2024 Summit | BAYCS

BAYCS 2024

The 5th annual Bay Area Youth Climate Summit will be generously held on September 28th, 2024, by the UCSF Mission Bay Campus Genentech Hall.

5th Annual Bay Area Youth Climate Summit

Saturday, 9 AM - 3 PM, September 28, 2024

On September 28th, is our 5th annual Bay Area Youth Climate Summit, hosted at the Gentech Hall in San Francisco! Join youth, educators, & climate leaders from the Bay Area & beyond for an incredible day of knowledge-building, community resilience, & change-making! The summit will include guest speakers, workshops, & lunch activities!

Location:

Schedule

a quick look at what the day included

9:00-9:30

Arrival & Check-In

Head to the Genentech Hall's main entrance and find our check-in table to get your schedule.

9:45-10:45

Opening Session & Keynote

Join us to hear an intro for the day and listen to our keynote from Elise Joshi, leader of Gen-Z for Change.

11:00-12:00

Workshop Session #1

Attend the workshop in your schedule to learn from an amazing local climate organization/speaker.

12:00-1:30

Lunch & Activities

Eat lunch (or go out and grab some) and check out the many amazing and interactive lunch activities!

1:45-2:45

Workshop Session #2

Head to your second workshop of the day to learn a different aspect of climate activism.

2:55-3:30

Closing!

Join us outside for a raffle and closing!

Keynote Speaker

Elise Joshi (she/her)

Elise Joshi is an organizer born and raised in the Bay Area. She graduated from UC Berkeley with the top GPA in Environmental Economics and Policy while leading Gen-Z for Change, a national nonprofit that uses social media, code, and creators to educate and activate millions of people for climate, labor, human rights, and more. Elise has cultivated a community of over 235,000 people across social media platforms and directs her listeners to actions they can take to build the sustainable future we deserve.

Workshops & Speakers

Check out our many different workshops and speakers!

Morning Workshops

Dreaming of Decarceration and Climate Justice

Presented by Felix Evans, SJ Harris, & Jiajing Wang, Earth Equity

Explore where the Climate Justice movement intersects with the resistance of incarcerated people. In this workshop, facilitators will share about solidarity between system-impacted people, outside environmental justice organizers, and California kelp forests. We will be sharing the work we do in San Quentin facilitating ocean ecology curriculum and in Humboldt establishing a research cooperative/re-entry program dedicated to restoring the coastal kelp forest. Come with your imagination and creativity as we dream up a future that honors and cares for life on Earth!

Towards Climate Justice: Transformative Approaches to Climate Migration Research and Learning

Presented by Dr. Hossein Ayazi, Othering & Belonging Institute

Explore transformative approaches to climate migration research and learning in ways that are drawn from the Othering & Belonging Institute’s ongoing project on climate displacement and the “right to stay.” Born of multi-year research and teaching processes that center frontline communities’ lived experiences and visions for social transformation, the “right to stay” is a research, teaching, and action framework that aims to support the right for climate-displaced people to safely resettle when their lives are uprooted, and the right to stay “at home” through the cultivation of just and climate-resilient societies.

Factory Farming: Impacts & Opportunities

Presented by Caroline Kraus, New Roots Institute

Approximately 80% of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon is due to pasture expansion for cattle and 15.4% of global greenhouse gas emissions come from animal agriculture, comparable to all transportation sector emissions. Industrial animal agriculture is a powerful industry that affects all of us. In addition to impacting the climate and environment, it endangers workers and our most vulnerable communities through pollution, disease, and chronic illness. Learn how New Roots Institute is raising awareness and growing student engagement to build sustainable solutions, addressing the problems of factory farms and their devastating costs.

Denim by Nature

Presented by Amy Auerbach, Remake & Robertha Hernandez, CicloSF

Remake and CicloSF join forces to provide “Denim by Nature,” a hands-on upcycling workshop where you will make fashion accessories from textile waste. In the workshop, you will learn how to be a sustainable fashion advocate with us! Our workshops will be hands-on as you will learn how to deconstruct a pair of jeans and use the denim to make flowers or feathers for accessories. These keychains/earrings necklaces will be your take-home reminder of the natural elements and a connection to the possibilities that can come from waste and how we can protect our ecosystem.

Native Lands: Indigenous Restoration and Sustainability

Presented by Raven Marshall, The Cultural Conservancy

The Cultural Conservancy's mission is to protect and restore Indigenous cultures, empowering them in the direct application of traditional knowledge and practices on their ancestral lands. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, our headquarters is on unceded Ohlone land and our land base in the sovereign territories of Coast Miwok and Southern Pomo peoples. Heron Shadow learning farm and land base is a home for the dreaming, building, growing, and transmission of The Cultural Conservancy’s mission and work which focuses on the conservation and regeneration of Indigenous agriculture, Native Sciences, and healthy lifeways.

