By Huxley Sidari (he/him/his), Youth volunteer with Youth v. Oil The history of youth and student-led protests in the United States is one of injustice, pendulums, and taking matters into one’s own hands. In the face of adversity and discrimination, youth tend to have the most brutally honest but essential opinions on divisive issues. The current American political landscape is one of unrest. Over the previous decades, there have been rising currents and waves of youth- and student-led walkouts, protests, and secondary actions of civil disobedience in reaction to injustices they view as worth fighting for. According to Syracuse Law

By Diego Sandoval (He/Him), Youth v. Oil Media Team Lead 2024 saw the second-highest number of billion-dollar weather disasters in US history, reaching 27, shyly missing the previous 2023 record of 28. 9 out of the 10 years with the most billion-dollar weather disasters in US history occurred in the last decade, clearly illustrating our trajectory towards an increasingly expensive future. With this trend displayed, the assumed course of action would be to initiate a focused plan to mitigate the impacts of these disasters, allocate appropriate funds for their immediate response, and limit factors contributing to these occurrences. But what

Kelly Rickwa, SanDiego350 Outreach Intern My name is Kelly Rickwa, and I am an Outreach Intern with SanDiego350 for this summer. I am an engineering student heading into my second year of college at Santa Clara University, and I am passionate about climate action and renewable energy. Throughout the past few weeks, I have gotten to dive into the work that SD350 does, learning more about the environmental injustices present in the San Diego community. The topic of utility justice arises often in these discussions, which I have come to understand as work dedicated to implementing equitable, renewable, and affordable

By Jim Miller, The Jumping-Off Place & SD350 Board Member Also published on The Jumping Off Place If the Zohran Mamdani win over Andrew Cuomo in the New York City Democratic mayoral primary was startling national news that has the potential to transform not just New York but the Democratic party, Paloma Aguirre’s victory over Republican John McCann in the San Diego County Board of Supervisor’s race was, if not the opposite, at least seemingly far less dramatic news coming from our sleepy little Southwestern corner of the country. While Mamdani energized young voters, built a new coalition, and drove the

By Jacob Schneider (he/him) Youth v. Oil Federal Policy Lead As America celebrates July 4th, a day to celebrate her liberation from tyranny, she finds herself sinking into oppression once again. A damning piece of legislation, known as the One Big ‘Beautiful’ Bill (OBBB), looms over barbeques and parades as it threatens to unleash its wrath on millions of souls. The bill is the brainchild of Republican President Donald Trump, who has spent his time in office expanding his powers, trampling over the rights of minorities, and destroying the environment. The OBBB, which recently passed in the Senate and the

By Sophia Tada (she/her), Editor of Youth4Climate’s Blog Since May 1st, 2022, when SANDAG flipped the switch on the Youth Opportunity Pass pilot, free transit has opened thousands of doors for San Diego’s youth. The Youth Opportunity Pass (YOP) has revolutionized youth access to public transportation in the San Diego area. By providing free rides throughout the North County Transit District (NCTD), the North County COASTER Commuter Rail Service, and the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (SDMTS) to youth ages 18 and under, the program has immensely expanded access to school, jobs, healthcare, and other opportunities. But this success story may come

By Rachel Carton, Legislation Team Member As California continues to face the devastating effects of climate change, from wildfires and drought to toxic air and rising sea levels, our state legislature plays a critical role in steering us toward a healthier, more equitable future. Our legislation team has carefully reviewed this year’s landscape, and we’ve identified key bills that either move us closer to our climate justice goals or threaten to set us back. Here’s where we stand and why. Bills We Support AB 1243 and SB 684 – Polluters Pay Climate Superfund Act of 2025 For too long, fossil

By Bee Mittermiller Public transportation is a critical lifeline for so many to get to work, school, healthcare, recreation, and homes. Every four years, San Diegans have the opportunity to directly influence the direction of development of transportation infrastructure in our region. The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), is currently drafting the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) for 2025, which maps out our transit future for 2050 and beyond.  The SanDiego350 Transportation Team follows and evaluates each iteration of the RTP as it is developed. Given that transportation in San Diego County accounts for 45-48% of greenhouse gas emissions, we

By Susan Orlofsky, UCSD retiree (member of UPTE retiree (CWA_RMC_9119) and AFT 1931 retiree orgs), currently serving as: UPTE delegate to SDICLC; Steering Committee member, Green New Deal at UCSD student organization Greta Thunberg set sail on the Madleen to bring aid to Palestinians starving and dying in Gaza. Before she and her crew were detained and arrested by Israel she said “I fight for climate justice for the same reason I fight for social justice; it’s the same struggle.  Like Greta I view the fight for workers’ rights and climate justice as the same struggle. I became a union

