Help Sponsor Youth Activists to Attend Climate Crisis Event

Wednesday, October 2, 2019
6:00 PM EDT - 9:00 PM EDT

On Oct. 2nd, 2019, leading youth activist, Xiuhtezcatl Martinez will speak on the climate crisis at the Ecology Center's Annual Dinner.  We are raising money so that local youth activists will be honored guests at Ecology Center Changemakers Annual Dinner, and have the chance to share a meal with Xiuhtezcatl and hear his inspiring message of perseverance and hope in combating the climate crisis.  

Earth Guardians Youth Director, Xiuhtezcatl Martinez, (his first name pronounced ‘Shoe-Tez-Caht’), is an indigenous climate activist, hip-hop artist, and a powerful voice on the front lines of a global youth-led environmental movement. At the early age of six, he began speaking around the world, from the Rio+20 United Nations Summit in Rio de Janeiro to addressing the General Assembly at the United Nations in New York City. He has worked locally to get pesticides out of parks, coal ash contained, and moratoriums on fracking in his state and is currently a lead plaintiff in a youth-led lawsuit against the federal government for their failure to protect the atmosphere for future generations. 

Give youth activists like Naina the opportunity to spend the evening with Xiuhtezcatl and be inspired by his message of perseverance and hope in combating the climate crisis.  

Meet Youth Activist Naina Agerwal-Hardin

We talked to Naina about why she became a climate activist:

EC: What inspired you to become an activist for combatting the climate crisis?

Naina: "I saw climate change threaten the homes of my grandparents on both sides of my family in Tennessee and Northern India and realized that climate change is a problem that will affect not just my children but also me and my generation."

EC: What do you think the local focus should be on fighting climate change?

Naina: "On every level, we need to focus on enacting environmental justice, protecting biodiversity, and transitioning to renewable energy sources. None of this is possible without funding for climate action and environmental protection from local city councils and county commissioners." 

EC: What gives you the most hope for our future of healthy people and a healthy planet?

Naina: "Grassroots organizations like Sunrise Movement and This Is Zero Hour, and comprehensive climate legislation like the Green New Deal. " 

EC: What would it mean to you to sit down with Xiuhtezcatl Martinez alongside other climate activist youth? 

Naina: "Solidarity and shared experience." 

Our Goal

Event Location

Washtenaw Community College Morris J. Lawrence Building Atrium
4800 E. Huron River Dr.
Ann Arbor, MI 48105