Key Partners

Additional Partners

Desired outcomes for YEA! MN youth participants include:

• Climate change literacy from an interdisciplinary and factual perspective
• Sense of empowerment and belief in one's ability to affect change
• Passion for continued engagement on climate change and the environment
• Wider network of peers with which to collaborate
• Wider pool a resources to draw from to support continued engagement

YEA! MN student participates in letter writing campaign in support of Clean Air Act legislation	Mahtomedi High School students work with community leaders to raise the Zephyr Wind Turbine on campus

The YEA! MN program structure, designed to support hands-on leadership training through student-led facilitation and peer mentorship, includes the following:

• A Youth Steering Committee with students representing a variety of schools across the Metro
• Two student chairs voted in every school year by their peers
• Four large meetings, planned and facilitated by the Steering Committee, held at different high school locations across the Twin Cities, targeting high school youth, focused on a specific theme. Examples include:
  • Climate Change Basics
  • Climate Policy and Youth Engagement
  • Environmental Justice and Global Connections
  • Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Solutions
• Opportunities to engage in other happenings throughout the year (i.e. annual Earth Day and Lobby Day events)

High school students gather to share strategies on youth-led action projects	YEA! MN Steering Committee members table at the 350.org 'Get to Work Day' in Minneapolis

WSF understands youth empowerment to include access to both relevant and tangible resources and opportunities for experiential learning through authentic student leadership. The YEA! MN program provides the following resources available to all participating schools and student leaders:

• Mentorship from peers and qualified adults in the environmental field
• Project Resources for student environmental clubs including educational content, fundraising opportunities and contacts for potential speakers
• Access to policy makers, legislative briefings, lobby days, and in-district meetings
• Youth leadership development through dynamic trainings and conferences
• Opportunities to participate in action on climate change beyond the high school campus

YEA! MN High School junior lobbies MN Senator Paulson in Washington DC on behalf of climate legislation	Edina High School students celebrate funding for their recycling initiative

A core program of the Will Steger Foundation, YEA! MN supports a network of high school environmental clubs working together across the Twin Cities Metro Area to empower student leadership on climate change solutions at home, at school, and in the wider community. The YEA! MN network includes 25+ public, private and charter high schools from a cross-section of urban and suburban districts.

Key Partners

Learn More about other areas: Midwest • National • International • Back to Emerging Leaders Overview 

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Working today for a greener tomorrow.

By Ethan Buckner, Age 17

Protecting and nurturing our fragile earth is a value that has always seemed to be entrenched in my life. As an energetic toddler, I was unable to comprehend concepts of endangered species, climate change, or ozone depletion. I was, however, infuriated if a playmate should dare to litter the masticated remains of a lollipop. I suppose that on some level I could always understand the splendor of nature, the intricacy of life and the disturbed emotions I experienced when someone attempted to harm it. Now cognizant of much more pressing environmental issues than minced candy wrappers scattered across the playground (although I have terrorized litterers to this day), my interest in environmental activism has deeply intensified, and I have come to realize the absolute urgency of action!

This year, I decided to direct my passion towards a purpose. Becoming president of Hopkins High School Earth Club enabled me the opportunity to help lead our school down a “greener” path. At the beginning of the year, our club had four active members and did not hold much clout in the student body. Five months later, through hard work and a commitment to action, we now have forty-plus active members! As part of my senior coursework, I have initiated an independent study project to pursue a more environmentally conscious and active school district. Through research and collaboration with non-profit organizations, alternative energy providers and the school administration, I have made significant progress on this project, which encompasses a two-part proposal. The first initiative is the construction of a mid-sized wind turbine and a solar power demonstration on the school grounds. The second outlines future implementation of a district-wide green policy to pave the way for future action.

In addition to the projects I am working on at my high school, I have helped to found a new organization entitled Youth Environmental Activists Minnesota. This unique youth-led organization is comprised of impassioned high school teens from across the state of Minnesota with the mission of advocating an environmentally sustainable state. Currently, we are in the very early stages of building a foundation for this group. Regardless, the response we have received from teens across the state has been both inspiring and exciting! This type of organization is, at least to my knowledge, unprecedented. From this experience, I have learned that when faced with an issue as massive as climate change it is important to be willing to take risks and try something unexpected! Through flexibility, optimism, a willingness to explore new ideas and the motivation to pursue new opportunities, I have achieved much more success as a youth activist than I ever expected.

