Students 'resist, reform and recreate' at Climate Justice Summit

Youth and adults alike have come together this fall to show their support of a climate justice movement in North Carolina.

The North Carolina Climate Justice Summit came together for a second time this year over the weekend of November 21st. From Friday to Sunday, hundreds of supporters sat down to discuss the realities of climate change in the North Carolina.

This year was the second annual Summit put on by ACE, the Alliance for Climate Education. This alliance is a coalition of ten adults and 14 high schoolers from a diverse range of backgrounds.

For the second time, supporters made their way to the woods of North Carolina for the retreat. Last year over two hundred people attended and this year proved no different. Reservations for the event sold out by October 20th.

This year attendees sought to “reimagine, resist, reform and recreate” the discussion on climate change. The voices of people of color and those of a low socioeconomic level were particularly emphasized.

Any of the over 200 people that attended the summit at the Haw River State Park witnessed a variety of events and discussions over the weekend. The summit began with an elaborate opening ceremony, led by indigenous tribal leaders of North Carolina.

Seminars and presentations took up the rest of the weekend. Discussions on transportation, green jobs and economy, housing, water, energy, and health filled the conference rooms of the summit.

Reverend Yearwood Lennox of the Hip Hop Caucus was the keynote speaker of the event. Emphasizing the point at which environmental awareness and social justice converge, Reverend Lennox spoke with passion on the power of youth in today's world.

“This generation isn’t revolutionary, this generation is solutionary,” said Lennox.

Chapel Hill High School students have represented the district well in the past years. Four Chapel Hill students attended last year, two of whom were on the facilitating council.

Senior Emily Molina said, “I got involved in the movement because I think it's important. I think that global climate change is a really important issue that needs to be addressed now.”

In reference to the ways in which the summit directly influenced her life, Molina said, “Last year's summit really opened my eyes to all of the ways that climate change is affecting the people of North Carolina. I became more mindful of my actions and how they have a direct impact on the environment.”

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