Oak Park, IL – Chicagoland environmental nonprofit Seven Generations Ahead (SGA) is taking their climate advocacy international again this year. Five Chicago area students and one teacher who are part of SGA’s youth climate advocacy program, It’s Our Future (IOF), are headed to Sharm El-Sheikh Egypt for this year’s UN Climate Summit, COP27. Gary Cuneen, […]
Meet our COP27 Delegates!
It’s that time of year again! We’re headed to this year’s UN Climate Summit, COP27, in early November, and we’re bringing a great crew! Five Chicagoland students representing It’s Our Future, and one Chicago teacher, will travel to Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt to observe the climate negotiations and report back. Get to know this fantastic team […]
It’s Their Future: Farewell, IOF Seniors
IOF Seniors with the delegate from Tongva at COP26 The 5 students who attended COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland have graduated from high school and from It’s Our Future! We are so proud of their accomplishments and grateful for their voices in this important work. Sophie Ball will be studying International Relations at King’s College in […]
Youth Climate Activists Talk Suing the G...
Drive less, support climate-conscious political candidates, and… sue the U.S. government? That’s exactly what the climate activists featured in the film YOUTH v GOV have done. The documentary film, directed by Christi Cooper, follows the story of 21 youth climate activists who sued the U.S. government for endangering their constitutional rights to life, liberty, and […]
OPRF Student Launching Earth Day Strike ...
As the climate continues to heat up, young people around the world continue to mobilize. Just months after returning from last year’s UN Climate Summit (COP26), Jelena Collins is taking what she learned there to the streets. Collins is an It’s Our Future (IOF) student at Oak Park River Forest High School. This Earth Day, […]
Youth Activists Speak Out at COP26 – Liv
This year’s UN Climate Summit (COP26) in Glasgow arrived with much anticipation and urgency. In the wake of the latest IPCC report, which was described by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as a “code red” for humanity, many have argued that this is the most consequential global climate conference of our lifetimes. It is against this […]
IOF Youth Dispatch – Fighting for the Fu
I began my day not with going to the Blue Zone for the UN climate change conference as I have done each day before, but instead by walking over to Kelvingrove Park to be a part of the highly anticipated climate strike organized by Fridays For Future. When I arrived, the protest was already ginormous. […]
Al Gore Brings More Inconvenient Truths ...
Al Gore Should Be Knighted Al Gore in front of a packed house in the heads of states plenary room at COP26 just gave the best talk I’ve heard on any subject – hands down. For 45 minutes non-stop with rapid fire graphics, videos and script-less details on extreme weather events across the world and […]
Words are One Thing. Actions are Another...
The 2021 Production Gap Report, by leading research institutes and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), finds that despite increased climate ambitions and net-zero commitments, governments still plan to produce more than double the amount of fossil fuels in 2030 than what would be consistent with limiting global warming to 1.5°C. The report measures the gap between […]
Small Island Nations Show Big Leadership...
While the world’s expectations were that COP26 would be a culmination of raised commitments and a turning point in the climate crisis, it’s apparent that this year’s event is a work in progress with some bright spots and other large gaps in commitments, detailed roadmaps toward net zero emissions, and rigor. The BBC reports that […]