Dylan Amlin, a student at Roosevelt University and co-chair of the Chicago Youth Climate Coalition, has been working to expand on the work already done and get more people involved. Along with members of the Oak Park and River Forest area, Dylan was one of the hundreds who gathered outside outside the Chicago Hilton during Obama’s visit last month as a reminder that that the president’s decision on the Keystone XL Pipeline could determine the fate of our climate and our future. Read more about that rally here.
The current actions are modeled after the successful South African divestment movement, and CYCC is helping to shift power to our universities, congregations, and other communities in the face of political silence on climate change. "I've found divestment to be a powerful way to bring attention to climate change as an urgent and moral issue," says Amlin, "it sends the message that if it's wrong to wreck the planet, it's wrong to profit from that wreckage." Divestment across the nation has been getting real attention, a recent NYTimes article about Obama's nod to the divestment movement is evidence of that.
This meeting will begin to expand the divestment movement to other schools, congregations, and community organizations in Chicago. The training will include spaces for networking, learning how to make the connection between on- and off-campus work, and creatively discussing next steps for the newly-built coalition. When all the students, congregations, and other community organizations come together, we can transform the climate justice movement!