By Diego Eduardo Sandoval, Youth v. Oil Media Lead Unbeknownst to many, San Diego finds itself more racially segregated now than it was 30 years ago. This City has its roots in native and Hispanic heritage, yet, those same communities find themselves systematically disadvantaged in the present. San Diego as we know it was established by the Spanish in 1769 with the creation of Mission San Diego de Alcala. The descendants of these Spanish, the Californio Rancheros, played a vital role in the community, alongside Mexicans who gained independence from Spain in 1821. Before Europeans arrived, natives had been living

By: Diego Sandoval (he/him), Youth v. Oil Media Lead Our greatest fear that one of the world’s most influential government administrations would roll back many of its sustainability initiatives is being realized during President Trump’s second term in office, to the horror and dismay of millions of environmentalists across the US. This is seen most notably with President Trump’s tearing into the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act (IIJA) also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). These acts are dedicated to investing in environmental infrastructure to prepare for future extreme weather events, domestic energy

Ten high school members of Youth v. Oil and three SanDiego350 adult members woke up very early in the morning to catch the first flight to Sacramento on April 21st. We met with elected officials, advocated for the Polluters Pay Climate Superfund, and spoke at the Assembly Natural Resources committee hearing where the bill passed 9-4! Our voices were very powerful at the Capitol, so powerful that an oil lobbyist yelled at and tried to intimidate us, a group of teenagers, outside the Committee hearing. Hear more about what the trip meant to us below: “Going to Sacramento was an

We marched, we chanted, we stood up for Climate Justice – and we won’t stop there! On Saturday, 1,200 San Diegans joined the Unite for Climate march and stood up to Trump’s attacks on our climate and our democracy. We got inspired hearing from Indigenous, community and youth leaders, we learned from the dozens of partner organizations that came out to table, and we took to the streets with a powerful call for a healthy, sustainable, just future for everyone.   Check out the news coverage on CBS Channel 8 and in the Union Tribune (including their photos) and our photos

By Greta Busch-Castro (she/her) high school sophomore & Taarika Sethee (she/her) high school freshman, Youth4Climate members  Over 130 people attended our 2025 Voices in the Storm: Youth4Climate Summit, with more than 85 youth representing 21 high schools, 2 middle schools, and 4 colleges. This undeniably shows that youth are stepping up to confront the climate crisis. We are not waiting for someone else to take action– we took initiative then, we’re doing it now, and we’ll keep fighting in the future. The Voices in the Storm Summit was a beautiful event that brought together students, teachers, and activists in a

Statement by SanDiego350 Executive Director Masada Disenhouse While we’re pleased the Trump administration backed off an expected executive order to strip climate nonprofits of their tax-exempt status on Earth Day, we know the threats to our organizations, our planet, and our democracy are still very real.  The fact that the administration blinked is a victory and shows that resistance matters. The “Hands off Earth Day” protest (photos / TV coverage) we and partners organized in San Diego yesterday of EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin contributed to public opposition across the Country to climate-destroying policies and the targeting of climate nonprofits.  When

By Masada Disenhouse, Executive Director, SanDiego350 Also published on The Jumping Off Place Come to the Hands Off Earth Day Press Conference on Tuesday, April 22nd at 9AM by the Marine Corps Recruit Depot (MCRD) near Liberty Station. This Earth Day, it’s personal.  Trump is expected to sign an executive order to strip tax-exempt status from climate and other nonprofit organizations ON EARTH DAY. Groups like SD350, that work to reduce harmful pollution, advance environmental justice, and create a healthy future for everyone, are under attack.  To add insult to injury, Trump’s EPA Director (EPA destroyer?) Lee Zeldin will be HERE, in San

By Jim Miller, The Jumping-Off Place Also published in The Jumping-Off Place What to do? Unite for Climate March on Saturday, May 3rd at 11am at Waterfront Park For anyone with even a causal interest in climate activism, it has been clear since the election of Donald Trump that the only place where any proactive policy on climate might be enacted is at the municipal and state level as the Trump administration has stacked every single federal agency with climate deniers and oil and gas industry representatives. As the President pushes for more and more extraction of fossil fuels, even advocating for

By Kobi Schneider (he/him), Federal Policy Lead for Youth v. Oil  Since taking back the White House in January, President Donald Trump has wasted no time launching a mind-boggling flurry of human rights violations, unconstitutional executive orders, and environmental rollbacks. No green initiative has been spared from his unholy crusade against Mother Earth; he threatens to hinder any progress towards a sustainable future. As of April 2025, Trump has launched a series of environmental rollbacks- he helped the coal industry by relaxing carbon reduction requirements, allowing plants to emit dangerous quantities without facing consequences. He also rolled back vehicle emission