PowerShiftNY: And every generation that comes after us. Interview with Organizer Alyssa Tsuchiya - by Willi Paul

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PowerShiftNY.com: And every generation that comes after us.

Hi Willi, Mahalo for your patience. Answers are pasted below. Power Shift NY logo is attached. Thanks for featuring our network!

I'm a undergrad at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY studying the science of natural and environmental systems and environmental economics. I'm active in two environmental groups on campus, KyotoNOW! and the Sustainability Hub.

This past spring I was part of the Central NY delegation to the Powershift '09 climate summit in Washington, DC. Over 12,000 youth and young adults attended, and the experience was inspirational to say the least. The next step in this national campaign for strong climate action is localized efforts.

Power Shift NY came together this summer through the efforts of a handful of dedicated college students. Through outreach, we now have nearly 50 members -- students and young adults -- from all over New York state. We are a not-for-profit volunteer-driven network dedicated to uniting the diverse movement of New York youth and student leaders advocating for sustainable and equitable future. We're currently planning a spring conference in upstate NY, in line with the eleven regional Power Shift summits that have already been held around the country. This conference will bring together youth leaders to learn from each other, experts, and to work collectively on a local issue.

I'm part of a state environmental network called Powershift New York. If you aren't familiar with Powershift, it's a campaign led by young people concerned with climate change and other environmental and social issues. Last year there was a national summit of 12,000+ youth in DC, and now our group is trying to localize the movement to central NY. At some point this Spring, we're going to hold a conference in upstate NY with workshops and lectures for everyone to share what they are doing and learn from each other. Students, faculty, and community members from several upstate schools and towns are getting involved, and I'd love to see Cornell/Ithaca contribute.

If you're interested in presenting or helping plan the conference, please let me know. Also, here's a google doc of possible panel topics - feel free to look it over and add to it.

What are the potential local issues for the NY spring conference? What makes a “good” issue or workshop?

For our summit, we’re looking at putting together three types of panels: “tools for activism” (ex. new media, time banking, maximizing leadership), “Upstate NY sustainability efforts” (ex. Climate action plans, the Back to the Tap campaign) and educational panels on more general issues (ex. Green architecture, green business). We’ll be discussing issues that are local but can be related to a worldwide problem, so that everyone feels like they can become personally involved. We want these presentations to inspire our attendees to take action beyond the conference in their own communities.

For instance, we’re tentatively planning a non-violent protest of the Allegheny oil drilling on the first day of the conference at the US Energy Development Corporation’s headquarters, which is right next to where we’re most likely holding the conference (the University of Buffalo campus). We’re concerned about state and national park land use around the country, and the environmental damage caused by oil extraction and use.

How does PowerShiftNY define localization?

Power Shift follows the concept of “local-global, global-local.” We see localization as the ability to connect local and direct issues into national/international issues, and also as the ability to address larger issues with local efforts.

What are the underlying values and principles in the PowerShift movement?

Our aim is to promote a sustainable and equitable future in New York, and elsewhere. This means balanced social, environmental, and economic concerns, and being able to meet the needs of this generation without negatively impacting future generations. Power Shift is also about being inclusive of diverse backgrounds and views, and empowering youth to influence decisions that will impact our future.

Is sustainability like a religion?

This is a tricky question, and its answer depends on how one defines religion. The sustainability movement is science-based, not faith-based as more familiar religions are. It’s a little upsetting to see people relegated as “climate change believers” or “climate change skeptics;” this is a frustrating distraction from the real, impending problems of environmental degradation. The scientific uncertainty associated with climate change isn’t a question of “yes, this is happening” or “no, this isn’t happening,” it’s more a range of how destructive its effects will be (spanning from “bad” to “really, really, really bad”). In the sense that sustainability has underlying principles, it could perhaps be compared to a religion, but it’s definitely not dogmatic like many religions are.

Is this just a college / dorm thing? Are you attracting others,… urban folks? How do you define “youth?”

The Power Shift movement is definitely not just a “college/dorm thing”! Although our core group is primarily college students, we’ve done heavy outreach to university faculty, various community organizations, and younger kids. Our network is open to all – we encourage any interested persons to join. If you’re not located in New York state, you can also join the national Power Shift movement, or other various regional Power Shift groups. We define “youth” as the generation that will have to deal with the consequences of the lifestyles we’re leading now. This includes our generation, as well as every generation that comes after us.

Is zero waste gaining momentum on campuses in your view? Any examples?

Cornell is definitely making improvements to be more sustainable. Most of our on-campus eateries now offer compostable cutlery and post-consumer composting, and our last Slope Day (end of year festival) featured only products that were compostable/recyclable. There are educational efforts to increase recycling in dorms, and even those that live off campus have incentives to be less wasteful because of Ithaca’s trash-tag policy and ability to recycle most types of materials.

What symbols, songs and stories are you using / creating for the green world?

In advocating for the environment, we’re going back to our roots and not forgetting nature, and we all also have our own unique stories of how/why we got involved. Collectively, the Power Shift NY network aims to showcase the power of youth in creating our own future.

What are you doing about the failure of COP15?

The failure of COP15 shows us how far we have to go, but it also gives us a chance to mobilize more numbers. At the end of the day though, all the COP15 delegates have to go back to their respective countries to implement national climate action plans anyway, so by acting on a local level, we’ll also affect global affairs. “Think globally, act locally.”

How can the average citizen get results on a global climate change policy?

Grassroots power, it’s the best thing we have! Not everyone can be a delegate, but every US citizen has several Congressional representatives to contact, and community organizations take action with.

Connections –

Alyssa Tsuchiya, Organizer
PowerShift NY
Cornell University 2012
SNES | Environmental Economics
ayt24 at cornell dot edu