Non-violent direct action (NVDA) has always been an integral part of the environmental movement. Obama’s recent speech in Cushing, OK endorsing construction of the southern leg of the Keystone XL pipeline means that our last opportunity to stop the pipeline will be over the next few months, so it is very important for us to be prepared. Over the next week there will be 99% spring trainings occurring across the country aimed at getting 100,000 people trained in NVDA. It is important for young environmental activists to attend these trainings to gain the skills we need to organize against issues currently affecting our communities. Climate justice issues have been less prominent in the struggles against corporate influence over our democracy since the start of the Occupy movement. Big banks are not just foreclosing on peoples’ homes, they are also funding dirty energy that poisons entire communities. When we mobilize against corporations like Monsanto, Transcanada, or Duke Energy we are joining in the struggle against the 1%. If youth activists aim to learn non-violent tactics well enough to be able to train and mobilize their own campuses and communities, we could bring environmental issues to the forefront of the Occupy movement. 

Click here to register for a training near you!