The University of Minnesota, Morris is taking major strides to acheive energy self-sufficiency

By Troy Goodnough

The University of Minnesota, Morris is taking major strides to acheive energy self-sufficiency.

I am the Sustainability Coordinator at the University of Minnesota, Morris (UMM) and I work with students everyday here at UMM. I am submitting this on behalf of the UMM community.

We have a very engaged group of students, faculty and staff at UMM. Many of us are working hard to get the word out about how we can lead more responsible, sustainable, and respectful lives. We are also concerned about the pace of climate change and how it will affect humans, wildlife, and the ecological systems we depend on. UMM is taking action. We now get about half of our electricity from a wind turbine just down the street. We are building a new heating system that will turn biomass (corn stove, wood chips, straw, etc.) into heat and then to steam, which will heat and cool our campus. We are vigorously pursuing a goal of energy self-sufficiency by 2010.

We have plans to add more wind turbines and a steam turbine that will work with the biomass heating plant. Students have been leading the way at UMM. Students have a lot of power. Their energy, enthusiasm, creativity and interest are crucial. Students have used their creativity at UMM to highlight the need to move away from fossil fuel by building a giant "smog box" that looks like a big coal plant. They took videos asking people to talk about their feelings about climate change and then they sent the video to decision makers. They have used their energy to do a lot of the homework needed to start changing the system. We need people who have good information to lead the charge. Knowledge is power. And students are really great at knowing how to get the word out. Students are technically savvy and aren't afraid of using new technology to communicate. If change is going to happen, it is because students are going to lead the way.

Today's students have been exposed to the many ecological challenges we face since they have been in school. They know that many of these challenges have not been taken seriously, and they know that they are going to be living with the consequences if action is not immediate. So, let's keep talking, sharing, investigating, and acting together! We need to heed the evidence and respond to it. And we need to keep asking the tough questions and start taking some risks, because business as usual is not going to work.

By Robert Smith, Age 19 and Kristin Johnson, Age 20

St. Olaf Garden Research and Organic Works

Two St. Olaf students help take charge of food production.

Kristin Johnson and I are co-operators of STOGROW. STOGROW, or St. Olaf Garden Research and Organic Works, is an entirely student run organic farm on the St. Olaf College campus in Northfield MN. The purpose of STOGROW is to increase the overall sustainability of St. Olaf by growing food for use in the cafeteria on St. Olaf grounds, thereby reducing the greenhouse gases emitted in transporting food for the community to eat. STOGROW also works to provide opportunities for the St. Olaf community to reconnect with where their food comes from.

STOGROW was started in the summer of 2005 by Dayna Burtness and Dan Borek. Since then, the farm has been maintained by a number of other talented farmers, including Andrew Moe and Olivia Bailey. Last year (2007) Dayna Burtness and Andrew Moe taught Kristin Johnson and me everything we needed to know in order to take the lead. This year it will be our job to teach two or three new farmers.

Because STOGROW sells to a large cafeteria, we focus on growing a sizable amount of just a few types of vegetables. A few of our biggest crops are: tomatoes, squash, zucchini, and peppers. We also grow smaller amounts of salad mixes, carrots, raspberries, cucumbers, and eggplant. Last year STOGROW produced $20,165.00 worth of fresh, organic vegetables on less than one acre of the St. Olaf grounds. We also experimented with integrating animals into the system. By rotating sheep and chickens around the edge of the farm we kept weeds down and soil quality up.

In the past few years STOGROW has had much success thanks to the support of Bon Appétit. Chef Peter Abrahamson and General Manager Katie McKenna of Bon Appétit buy 100% of what STOGROW produces for use in the St. Olaf cafeteria. This partnership is congruent with the “green” ideals of both Bon Appétit and St. Olaf College.

STOGROW also receives immeasurable support from the St. Olaf student body. Students are interested to hear what we are doing. Seeing students wearing STOGROW t-shirts around campus, or coming down to the farm to volunteer, shows that the colleges’ ideals truly reflect the ideals of the student body. This opportunity to share what we’ve accomplished with others has been one of the most gratifying experiences I’ve had with STOGROW.

