Pitzer’s Redford Conservancy Speaker Calls for a Climate Justice Movement

Claremont, Calif. (October 5, 2018)—The Robert Redford Conservancy for Southern California Sustainability at Pitzer College presents “People on the Move: Organizing for Climate Justice,” a lecture by political scientist Dr. Hahrie Han. Supported by a grant from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, “People on the Move” will explore the need for a social movement to address the power dynamics that underlie climate injustice. The event, which is free and open to the public, will be held on Thursday, October 11, at 4:15 p.m. in Pitzer’s Benson Auditorium.

Han, who is the Anton Vonk Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Santa Barbara, will examine what we know—and don’t know—about how to organize constituencies to increase their power and influence. She specializes in the study of civic and political participation, collective action, organizing and social change, especially in relation to environmental issues, social policy and democratic revitalization. Han is the author of three books, including How Organizations Develop Activists: Civic Associations and Leadership in the 21st Century.

“People on the Move” will examine how ordinary people can mobilize for an ecologically sustainable future, said Brinda Sarathy, the director of the Robert Redford Conservancy and a professor of environmental analysis at Pitzer.

“Everyone needs to be engaged in order to advocate for not only policy change, but also to fundamentally restructure the dominant and extractive socio-economic systems that collectively harm the wellbeing of our one shared home,” Sarathy said.

This talk is the latest in a series of Robert Redford Conservancy events focused on the climate crisis. In December 2017, the Redford Conservancy received a $50,000, two-year grant from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund to increase public understanding of climate justice and find effective ways to address climate change’s global repercussions. This February, the Rockefeller Fund-supported Redford Conservancy symposium, “Climate Change, Climate Justice: Organizing in the Face of a Changing Planet” invited the public to join activists and scholars who are fighting for a just, sustainable future.

The Redford Conservancy’s programs build upon and expand Pitzer’s longstanding commitment to protecting the environment. One of the first colleges in the US to establish an environmental studies program in the ’70s, Pitzer launched the Fossil Fuel Divestment-Climate Action Model in 2014, making Pitzer the first private college or university in California to divest its endowment from fossil fuel. Last year, Pitzer partnered with the investment firm BlackRock, Inc. to create a first-ever global equity index fund that is both Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)-focused and fossil fuel-free for foundations.

Established in 2012, Robert Redford Conservancy for Southern California Sustainability at Pitzer College creates innovative academic programming and interdisciplinary education around environmental challenges while facilitating Pitzer’s own commitment to sustainability. Academically driven by the liberal arts, and guided by Pitzer’s core values of social responsibility and environmental sustainability, the Redford Conservancy engages interdisciplinary and collaborative approaches to environmental issues. The Redford Conservancy building was awarded LEED Platinum certification by the US Green Building Council in 2018 and is on track to become the first net-zero energy facility at The Claremont Colleges.

About Pitzer College

Pitzer College is a nationally top-ranked undergraduate liberal arts and sciences institution. A member of The Claremont Colleges, Pitzer offers a distinctive approach to a liberal arts education by linking intellectual inquiry with interdisciplinary studies, cultural immersion, social responsibility, and community involvement. For more information, please visit www.pitzer.edu.

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