Youth Action

November 14, 2017
By: Jason Rodney, Former Senior Youth Coordinator

Meet the YEA! MN Core for 2017-18!

YEA! MN is led by a group of students called the Core, with support from Climate Generation staff. They meet every week to plan and lead workshops and events for the YEA! MN network. Between robotics, debate, testifying against oil companies, and more, these 8 fabulous youth are steering the ship this year:

Abdisatar Jibril – Program Intern

Freshman, Roosevelt High School

Abdi joined the Climate Generation internship program in 2017. He is an energetic person who loves school and enjoys learning. His favorite subjects are science, math, and sculpture. He is very social. He plays many sports like basketball and swimming, but nothing too competitive. He likes making a difference when he can. He joined this organization to help get the word out about the issue of climate change At his school, some people don’t listen and they think it is a joke, but some don’t even know, so he is trying to raise awareness. He lives off of Subway, cereal, and protein bars. He is also trying get involved in the school picture club. He is hoping to get a better understanding of climate change and its effect on Earth. He is also trying to get a better set of leadership skills.

Cami Thorstenson

12th Grader, Anoka Ramsey Community College

Cami first heard about YEA! MN when she saw an art exhibit on global climate change, specifically the melting of the ice caps. She was instantly impassioned about the changing of our environment. She transitioned from vegetarian to vegan and started doing speeches and spreading information on climate change in my community and school. She joined YEA! MN the following fall and started an environmental club at her high school. She is now a member of the sustainability club at Anoka Ramsey, where they aim to turn the entire campus as green as possible. She loved to educate everyone around her about the positive impacts of a vegan diet as well as cook people wide variety of vegan foods to influence people into considering the vegan lifestyle. She also recently began transitioning into a zero waste lifestyle as well.

Carson Kowalski

12th Grader, Inver Hills Community College

Carson does work mainly focusing on pipeline fighting, and has been heavily involved since Earth Day 2017. They are a part of the Sunrise Movement, as well as co-chair of the Sierra Club Beyond Oil and Tar Sands Committee, working to organize and recruit others to the movement. YEA! MN is something they enjoy doing, as working in all youth (high school) spaces is something they get nowhere else.

Lia Harel

Junior, Hopkins High School

Lia has always been a nature enthusiast. She loves to go road cycling, hiking, and running outside. Last year she joined YEA! MN as a way to channel her love for the outdoors into positive change within her community. This year she is excited to take more action in preserving the environment by influencing political policies and volunteering at various events dedicated to restoring natural ecosystems. Outside of YEA! MN, Lia is the president of her high school’s Earth Club and works with the iMatter program to create a more eco-friendly school environment and teach students about important environmental issues. She is an avid supporter of environmentally sustainable architecture, and hopes to one day combine her love of design and the Earth into a career.

Marco Hunt

Junior, Breck School

Marco has always been interested in climate change and had an opportunity to hone this interest over the past year+ working at Dream of Wild Health, volunteering at YEA! MN, and Sunrise. Being a leader in Sunrise, his school’s environmental club, and YEA! MN, he is excited to implement the skills he’s learned in facilitation and organizing roles. He is looking forward to working with more organizations and learning how to organize bigger actions.

Munira Berhe – Policy Intern

Senior, Patrick Henry High School

Munira joined Climate Generation internship program in 2017. She didn’t know much about climate change because she hasn’t learned about it in school, so she joined to educate herself on the issue. She is also taking part of Robotics and Model United Nations club. Her favorite subjects are politics and art. Outside of school she likes to watch shows on netflix and read books.

Shaza Hussein

Junior, Rosemount High School

Shaza has a strong concern with environmental and social issues that are currently plaguing the world. Whether it be by gaining awareness, leading sustainability-related projects, protesting, workshops or policy promotion, she recognizes the importance of community-based youth groups that will stand up to climate change and its perpetrators. Through ingenuity, policy and technological advancement, she hopes to become a leader in the climate justice community and formulate a world worth meeting for future generations. In her school, she is similarly involved in Debate, Mock Trial, Science Olympiad, High School Democrats and more! Outside of school, her interests usually reside within the realm of reading or exploring the world.

Sophia Manolis

Junior, South High School

Sophia is extremely passionate about environmental justice and has dedicated herself to making a difference in the world. She joined YEA! MN in 2016 and since then has started working with many different climate organizations, specifically against the Enbridge’s Line 3 oil pipeline. She one of 13 Youth Climate Intervenors who presented evidence to a judge to stop Line 3 from being built. She loves collaborating with other people in her work and helping others get involved. This year, she hopes to broaden her involvement with more social justice organizations and continue to make connections and take action within the environmental justice movement. Outside of activism, Sophia is a competitive swimmer, an editor for her school newspaper, and an outdoor enthusiast.