If you would like to learn more about STOGROW you can check out our blog at http://stogrow.blogspot.com/

By Callie Runestad, Age 22

Seven students from Winona State University, including myself, traveled to the nation’s capital for Power Shift, the first ever youth summit on climate change. After hearing inspiring speakers, attending workshops describing tangible solutions, and sharing ideas with universities across the nation, it became clear to us that solving the climate crisis is not only an urgent challenge to our generation but future generations as well.

Upon returning from Power Shift, we held a debriefing meeting in order to brainstorm how we could bring the energy and ideas from the conference to our campus. We found that our campus’ structure was the inverse of most other universities. Our faculty and administration were leading the movement against climate change rather than the students—our president signed the Presidential Climate Commitment, a new director of sustainability was hired, committees were formed, and faculty were designing classes around sustainability. Their involvement is inspiring and fundamental yet our student involvement needs to be just as strong. True change can only occur if each person and group accepts responsibility and takes action.

Therefore, following Power Shift, we decided our primary goal was to educate students on the power of climate change and its role in their lives. We concluded the best way for that to be done was by creating a monthly or bi-monthly newsletter focusing on educating students. Thus, SEEDS, Students for Environmental Education and Developing Sustainability, was formed. In November we created our first issue and followed with a second in December. In the first two issues, we focused on Power Shift, changes occurring specifically on our campus, responsible consumerism, and educating students about the national Energy Bill. In the coming months, we hope to include articles by faculty, include the newsletter as an insert in our weekly campus newspaper, and create a SEEDS website that will act as a hub for national/local news and blog discussion concerning climate change for the campus community.

Our hope is that this newsletter and website will create a student culture that is not only concerned with climate change but also proactive in doing what they can to alter its effects. What makes the solution to this problem unlike any other global issue is that it requires cultural change, which includes individual and political decisions. As David Orr, professor at Oberlin College said, “No institutions in modern society are better equipped to catalyze the necessary transition to a sustainable world than universities.” We want to make this transition a reality by uniting our faculty and students in redefining the culture of our campus and the world.

By Mark Stonehill, Age 20

Mark Stonehill learned to eat locally and sustainably through his apprenticeship with a Community Supported Agriculture program.

Slowing global warming need not be heroic. The ultimate climate solutions are commonplace and common sense; I truly believe that the greatest difference will be made by ordinary citizens who care enough to act, not solely by politicians.

You and I, acting thoughtfully, collaboratively, and with due regard to those who came before us, will stabilize the climate for those yet to come—our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.

This summer I took action by carpooling to Montevideo, Minnesota to distinguish myself as a proud and committed locavore—a citizen who is engaged in the production of his or her own food, ensuring that it is not trucked hundreds or thousands of interstate miles before being eaten.

My apprenticeship at Easy Bean Farm, an organic family farm located on the Chippewa River of Southwestern Minnesota, confirmed that global climate solutions are found locally, and are at our fingertips. They are, quite literally, as simple and enjoyable as picking a ripe apple off your backyard apple tree.

During my summer on the farm, I became familiar with a whole new food system called Community Supported Agriculture. In a CSA, your groceries come directly from your farmer rather than through the supermarket. You pay for your vegetables all at once (or in installments) at the beginning of the growing season, and receive a share of farm fresh produce every week. Most CSA’s drop off the weekly boxes at a local community center or a volunteer’s back yard, but some deliver right to your door!

Instead of wondering where my food may have originated, this summer I put on a hat and grew it myself! It was extremely hard work to produce food for several hundred families, but it was one of the most empowering and transformative experiences of my life. I awoke before the sun nearly every morning to newly lain eggs. Instead of the clatter of the subway, the chipping barn swallows were the tune to my mornings.

I wouldn’t trade in my experience at Easy Bean for anything. The satisfaction of delivering a big box of fresh vegetables that I helped grow is well worth all the hard work spent growing them. It was truly inspiring to see community members’ commitment to locally grown food. People really do care about investing their time, money and interest in homegrown products.

Eating local food provides us the opportunity to rejuvenate the places in which we live, engage with our community, and cut emissions of greenhouse gases by reducing our dependence on fossil fuels. Choosing locally grown food, or, better yet, tending your own patch, makes a world of a difference when it comes to shrinking your personal carbon footprint.

What we eat is a very personal choice. That each and every one of us can use this choice as a way to slow global warming is, in my opinion, one of the most fundamental and direct ways to stabilize our climate and guarantee a healthy, stable, local food supply for future generations.