Our flagship program, the Native Foodways Program, actively develops resilient solutions in partnership with intertribal communities, working to address food security, uplifting the revitalization of Native food systems, agriculture and land stewardship, and the traditional lifeways that cultivate food sovereignty. TCC provides culturally rooted and hands-on learning opportunities in land stewardship, Native farming, traditional art making, cultural ceremonial knowledge and medicines, and community-directed media making.

Presented by Ed McFarlan, Urban International Studios

Climate & Health: The Effect of Wildfires on Reproductive Health

Presented by AC Fernández

Explore the impact of wildfire smoke exposure on reproductive health through an environmental justice lens. After reviewing the latest research on wildfire smoke and reproductive health/pregnancy, we will engage in discussions regarding health disparities, socioeconomic determinants of health, and the role of policy in protecting vulnerable communities from the effects of pollution and wildfire smoke. The workshop will also entail playing a game where we explore innovative and creative ways to combat these environmental impacts using structural tools.

Afternoon Workshops

Presented by Erica Parker, Californians Against Waste

Crafting the Next Sustainability Plan for BART

Presented by Monica Meagher & Michael Cox, BART

Sustainability at BART is both what BART does and how BART does it. BART provides regional transit service, connecting five counties and four of the Bay Area’s largest cities on 135 miles of electrified rail. BART's first Sustainability Action Plan (SAP) covers 2017 - 2025 and BART is currently drafting its next SAP to lay the tracks for our next 10 years. Hear from BART's Sustainability Team about their current projects and initiatives tied to the SAP and get involved in developing the focus for future sustainability initiatives.

Impacts of AI on Climate

Presented by Hui Wen Chan & Sunnie Wu, Crusoe Energy

The adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) has been rapidly accelerating societal developments, bringing the potential to address shared global challenges such as climate change. However, the growth of AI is also leading to a massive increase in the demand for energy, which is forecasted to reach 8% of U.S. energy demand by 2030, up from 3% in 2022. This workshop will discuss the sustainability challenges and benefits of AI, and what climate technology companies can do to reduce AI’s negative impacts on the climate.

Climate Justice in US Territories

Presented by Kieren Rudge, Critical Pacific Islands Studies Collective

Climate change must be rapidly addressed both through mitigation of its human-driven causes and adaptation to the impacts that are unfortunately already underway. However, while we must urgently face this challenge, the actions taken against climate change need to prioritize justice and avoid creating additional harm to environments and communities. Oceans and the communities that are connected to them face specific challenges due to sea level rise, ocean acidification, and more. As Californians, we must recognize our shared struggle and the potential of collective action across the Pacific Ocean to address climate change and ensure that further environmental justices are not proliferating. This workshop engages participants to think about the ripple effects of climate action and start building coalitions across connected geographies.

History and Stories of Climate Migration

Presented by Rwaida “Rudy” Gharib, Bhumikorn (Bhu) Kongtaveelert, Andrew Lee, & Anna Zheng, Stanford University

How do we live in a drowning world? To live on a changing planet is to navigate the tension between mitigation, adaptation and migration: how do we decide when to repair, mend, or restart anew?

Join this multi-disciplinary Stanford team in a workshop that explores the history and stories of climate migration through art, dance, music, and interactions with objects and video installations. There will be some lecture and narrative, but this workshop will be primarily based on movement and the embodiment of migration through somatic expression and interaction.

"Harvesting Innovation: The Role of CEA (Controlled Environment Agriculture) in Tackling Food Insecurity"

Presented by Roy Parado, Plenty

Immerse yourself in Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA), an innovative approach to farming that leverages technology to create optimal growing conditions for crops. Participants will explore the fundamentals of CEA, its innovative and creative techniques, as well as its potential to transform food production in a sustainable and equitable manner.

Through this engaging discussion, the workshop will highlight how CEA can address some of the most pressing challenges in our global food systems, including food insecurity, accessibility and environmental impact.

Catalyzing Change through Policy: Tools for Youth Climate Leaders to Lead High-Impact Advocacy Campaigns

Presented by Julie Ira, Ten Strands

Step into the role of an advocacy-oriented climate leader in this dynamic workshop designed for youth changemakers. Building on the success of the CA Youth Climate Policy (CYCP) Leadership Program’s inaugural cohort, this workshop will delve into the essentials of climate advocacy campaigns and the pivotal role of youth in driving policy change and climate action in their school communities. Participants will gain an understanding of how schools can become catalysts for transformative change and the crucial links between policy and climate action. Empower yourself to leverage policy and catalyze your community's fight against climate change.