping: making art, posters. In this coalition, people volunteer for what they are skilled or interested in. Some will do social media kits, some organize security, some bring food, and so forth. (Never underestimate the importance of food!). See what people’s interests are and start assigning tasks from there. Some people started doing text banking to send mass texts, generating email blasts and focusing on social media, as well.
Accessibility and Inclusion: Ashley reminds us to always think about accessibility so that all voices have the opportunity to be heard: we must make sure that people who deserve to raise their voice are able to. Rogue Climate helped pay for travel for activists coming from farther afield. They also have a bilingual organizer that focuses on translating materials. Rogue Climate created a bilingual internship and hosted a big fiesta honoring cultural traditions of their volunteers while at same time doing political organizing.
Organizing During COVID: In last year, between COVID and issues in the courts, the organizing space has changed. They have relied on LTEs, webinars, and education to keep pushing the issue. They focus on how can we create change we want to see while working in a virtual world. And while the energy that occurs in a rally can be profound, the COVID era has shown us that virtual organizing can allow more inclusion and access for people from around the region.
Joining Forces with other Movements: A more recent shift has been connecting with other movements fights against fossil fuels. Rogue Climate and other groups have formed a regional coalition to stop fossil fuels called Power Past Fracked Gas. Ashley is excited to be working with people from Southern Oregon to Northern Washington. These groups support each other and learn from each other. She notes that wherever you live, there’s a way to get involved and support each other on regional basis.
Olivia Schroeder's Thoughts on Growing the Youth Movement
Back in 2019, 5th graders from the Sam Case Elementary Surfrider Club (aka: Oceanic Society of Turtle Lovers) became some of the most prominent advocates for a plastic bag ban in Newport. Their teacher and club advisor Olivia Schroeder wrote this letter discussing the power of their activism:
Children have a moral sincerity that is unprecedented. They understand complex issues and want their voices to be heard. They do not have the power to vote, but they can make an impact in various other ways. It is important to engage them, as they have an ability to reach through to adults with their heartfelt and profound ideas.
First of all, before any mention of plastic pollution or climate impacts, our ocean unit began generally; we learned about the layers, depths, and habitats of the sea. Using various books and multimedia tools, students researched and represented their learning with writing and artwork on the ocean habitat. We created a mural of the ocean and its inhabitants. Guest speakers came to our classroom, including a NOAA boat captain, ODFW fish biologist, marine resources program director, and Oregon field manager for Surfrider Foundation (Bri!). From there, we shifted towards ocean stewardship. We completed the YES (Youth Environmental Stewardship) unit, that included activities and discussions with Surfrider volunteers including a beach cleanup, data collection, and making nurdle necklaces. Then, using a curriculum for research based argument writing, students studied both sides of the plastic bag issue. They wrote essays arguing their chosen side. 8 students presented their essays at Newport City Council meetings, and all students visited other Sam Case Classrooms to share their research. This was meaningful work, but securely grounded in district-wide standards around speaking, listening, reading, writing, and ocean literacy. We began 'Zero Waste Fridays' in our classroom, attended Outdoor School at Camp Grey, and planned/carried out a Zero-Waste field trip, which included tide pooling at Yaquina Head, another beach cleanup at South Beach State Park, creating marine debris art, and staying overnight in the south beach yurts. We also attended RAP (Rise Above Plastics) day at the Oregon State Capitol, meeting and discussing plastic pollution with David Gomberg, Arnie Roblan, and Governor Kate Brown. Students were very active in their community, writing and discussing plastic pollution with the Newport News Times, Newport City Council, and Newport Mayor, as well as attending and presenting at the Earth Day celebration at the Newport Public Library.
"Where energy goes, attention flows." I watched my students notice and observe the far-reaching impact of plastics. They've connected with the story of 2 sisters who successfully banned many forms of plastic in Bali, and Greta Thunberg and the thousands of students world-wide taking part in Students Strike for Climate.
By starting a Surfrider Student Club at Sam Case Elementary, students felt like they were part of something (I see this right now with groups of kids starting beach clean-up groups. They post on IG, share their milestones, etc..) As they learned and taught others about plastic pollution, I watched students take enormous pride in the beaches, oceans, and waterways where they live. Our work took us outside of the classroom and into the real world. Their learning was not isolated, but spiraled back time and again as they were invited to create artwork on the topic, speak at public hearings and events, write opinion pieces to the newspaper, etc.
Olivia's Takeaways for Engaging Kids:
- Give it time. Approach a topic first, generally
- Make it about animals! Hehe
- Show them examples of other kids who have made a difference
- Give them an opportunity to share their (researched) voice. Their hard work in research, writing, speaking, science, and civic knowledge is rewarded when they are able to share it with the world.
- Provide a sense of togetherness. Help them feel that they are part of something (30 otters, oceanic society of turtle lovers, website)
- Coose an issue that has momentum...locally, nationally, globally
- Take them on a journey. It’s not an isolated event, it’s something that grows and develops over time
Final Thoughts on the Power of Youth Activism:
- When kids develop awareness at a young age, they become lifelong environmentalists.
- Kids tend to generate the most emotion and inspiration, even among hardened politicians!
- The parents actually get educated by their impassioned and aware kids!
- Media tends to write at a 5th grade level. In OR, something unique is that almost all of our Surfrider kid clubs are 5th graders, so they naturally communicate at that level!
- Rogue Climate recognizes that the movement can only grow with youth! They have created an internship program to train and empower youth in the world of environmental justice.