Jade M. Algarín Corcino is a community organizer and agriculturalist from Vieques, Puerto Rico. Their work aims to address environmental injustice in frontline communities by empowering leaders to enact intentional, equitable change. Recognizing the scale and urgency of the moment, they emphasize connection, learning, and acting throughout their organizing and their leading of the No One is an Island coalition. Jade is guided by the principle of "they don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care" as they strive to ensure those most disenfranchised among us feel welcome in the spaces they create.

PROJECT

No One is an Island

No One is an Island is a community-driven coalition space building and furthering efforts that strive for a more environmentally just St. Croix.

Lauren is the founder of the Green Career Centre, where she prepares underrepresented youth for green careers. Over more than six years, Lauren has reached thousands of youth through developing environmental programs and sharing career development resources. Impressively, Lauren has secured more than $1.5 million dollars for BIPOC-led and impact-driven organizations which has financed the creation of scores of environmental events, dozens of green jobs, three community gardens and spaces for community organizing. Lauren has been recognized by Corporate Knights, The Starfish Canada, Metroland Media and several prominent politicians for her vital work.

Allison Begalman is the CEO of YEA! Impact, the co-founder of Young Entertainment Activists (YEA!), as well the co-founder and EP of the annual Hollywood Climate Summit. Along with creating USC School of Cinematic Arts' first-ever social impact screenwriting lecture "Call to Action: Writing Stories of Relevance and Social Impact", Allison is currently participating in the Social Justice Partners Los Angeles Systems Change Accelerator. Outside of social impact, Allison writes for television and film--having worked at companies like CAA and Annapurna Pictures, as well as on shows such as Sony TV's PREACHER and Hulu's MONSTERLAND.

PROJECT

Hollywood Climate Summit

YEA! Impact is a social impact agency that produces events, campaigns, and content rooted in the power of grassroots community organizing--with our top issue area of focus being environmental justice because we created the annual Hollywood Climate Summit which has grown into an international watering hole for entertainment professionals, activists, college students, scientists, and other environmental communicators.

Dr. Win Cowger is the Research Director at the Moore Institute for Plastic Pollution Research. Win is an internationally sought expert for his data analysis skills and has produced software and methodological standards that are highly utilized and cited by the plastic pollution research community. His disciplinary background is in Environmental Science where he studies the sources, transport, and fate of plastic pollution in the environment. Win’s primary objective with science is to identify solutions to plastic pollution and assess their effectiveness.

Dyson Chee is a youth activist living on the Hawaiian Island of Oʻahu. In 2018, Dyson founded Project O.C.E.A.N. Hawaii to take on single-use plastics, and since 2019 he has been serving as a director for the Hawaiʻi Youth Climate Coalition (HYCC), a youth-led, community advocacy organization dedicated to fighting for climate justice. Dyson is currently. at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, majoring in Interdisciplinary Studies with a focus in Communicology, Economics, and Political Science. In his free time Dyson loves playing tennis, drinking boba tea, and bodyboarding.

PROJECT

HYCC Club Network

The Club Network is a program of the Hawaiʻi Youth Climate Coalition (HYCC) that seeks to connect environmental and civic clubs across Hawaiʻi in order to work together and to mobilize youth to fight the climate crisis on a local level.

Serena Mendizabal (she/her) is a Cayuga Wolf Clan-Panamanian woman from the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory. Serena is a community-based researcher, grassroots organizer, and environmental advocate. Serena began her journey in climate justice and clean energy when she was 18 finding gaps in community consent for renewable energy projects and further explored what climate justice and a just transition can look like in a community of over 28,000 members. From then on, Serena has dedicated her life to Indigenous self-determination, climate justice, environmental health impacts, and clean energy transitions through studies, work, and extracurriculars. Serena is passionate about self-determined community development, action, and futures led by sovereign, healthy nations. Serena is the Just Transition Manager at Sacred Earth Solar, Co-Chair at SevenGen National Indigenous Youth Energy Council, Climate Action Strategy Co-Lead at Protect the Tract, and Course Collaborator for Connecting for Climate Change Action, as well as Board of Director at Student Energy.

