Like many social movements, I believe the climate strikes were established and proliferated by youth. The rapid deterioration of living conditions in at-risk areas of the world coupled with alarming scientific reports forces youth to confront the reality that our future is in jeopardy. As we are not empowered to craft legislation or divert capital to green energy projects, these strikes rally institutions to the cause.
As a leading national institution dedicated to educating generations of leaders, I think Wellesley has a responsibility and opportunity to make sustainability a core ethos of the college. A strike on campus reflects this, proving the overarching interest among the college’s constituencies.
Unfortunately, strikes are limited in their ability to convert public feeling into tangible change of practice. I chose not to strike not out of disbelief or disinterest in climate policy, but because I wanted to spend time communicating with my peers about logistical solutions. In my career, I hope to use my liberal arts education and political science major to advocate for climate policy within the institutions that hold the power to make tangible change. Influence in government is vital to crafting necessary public policy while forcing private industries to adapt to sustainable standards of operation.