By Neely Crane-Smith, Age 23

Neely Crane-Smith, of the Minnesota Energy Challenge program, educates citizens about their impact on the environment and encourages them to make pledges to reduce their carbon footprints.

In “The Chance to Love Everything,” Mary Oliver describes camping in the woods when a beast comes in from the forest, pushing up against her tent at eye level. She’s terrified of what might be lurking outside, imagining glowing red eyes and a broad tongue. Yet, “not in faith and not in madness, but with the courage I thought my dream deserved,” she steps outside to greet this horrible visitor – to discover that what she feared most has disappeared. More than anything, we need courage to address climate change. The technology, legislation and ability to confront and slow global warming already exist. All we need to do is step outside and take action.

 

I didn’t used to think that small actions made a difference against such an immeasurable problem as global warming. Now I know that every action counts, that we all play a part in saving the world. I know this because it’s my job to educate and motivate others to use less energy and lessen their impact on the environment. I coordinate the Minnesota Energy Challenge program for the non-profit Center for Energy and Environment. The Challenge is a state-wide program that uses a web-based tool ( HYPERLINK "http://www.mnenergychallenge.org" www.mnenergychallenge.org) to educate Minnesota residents and businesses about their impact on the environment and make public pledges to reduce their carbon footprints (the amount of harmful carbon dioxide their household produces annually) through energy efficiency and conservation.

So, on any given day you can find me giving a presentation about compact fluorescent light bulbs to seniors, developing new materials in my office or talking to a congregation about carbon footprints. You may also find me at the state capitol or sitting at a booth at a local energy fair or training a neighborhood on practical solutions…you get the idea. Fighting climate change comes at all levels, from legislative to teaching kids that their actions are important. The best part of my job is getting into the field and talking to people about energy efficiency and conservation and how easy it is to instigate radical change.

As of the end of November, over 7,800 Minnesotans have taken the Minnesota Energy Challenge and pledged to avoid over 85.1 million pounds of carbon dioxide pollution annually. That’s the equivalent of taking more than 7,090 cars off the road for a year. That’s a real impact made by real people who are driving the speed limit, using energy efficient appliances and washing their clothes in cold water. I know that if we all work together, we can confront and defeat our fears about climate change. Personal action is incredibly important and I love having a job that is part of the solution.

The Youth Vision for a Sustainable Society

Students came together across the state of Minnesota to create a united vision document for a sustainable society, outlining a strategy for Minnesota to become a national leader in global warming solutions. This document was presented to 400 students, teachers, community members, and press at the Youth Forum for Global Warming Solutions on March 3, 2008, at the University of St Thomas in St Paul, MN. It will be used as a framework for a Midwest student vision document on global warming solutions, to be drafted this spring in conjunction with the Midwest Student Clean Energy Conference in Madison, WI, April 11-13.

Click Here to download the "Minnesota's New Energy Generation - the Youth Vision for a Sustainable Society"

Videos from the Forum:

Governor Tim Pawlenty (R-Minnesota) speaks at the Youth Forum on Global Warming Solutions held on March 3rd at University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. Click to Watch

Will Steger speaks at the Youth Forum on Global Warming Solutions held on March 3rd at University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. Click to Watch

Bridget Ulrich, University of Minnesota, President's Climate Commitment speaks at the Youth Forum on Global Warming Solutions held on March 3rd at University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. Click to Watch

Kai Bosworth, student, University of St. Thomas, gives his reaction to the Youth Forum on Global Warming held on March 3rd at University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. Click to Watch

Steve Lay, University of St. Thomas - Science and Technology speaks at the Youth Forum on Global Warming Solutions held on March 3rd at University of University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. Click to Watch

Timothy Denherder-St. Thomas Macalaster College - Student Reaction to Forum speaks at the Youth Forum on Global Warming Solutions held on March 3rd at University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. Click to Watch

Matt Kazinka, Macalaster College - Student Reaction to Forum speaks at the Youth Forum on Global Warming Solutions held on March 3rd at University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. Click to Watch

Madeline Kovacs, Macalaster College - Community Organizing speaks at the Youth Forum on Global Warming Solutions held on March 3rd at University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. Click to Watch

Matthew Abbot, U of MN, Morris - Rural Development/Renewables speaks at the Youth Forum on Global Warming Solutions held on March 3rd at University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. Click to Watch

Ethan Buckner, Hopkins High School, YEA Minnesota speaks at the Youth Forum on Global Warming Solutions held on March 3rd at University of St. Thomas, Minnesota. Click to Watch

High school activist groups across the state formed a coalition to organize sucessful youth-led environmental initiatives.

