Kentucky Student Environmental Coalition
  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are >
      • Campus Affiliates
      • Allies + Networks
      • Mission and Strategy
      • Our History
    • Media >
      • The Young Kentuckian Blog
      • Power to the People Podcast
      • Press >
        • Media Coverage
        • Media Resources and Contacts
        • Media Advisories and Releases
    • Contact
  • Get Involved
    • Plug In
    • Campaigns >
      • Stop LG&E's Pipeline
      • Stop Letcher Co Prison
    • Catalyst: Camp 4 Community Organizing
  • Resources
    • Resources
    • Campaign Case Study
    • COVID-19 Mutual Aid
  • Donate
  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are >
      • Campus Affiliates
      • Allies + Networks
      • Mission and Strategy
      • Our History
    • Media >
      • The Young Kentuckian Blog
      • Power to the People Podcast
      • Press >
        • Media Coverage
        • Media Resources and Contacts
        • Media Advisories and Releases
    • Contact
  • Get Involved
    • Plug In
    • Campaigns >
      • Stop LG&E's Pipeline
      • Stop Letcher Co Prison
    • Catalyst: Camp 4 Community Organizing
  • Resources
    • Resources
    • Campaign Case Study
    • COVID-19 Mutual Aid
  • Donate

It's Time to Join the Movement

9/5/2019

0 Comments

 
Picture

A new semester has begun for students across Kentucky, and that means one thing: it’s time to join the movement. KSEC is building a strong, united youth movement to fight for a just and environmentally sustainable future in our communities and beyond.  

The heart of the movement is the campus group. KSEC exists first to serve our campus affiliates. Organizations at universities and colleges advance environmental causes every semester. Some campuses host art shows and environmental fairs. Others fight for their campuses to divest from fossil fuels. Some groups maintain butterfly gardens; others lobby to maintain campus green spaces. 

All of these campaigns may seem small against the huge global environmental challenges we face, but the most lasting change starts in local communities and permeates through society. 

Picture
KSEC members finish out an event all smiles.
Take, for example, campus dining. Students at universities across Kentucky have pressured their campus dining services to purchase food locally, reduce plastic and food waste, and introduce more options for vegetarians, vegans, and people with other dietary restrictions. These efforts have benefited local communities and have influenced dining services at universities and businesses across the country, pushing whole industries to be more just and sustainable.
All this work contributes to the movement. Success in the movement, however, requires contributions from many people like you. Our movement has a role for everyone, so what’s your role?

Your role may be to join an environmental group on your campus; it may be to start one! KSEC can help you do that. We have a toolkit of resources with all the information you need to get a group off the ground, and our campus organizers are happy to guide you along the way.
​

Joining a campus group offers a variety of roles you can adopt depending on your ability and capacity. 
  1. You can simply be a member who sits in on meetings and listens -- that’s how a lot of young organizers get their start. 
  2. You can volunteer for events your group attends or plans -- sitting at tables for student involvement fairs, planning teach-ins to talk about environmental issues on your campus, meeting with university administrators to discuss retiring your school’s coal-fired boilers and switching to renewable energy sources, and so on. 
  3. You could even become an officer in your group who takes notes, plans meeting agendas, or runs social media.
The possibilities are wide at a campus group; you need only give it a chance to find your niche.

​Your role may be to improve the effectiveness of your campus group. Once again, KSEC can help. Our campus organizers can train your members in everything from how to run a meeting, how to recruit new members, how to effectively run social media, and beyond. 

Your role may be to start a campaign for change on your campus. KSEC can help you do that as well. Our suite of trainings around campaign planning, strategy, and tactics will put pressure on your campus administration. Don’t know what campaign you’d like to run? KSEC has toolkits to get you started on several campaigns that groups have run in the past.
There are many campaigns you can draw inspiration from. In 2015 alone KSEC saw four huge victories. At Eastern Kentucky University, students drove the university to sign onto the President’s Climate Commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. At DuPont Manual High School in Louisville, students won a campaign to bring local foods into their cafeteria. At Kentucky State University, students won a campaign to institute campus-wide recycling. At Centre College, students created a fund of $5000 annually to give to sustainability programs on campus.
Picture
DuPont Manual Students pose for a photo at an event.
If any of these campaigns speak to the needs on your campus, KSEC can help get you begin to address those needs.
​

All of the roles discussed above are vital to the health and success of the movement for a just and sustainable future. Whatever role in the movement you choose, we have a way to help you succeed. All you have to do is join up and try on a role.



0 Comments

    About

    The Young Kentuckian is a blog of the Kentucky Student Environmental Coalition where youth share their work and ideas for Kentucky's bright future. 

    If you would like to write a post for the blog, please email Kat Smith.


    Follow The Young Kentuckian on Facebook!
    Picture

    Categories

    All
    Activism
    Advocacy
    Artivism
    Campus
    Carbon Neutrality
    Catalyst
    Days Of Action
    Dystopia
    Fall 2019
    Fossil Fuels
    Green Revolving Fund
    Health
    Just Transition
    Kentucky Politics
    KSEC
    KSEC Summit
    Local Food
    Pipelines And Natural Gas
    Power Shift
    Rapid Response Network
    Recycling
    Renewable Energy
    Self-Care
    Solidarity
    Solutions Tour
    Stereotypes
    Water

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2020
    October 2019
    September 2019
    April 2019
    February 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    July 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    November 2014
    September 2014
    April 2014
    January 2014
    November 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013

    Donate to KSEC!
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.