Brayan Cruz (He/They) is located on the traditional lands of the Acjachemen people in Santa Ana, OC. As a migrant person, their work is driven by the preservation of culture through seeds and food. Their knowledge comes from their lived experiences as a working-class migrant person, their community, and their culture. Their land work is focused on urban gardening and restorative farming practices in their community. Where they actively support the development of food and seed sovereignty projects.They are driven by intergenerational healing and migrant justice initiatives. Their individual and collective work is part of a greater responsibility. A responsibility to care for the land, cultural knowledge and seeds for the next generations. As an undocumented person, they believe in the access to traditional food and cooking materials as a medium for holistic wellness.

Mackenzie Feldman is an environmental activist from Honolulu, Hawai'i. She is the Founder and Director of Re:wild Your Campus (formerly known as Herbicide-Free Campus), an organization that works with students and groundskeepers around the country to advocate for an end to the spraying of synthetic herbicides at schools and a transition to organic land management. Her campaign resulted in the entire University of California system going glyphosate-free, and Mackenzie worked with a coalition to get herbicides banned from every public school in the state of Hawai'i. Mackenzie received the 2019 Brower Youth Award for her work and is a 2022 Rachel Carson Council Fellow. She is also co-author, with her mother Kathy, of the book Groundbakers, which was published in Fall 2022.

PROJECT

Re:wild Your Campus

Re:wild Your Campus is a women-led and youth-run organization that trains students to bring a campaign to their campus to advocate for an elimination of synthetic herbicides and a transition to organic land care.

Jasmin’s work encompasses the areas of science communication, social justice, outreach, education and conservation. She cares deeply about protecting endangered and vulnerable marine species, particularly elasmobranchs. Jasmin is the President and CEO of Minorities in Shark Sciences (MISS), an organization dedicated to supporting women of color in shark sciences. She is excited to help open doors for more underrepresented minority students to join the exciting field of marine science.

PROJECT

ICONIC Oceans: Integrated, Coordinated, Open, Networked, Inclusive Conservation of our Oceans

The purpose of this project is to connect BIPOC folks around the world studying or participating in fisheries to share resources, data, and skills to better assess data-deficient fisheries and help promote and support sustainable ocean use in their local communities.

Tez Steinberg is an ocean explorer, entrepreneur, and keynote speaker on mindset, resilience and personal growth. As Chief Engine Officer of United World Challenge, Tez rowed a 7-meter boat across the Pacific Ocean by himself from California to Australia in 196 days over two expeditions that raised $77K in donations for scholarships for peace and $72K for river barriers to prevent ocean plastic. Named “One of the 50 Best Young Minds in the World” by the World Economic Forum, Tez has founded 4 nonprofits and is passionate about harnessing the power of business for positive change.Tez earned his MBA from London Business School and completed undergrad at the University of Oxford and Macalester College. Tez’s leadership has been recognized by some of the world's foremost organizations including The Explorers Club of New York, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, NEXUS Global, Summit Series, and the World Economic Forum.

Apurva Iyengar is a 20 year old environmental activist and changemaker based in Boston. She is focused on creating a more cohesive and effective youth climate strategy and broadening access to this movement for young people around the world through her non-profit Youth.ify. Apurva is currently a second-year student at Tufts University, pursuing a degree in Mechanical Engineering and minoring in Environmental Geology. In her spare time, she is a classically trained oil painter and is a member of Tufts’ premier semi-classical South Asian dance team, Tufts Pulse.

‍PROJECT

Youth.ify

A global platform designed to address the diasporic nature of the youth environmental movement by providing platforms for individual and organization-level collaboration, connection and support.

Jack Hanson is the cofounder and executive director of Run On Climate. He has been working to advance climate justice since his senior year of high school. In 2019, Jack was elected to the Burlington, Vermont City Council at the age of 24, breaking voter turnout records in the process. While on Council he championed numerous policies to reduce emissions and lower the cost of living in Burlington, including requirements for landlords to weatherize rental units, renewable heating requirements for new buildlings, a citywide electric bikeshare system, a commitment and roadmap to get Burlington off of fossil fuels by 2030, and more. He started Run On Climate in 2021 to support other local-level leaders and climate activists working to advance climate action in their own communities.

