Activists storm the campus, pitching tents along the way
Patsy Morrow
Issue date: 11/5/07 Section: News
Andrew Nazdin fit 22 students into his New Leonardtown apartment last night. His slumber party featured the usual cramped sleeping arrangements, with one student finding a comfortable spot underneath the kitchen table.
The students visited Nazdin, a sophomore government and politics major, from Barnard College, Harvard University and St. John's College in Annapolis not for the typical, party-soaked College Park weekend. Instead, they were among the 6,000 students from across the country who convened on campus for the largest-ever youth climate change convention ever.
The national conference, called Power Shift, brought students hailing from all over the country by any means necessary. Students filled vans, packed their cars and boarded planes to reach the campus. Once here, they slept wherever the could find space - campsites, hotel rooms and on the floors of university students like Nazdin.
"I think [hosting Power Shift's attendees] is a really great idea, because it allows people to come who may not have been able to afford a hotel," said Jenna Brager, a sophomore journalism and LGBT studies major who hosted three students in her Dorchester dorm room. "It facilitates interactions between activists from different schools."
The four-day conference involved workshops, state breakout sessions and noted speakers such as Ralph Nader and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Power Shift culminates in a rally and lobby visits on Capitol Hill today.
"We're all running on adrenaline," said Alyson Peters, a student at the University of Iowa. "We're a very active campus. We have a solid group of kids who take global warming pretty seriously."
Peters arrived in College Park after a bus ride with about 70 other students from Iowa filling two buses. They drove 21 hours straight to reach the convention.
A group from the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts raised more than $900 through donations to pay for their housing, said campus organizer Tracie Konopinski. In an effort to reduce their carbon footprint and keep costs down, the group pitched tents at nearby Cherry Hill Park.
"[The conference] is about sharing ideas and building momentum on this movement," said Konopinski. "This is going to be what defines us in history books."
A major goal of the conference was networking. Participants had the opportunity to meet other students from their state to improve their campaign strategies.
"[The conference] is preparing new leaders, preparing campaigns and connecting environmental activist leaders," said Chrissy Scarborough, a junior at the University of California, Los Angeles. "It's probably going to be one of those pivotal points in people's lives, and then you realize other people feel the same way. We really need to promote action."
"It's just cool to see a diversity here," said Luke Hyde, a student at Warren Wilson College in North Carolina. "It makes it seem like we might be able to change the world someday."
Staff writer Carrie Wells contributed to this report.
morrowdbk@gmail.com
The students visited Nazdin, a sophomore government and politics major, from Barnard College, Harvard University and St. John's College in Annapolis not for the typical, party-soaked College Park weekend. Instead, they were among the 6,000 students from across the country who convened on campus for the largest-ever youth climate change convention ever.
The national conference, called Power Shift, brought students hailing from all over the country by any means necessary. Students filled vans, packed their cars and boarded planes to reach the campus. Once here, they slept wherever the could find space - campsites, hotel rooms and on the floors of university students like Nazdin.
"I think [hosting Power Shift's attendees] is a really great idea, because it allows people to come who may not have been able to afford a hotel," said Jenna Brager, a sophomore journalism and LGBT studies major who hosted three students in her Dorchester dorm room. "It facilitates interactions between activists from different schools."
The four-day conference involved workshops, state breakout sessions and noted speakers such as Ralph Nader and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Power Shift culminates in a rally and lobby visits on Capitol Hill today.
"We're all running on adrenaline," said Alyson Peters, a student at the University of Iowa. "We're a very active campus. We have a solid group of kids who take global warming pretty seriously."
Peters arrived in College Park after a bus ride with about 70 other students from Iowa filling two buses. They drove 21 hours straight to reach the convention.
A group from the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts raised more than $900 through donations to pay for their housing, said campus organizer Tracie Konopinski. In an effort to reduce their carbon footprint and keep costs down, the group pitched tents at nearby Cherry Hill Park.
"[The conference] is about sharing ideas and building momentum on this movement," said Konopinski. "This is going to be what defines us in history books."
A major goal of the conference was networking. Participants had the opportunity to meet other students from their state to improve their campaign strategies.
"[The conference] is preparing new leaders, preparing campaigns and connecting environmental activist leaders," said Chrissy Scarborough, a junior at the University of California, Los Angeles. "It's probably going to be one of those pivotal points in people's lives, and then you realize other people feel the same way. We really need to promote action."
"It's just cool to see a diversity here," said Luke Hyde, a student at Warren Wilson College in North Carolina. "It makes it seem like we might be able to change the world someday."
Staff writer Carrie Wells contributed to this report.
morrowdbk@gmail.com
Submit a letter to the editor or post a comment below.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Mike
posted 11/05/07 @ 8:32 AM EST
That explains the foul smell this weekend
Post a Comment