Register now–July 13! Fall in Love with the Future. Empowering Local Climate Action: Education, Policy and Practice

Kick off your PNW Climate Week Right!

We are thrilled to announce that this event is officially the opening event for PNW Climate Week in Portland! There is no better way to launch a week dedicated to our planet than by grounding ourselves in hope, strategy and community.

It is easy to feel overwhelmed by the headlines. But what if we did something radical to start our week? What if we allowed ourselves to fall in love with the future, and then figured out exactly how to build it?

Join Future Climate Collective, Lewis & Clark Law School and its Green Energy Institute for a day of “Empowering Local Climate Action: Education, Policy and Practice.”

This is not your average climate conference. This is a hands-on, high-energy day designed to make a sustainable future feel completely irresistible, giving you the skills, connections, and blueprints needed to spark real change. Whether you are a high school student finding your voice or a lifelong advocate looking for fresh strategy, this event if so anyone who wants to feel better about our climate future and learn how we get there.

Featured Experience: The “We Did It!” Visioning Session

We are skipping the boring introductory speeches. We are starting our day–and PNW Climate Week–by leaping forward in time to practice what Rob Hopkins calls “radical imagination.”

Imagine this: We’ve been to the future, and we did it! What does Portland look like, feel like, and breathe like? We will work in interactive groups to map out our ultimate climate goals. As we talk, a live visual artist will draw our collective hopes and dreams, right before our eyes, creating a vibrant, visual blueprint for the rest of the week and beyond.

Choose Your Track: Panels & Workshops

Law Professor Melissa Powers will set the stage for the day, to help understand what is happening on climate policy and why.

Then, inspired by John Doerr’s Speed & Scale: An Action Plan for Solving Our Climate Crisis Now, we will enjoy panels and workshops focused on the following topics:

Decarbonizing the Grid and Infrastructure: Learn about how you can engage on the proliferation of data centers, and what kinds of alternatives exist for heating without natural gas

Electrifying Transportation: How to “electrify” school commutes, lower air pollution in neighborhoods, and ensure EV charging is available for everyone

Fixing Food: Implementing “Food Rescue” programs in schools and navigating sustainable agriculture

Protecting Nature: Learn how lawyers are protecting our natural places and how you can help

Cleaning Up Industry: Clean Tech hubs in the PNW and “green collar” jobs in your backyard? Yes, please!

Enjoy a keynote at 5:30 pm from Protect Our Winters.