Abhay Singh Sachal is a 22-year old Canadian whose research and work resides at the intersection of climate justice, ecoanxiety, mental health, and spirituality. He is the founder of Break The Divide, a non-profit organization that empowers young people to recognize their climate emotions and connects communities to build resilience and share knowledge amidst the climate crisis. Abhay is also one of 10 advisors in the inaugural Environment and Climate Change Canada Youth Council. Outside of his activism, Abhay is currently a student at the University of Regina, completing a Masters of Education in Educational Psychology; a public speaker on climate and mental health issues; and, an avid ice hockey player and pianist.

Amanda Sun studies computer science and environmental studies at Dartmouth College. She is the founder and executive director of Green2Go, advisor of Environmental Students of Dartmouth, and a Youth Leadership Councilor on EarthEcho International. Previously, Amanda researched climate futurisms and interned as a stagiaire at École Internationale de Boulangerie, an organic baking school in Aix-en-Provence. Her work can be found on COP26 Youtube, NYC Climate Week, UN Biodiversity Conference, Global Alliance of Universities on Climate Summit, and Good Morning America.

PROJECT

Green2Go

Green2Go is a youth-led, intergenerational movement enabling students at 30+ chapters to implement reusable takeout programs and advocate for zero waste, with the goal to eliminate over 10 million single-use plastics by the end of 2023.

Keenan was a military brat; however South Carolina is considered home. He played college football, studied forestry and wildlife and got a PhD from Clemson University. He has spent the last 15 years working as a land manager and scientist for several agencies in many parts of the country. He started a farm in Puerto Rico to make a positive impact on the land and the community.

Pooja is a climate justice community connector who was born in India, but grew up in the US. She has degrees in Economics and International Studies and first worked at the Meridian Institute to advance ocean policy in Mexico and federal climate policy in the US, form alliances to act on plastic pollution, and more. Currently, she is the Founder and Director of Youth Climate Collaborative, a designer for Rivet, a finance team member of the Climate Youth Negotiators Program, and an active member of YOUNGO.She focuses on capacity-building for youth, effective storytelling, intergenerational action, power sharing, and microfinance for youth led action. Her purpose in life is to nurture her curiosity and creativity, encourage herself and others to challenge the status quo, and unite people to improve the quality of life for all.

PROJECT

Youth Climate Collaborative

Youth Climate Collaborative (YCC) is a youth-led global community offering tools and programs to make it easier for youth to get involved and remain involved in climate action, enable intergenerational cogeneration, and increase coordination and collaboration within the youth climate movement.

Rollie Williams is a Brooklyn-based comedian, video editor, and guy with both student debt and a Climate Science & Policy degree from Columbia University. He is the creator and host of the digital comedy series Climate Town which has been described as a low budget Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. Over the past two years, the channel has amassed 421,000 subscribers, over 10 million video views, and has won a handful of digital video awards. Rollie now leads a team of 4 as they seek to expand their climate communication footprint in 2023. When he's not creating climate media, Rollie enjoys playing billiards, and recently achieved his dream of commentating at the World Cup of Pool in England.

PROJECT

Climate Town

Climate Town is a YouTube channel that makes rigorously researched journalistic comedy videos about climate change to educate and activate, and get people more comfortable talking about the issue.

Wawa Gatheru is a climate activist & Rhodes scholar passionate about cultivating a climate movement that is made in the image of all of us. She is the founder and Executive Director of Black Girl Environmentalist, the only national organization dedicated to addressing the pipeline and pathway issue for Black girls, women, and gender expansive individuals in the climate sector.She sits on boards and advisory councils for the Environmental Media Association, Climate Power, Sound Future, National Parks Conservation Association, and EarthJustice and is an inaugural member of the National Environmental Youth Advisory Council of the US EPA - the first federal youth-led advisory council in US history.For her work, Wawa has been recognized as a Glamour College Woman of the Year, a Forbes 30 under 30 recipient, an AFROTECH Future 50, a Grist 50 fixer, a Young Futurist by The Root, a Climate Creator to Watch by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, a Public Voices Fellow by Yale, and was featured on the January 2023 digital cover of Vogue alongside Billie Eilish and 7 other climate activists.

