PennEnvironment is a statewide environmental advocacy organization that transforms the power of our imaginations and our ideas into change that makes our world a greener and healthier place for all. The organization does this by educating everyday Pennsylvanians about the biggest environmental issues facing Pennsylvania and the nation, partnering with various organizations all over the state to effect meaningful change relevant to local communities, and works with state officials to promote policy change and growth.
There are a variety of tactics that I engaged in this summer including media exposure though letters to the editors, meeting with elected officials, phonebanking, holding educational events for citizens, reaching out to municipal governments, signing and spreading petitions, engaging in skills trainings, learning more in depth about environmental problems in Pennsylvania, and reaching out to campuses to spread out work further.
One major event that I participated in was Lobby Day. This was the largest citizen-based lobbying day in Pennsylvania. We met with State Congresspeople to push for renewable energy, lowering carbon emissions, and promoting electric vehicle infrastructure. I arranged and facilitated several meetings between constituents and legislators.
There are four main campaigns that PennEnviroment is currently running that address the major problems we face today: implementing 100% renewable energy, ensuring clean air, conserving open green spaces, and ending of single-use plastics. I was involved in the clean air campaign. Through this, I collaborated with my team to plan, recruit for, and moderate a film screening and a well-attended panel discussion with experts speaking on renewable energy at the municipal, business, and state levels.
I feel that this summer I was able to reach many ordinary Pennsylvanians like myself and educate them on the merits of clean energy and reducing carbon emissions and fossil fuel infrastructure. These virtual times provided us with a unique opportunity to host events that brought people together across state lines to learn and act together. This allowed me to broaden my impact even further, since distance was no barrier.
This experience is unique in that it’s very different than what I lean in my classes. No class I have taken teaches grassroots organizing skills. However, I have had classes at Penn State teach me about civic engagement and advocacy. Namely, RCL (Rhetoric and Civic Life) 137 & 138 and SUST 200. RCL taught the importance of civic engagement an advocacy, as well as how we can get involved, and the most effective ways to communicate with others. SUST 200 is Foundation of Leadership Sustainability and was very valuable as a forum for discussing the pressing environmental issues and the strategies that we can pursue to mitigate these problems. The knowledge that I learned from this class added to my foundation of climate knowledge to be able to operate within this internship.
This experience taught me a lot about all the facets involved in creating and maintain a successful grassroots organization. It is important to keep consistent pressure on influential people who have the power to make decisions so that environmental issues can always stay at the forefront of decision-making. I also learned that there are so many more complications to issues than you see at first glance that impact people in different ways. The only way to gain different perspectives on issues is to talk to others and understand their views on the issues that don’t have easy solutions. Moving forward from this internships, I know that post-graduation, I would like to work in the field of corporate sustainability so that I can make change in how companies operate and affect the people and environment around them.
Learn more about Divya’s experience from her video!