Youth Environmental Activists of Minnesota (YEA MN!) www.yeamn.org is a growing youth-led movement of twenty high school environmental clubs in the Twin Cities that will reach out to high schools state-wide in Minnesota in 2008. We have supported the schools to organize projects in recycling, wind turbines and educational events through monthly YEA MN! networking meetings of 30 to 200 students.

YEA! MN has been a tremendous success this year, not only for the shear number of students we have recruited, the diversity of schools represented and the model of student leadership, but also because we have been able to tie our students and the program into the wider youth climate movement.

YEA! MN has developed a formal mentorship program with TEAM Minnesota (Trans-Campus Energy Action Movement), a network of over 500 college students across the state of Minnesota. This has included facilitation trainings, conferences and shared events, including Focus the Nation, Earth day and the Governor's Forum with Tim Pawlenty and Will Steger.

This summer several members of the YEA! MN youth leadership board will attend the Sierra Student Coalition's Summer Training Program in St. Croix State Park. As next year rolls around, we plan to continue to expand our presence in Minnesota as an active and effective youth organization.

Watch the video below (or on YouTube) to learn more about YEA! MN.

By Nicholas Banovetz, Age 27

Nicholas Banovetz took his education and his passion for the environment to the workforce and the volunteer force.

I’m a nature guy – always have been. Much of my work at a Minneapolis public relations firm is about the environment; most notably, it involves energy efficiency in school facilities. But my job doesn’t stop when I leave work. My upbringing in Northern Minnesota among the leeches and pine needles has taught me that advocating for Mother Nature goes beyond a 9 to 5 job. That is, it is cool to help the environment.

At work, I represent a maker of energy-related equipment that controls the temperatures and air quality of school buildings. This has given me exposure to the green movement now sweeping through our country’s schools, and has enabled me to help my client build relationships with national associations for student councils, school boards, and science teachers. These connections let us interact directly with leaders in the education field so we can influence environmental issues. Through this work we are teaching student councils how to measure the amount of energy their school building is using, and in turn, how they can reduce their school’s energy consumption. We are contributing to energy efficiency curriculum by showing students how they can use cool light bulbs, recycling, and solar panels to be more energy efficient in the classroom. Finally, we are letting decision makers, such as school board members and principals, know how important it is to create green schools. I could easily leave this work on my desk at the end of the day. Instead, I offer my expertise to others because connecting with people and helping people connect with other people is what builds a movement; it empowers people to create change.

There are a number of ways that I share my expertise with the greater community. I connect with key players. For example, I introduced myself to Minnesota’s LEED for Schools Advocate (a U.S. Green Building Council representative), and offered to share my research and connections. I participate in a local effort with a national presence. I joined Mississippi Headwaters, the Minnesota chapter of the USGBC, and sit on the communications committee. I am writing the chapter’s news releases and updating its Web site copy. I help bridge social cause with policy. I located education and environment policy leaders in the Minnesota state legislature. Since connecting with them, I attended a recent house education committee meeting on green schools. I am now sharing research with those legislators and helping them connect with Minnesota’s LEED for Schools Advocate. I introduce green to unlikely audiences. For example, the Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. (where I volunteer) consulted me for green ideas. My suggestion to them: organize a meeting for community leaders to brainstorm ways the marathon can be more environmentally friendly. I have also floated the idea by Minnesota Public Radio to coordinate a program on what organizations and businesses can do to be greener. Now we’re talking about bridging events with issues and causes to get even more people engaged.

At the end of the day, I’m contributing to an effort by connecting key players and interested parties. Green is now a reality in our lives, but to establish sound practices, we must bring people together to collaborate – the policy makers, educators, students, media, businesses and advocacy groups.

 

A group of students at Macalester College are doing their part to curb the urban heat island in St. Paul by installing green roofs on campus buildings. The group is called Macalester Conservation and Renewable Energy Society, or MacCARES for short, and they are hoping their work will inspire others to get similar projects "growing" around the country. They wanted to undertake a project that makes a difference in energy conservation using a method that is both attractive and fun.