Benjamin Von Wong's work lies at the intersection of fantasy and photography and combines everyday objects with shocking statistics. It has attracted the attention of corporations, like Starbucks, Dell, and Nike, and has generated over 100 million views for causes like ocean plastics, electronic waste, and fashion pollution. His work has been narrated by Ryan Reynolds, he holds a Guinness World Record for the largest installation made from plastic straws, and he created the centerpiece at the United Nations in Nairobi when the Global Plastics Resolution was successfully signed.

PROJECT

Transforming the Eco-Anxious to the Eco-Engaged

By studying how the world’s best creative activists design projects to support movements, The Activism Studio is going to research, design, and prototype an educational collection of tools focused on transforming the eco-anxious into the eco-engaged.

Sage Lenier is a climate activist, public speaker, and nonprofit leader. She got her start teaching her own program at UC Berkeley, which broke records for largest-ever student-led class. She is the Founder & Executive Director of Sustainable & Just Future and was recently honored by TIME Magazine as a 2023 Next Generation Leader.

Miswar is completing his master's degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering, specializing in renewable energy and power systems, at the University of Waterloo, Canada. He is a researcher, published author, inventor, TEDx speaker, and panelist, having participated in numerous conferences worldwide. With experience in both Fortune 500 companies and startups in the clean energy sector, he focuses on lab-to-market processes, scalability, strategic partnerships, and market analysis. His expertise includes renewable energy systems, energy storage technologies, and AI applications in smart grids. Miswar has received multiple international awards for his work and is currently building his venture, Swish, which aims to enhance solar panel efficiency through innovative R&D solutions.

Turner Wyatt is a social entrepreneur focused on reducing food waste and improving our environment and economy. Turner is the co-founder of four award-winning organizations: Denver Food Rescue, Bondadosa, Fresh Food Connect, and Upcycled Food Association. He was named one of the Top 20 Emerging Leaders in Food and Ag, and the waste industry's 40 under 40 award. He is a Fink Fellow, and was chosen by the Mayor of Denver, Colorado to serve on the City's Sustainable Food Policy Council.

PROJECT

Sustainable Acquisition Entrepreneurship

Business model which helps prevent climate change and reduce income inequality by acquiring at-risk businesses, and making them more profitable and sustainable by using more environmentally friendly supply chain inputs, and converting the business into an employee-owned company.

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AY is a producer, singer, songwriter, entertainer, and entrepreneur. He first began writing poetry at 14, a reaction to the great disparity in Kansas City known as “the Troost divide” While touring the USA, AY learned that over 1 billion people lack access to electricity. So AY began powering concerts using renewable energy, raising awareness about sustainability, and fundraising to bring people electricity. Thus, the Battery Tour was born and has plugged in 17 countries to date.

PROJECT

Battery Tour: Project17

After founding the Battery Tour, powering over 900+ concerts using 100% clean energy and bringing energy boxes to over 15+ countries worldwide, "Project17" was launched. P17 is a conduit for NGOs, Non-Profits, Corporations, Private Sector, and individual citizens of the world to get involved and to plug into solutions for the many challenges identified by the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. AY has made one song for each of the 17 Global Goals. Part of the project will involve lining up a sponsor, an impact partner, and other projects. A total of 17+ performances will transpire through 2023. The proceeds of the music and tour power the impact projects for each of the Global Goals.

Suzanne Pierre is an ecologist and biogeochemist who is pairing science with social organizing to address the climate crisis. She is the founder and executive director of the Critical Ecology Lab, a national environmental research and social impact institution producing original scientific research, training professionals and the public, and changing the climate narrative to create pathways to justice and sustainability. Pierre holds a doctorate in ecology and biogeochemistry from Cornell University, and specializes in the cycling of carbon and nitrogen in plant and soil ecosystems across scales. She is based in the California Bay Area.