Conversations With Two Bay Area Youth Climate Activists
Oona Clark, who came to Bay Area Youth Climate Summit after working with Sunrise Movement and providing voter education on the Green New Deal, knows how inaccessible activism can feel. “I didn’t know where to start, and I think that’s one of the biggest obstacles for youth activists,” says the 17-year-old. She encourages budding activists to look inwards. “Find your niche. Figure out what you’re good at, what you want to do. There’s going to be a way you can apply it.”
Through the Summit, Clark is working to break down the barriers that keep youth from joining the movement. “Not everybody has to be Greta Thunberg. If you can only devote one hour a week that’s fine. There’s so many people behind each power activist—and you can be one of those people,” she says.
For Clark, the importance of intersectionality in the climate movement is always top of mind. “I view the climate crisis as very important and that’s what I want to be directly involved in. But all these systemic issues like racism and sexism are connected, so wherever you are, whatever your passion is, it’s all important right now.”
After originally discovering the event on Instagram, Natalie Tam helped plan last year’s youth climate summit. While she may have connected online, Tam’s motivation to fight for the planet comes from her offline experiences. “I love to go to Ocean Beach and look at the water and the Marin Headlands, and think about how beautiful our planet is, and the fact that we only have one home.”
As a youth activist, Tam feels heard and supported within her school by teachers and administrators, but has observed that many adults resist change because they find it uncomfortable.
She has learned that the best way to encourage people to adopt more sustainable lifestyles is to make alternatives approachable. “A lot of people think it’s out of their control, like I’m just one person and I don’t matter. But really there is so much power in individual change, and you can use your actions—from what companies you support and what food you buy—to create another world.”
First published in RARA Review, April 2021.
Other Recent Posts
Citizen Methane
Methane, a potent greenhouse gas, leaks from abandoned wells across the country. Curtis Shuck has been finding them by hand, well by well. But finding the leaks is where satellites and citizens come in.
Imprisoned with Climate Change
Climate change has a disproportionate impact on incarcerated Americans. Juan Moreno Haines, one of 2.3 million prisoners in the US, describes his experience.
Artists Circle Confronts Climate Displacement and Just Recovery
The climate crisis in driving the displacement of people around the world. In the midst of the pandemic, an artists circle began developing new approaches to the issue.
Future-Proof Homes?
Oona Khan dreams about her home of the future, after losing her Malibu retreat to fire. Caught in a quagmire of legal battles with Southern California Edison, and surging construction costs, Khan is still waiting to start construction.
The Case for Climate Castles
As climate change throws more extreme events at us, isn’t it time to think bigger, bolder, further ahead? Six young architects draw climate-resilient castles.
Looking for Justice at the Nexus of Housing and Climate Policy
How housing is built and who it is built for are not only equity questions, but also climate mitigation questions. When people can afford to live near their jobs, their emissions from commuting go down.
Bittersweet Beach Outing to See King Tide
On a clear morning in January, a group of tide worshippers gathered at the Santa Monica Pier to “celebrate the ocean and build our climate community,” said Laurene von Klan.
Safer at School from Wildfire Smoke?
Research confirms the drastic impacts wildfire smoke has had on school learning. But 16 East Bay schools now have updated air filters and more actions are in the pipeline statewide.