Green roofs combat the urban heat island by replacing heat-absorbing surface area such as tarred roofs with more reflective, lighter-colored flowering plants, which in turn sap up the excess carbon in the air. The extra layer of insulation provided by the growing medium also conserves warmth in the building underneath. These living roofs consist of four layers: a waterproof membrane, a barrier to keep plant roots from puncturing the ceiling below, a growing medium, and plants.

Mac sophomores Alese Colehour and Ellie Rogers first dreamed up the project when they attended a session organized by a group called Green Roofs for Healthy Cities . The organization provided them with not only step-by-step instructions, but a list of other organizations who'd already pulled off successful roofs of their own. These contacts provided valuable advice and know-how for the students. They also drew ideas and inspiration from a book, Planting Green Roofs and Living Walls by Nigel Dunnett and Noel Kingsbury.

Other resources that proved helpful were The Green Institute, Minneapolis City Hall, the Minneapolis Public Library, and a similar roof installed at Carleton College.

Once they had a well-laid plan, it was time for action. With the help of fellow MacCARES members -- first-year Rachel Brunner and sophomore Timothy Den Herder-Thomas -- the ambitious students then turned into full-scale project managers - creating a timeline, getting volunteers, coordinating deliveries of raw materials. Most importantly, they obtained permission (and some assistance) from the college's facilities management staff. They received material donations from these sources: Green Roof Blocks, Aloha Landscaping, Rosenquist Construction, American Hydrotech, and Plaisted Soil Company, as well as a grant from the P3 initiative of the EPA.

The pilot project was a 300-sq-ft. containerized roofing system installed over a passageway between two dorms, known around campus as the Fishbowl. After the successful completion of this project, they received a $10,000 grant from the EPA to install a 1300-square-foot green roof atop Kagin Commons. The second project is nearly complete - all that remains is to add the plants in the spring of '07. The building will be monitored over the course of several months to determine the energy savings, and the findings will be presented to the EPA, who will hopefully give them an even bigger grant of $75K to continue their efforts in campus greening.

By Liza Stoner, Age 14

14 year-old Liza Stoner delivered a petition to promote legislation supporting electric cars.

On July 21, 2008, 14 year-old Liza Stoner braked her bike at the steps of the U.S. Capitol. She had just concluded a 1,500 mile bike trek to raise awareness for climate change and to promote the potential for electric cars. In an effort to make a difference, this 8^th grade student of Lakes Waldorf School in Minneapolis biked an average of 40 miles per day for 32 days. On her “Ride for Renewal,” Stoner crossed nine states, accompanied by her mother, who biked along with her, and her father and brother, who rode alongside in a support vehicle.

 

Stoner was propelled to action by a documentary called Who Killed the Electric Car, a film that highlighted the continuous obstructions to the development of electric cars. "It made me really angry and I wanted to do something,” recalled Stoner, “so I decided to go on a bike ride."

When she arrived at the Capitol, she was greeted by Minnesota Senator Amy Klobachar, to whom she delivered a petition signed by 1,200 Minnesotans. The petition was aimed to promote legislation granting tax credits and other incentives to encourage manufacturing of electric vehicles in the U.S. Whether such legislation is passed in the near future or not, certainly Stoner’s bold adventure achieved her main goal of spreading awareness and support for electric cars.

My name is Alison Luedtke and I am a student at U of M studying Environmental Policy and Law. Global warming is a human rights issue, some are taking most and leaving little for the rest, and that is why I am doing what I do. I was prompted by a class project called ‘Having Voice’, where we were instructed to do a project that we could share with others beyond those in our class on an issue that was important to us. So I chose waste management. Every piece of trash I created I had to carry with me for two weeks. My intention was to open people's eyes to the growing issues with Minnesota's current waste management practices. Incinerating which releases tons of unhealthy toxins. Exporting to surrounding states which uses fossil fuels to transport and then dumps them in landfills where they release methane which is a greenhouse gas. I had my trash separated into compostables and trash. I also allowed myself to recycle. In the beginning I talked to my teaching assistant about my idea and she gave me helpful websites and suggestions on how to let others know what I was doing. In the beginning I made a Facebook group to get the word out. The hardest part of the experiment was finding places to keep my trash. A few people didn't support what I was doing, but for the most part I had a lot of support. In the end I had about one full trash bag that was not light.

I encourage you to spread awareness of the issues that are important to you, because passion isn’t something to be thrown away.

Contact info: Alison Luedtke This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it