Photo by Devra
I’m not much of a botanist. I have a very black thumb and unlike others at Sierra Club, I can’t seem to remember the names of plants. I’ve been on hikes with traditional medicine men and can point out Navajo tea, tobacco, and a few other medicines, but plants don’t always speak to me. The Monterey Pine, however, has caught my attention. It reminds me of the saying, “They tried to bury us, but they didn’t know we were seeds.” You see, the cone of this tree builds up hundreds of seeds over a course of years and only when subjected to intense pressure like fire, heat, or humidity does the cone release the seeds. A natural mechanism designed to ensure the pine’s survival after devastating events like wildfire.
I had the pleasure of seeing a Monterey Pine on the beach last week in California. I traveled to a meeting of senior program leaders strategizing about how to win the struggle for a stable climate and a just transition. Under immense pressure, our leaders are gathering, organizing, and planning for the future we wish to build.
Sierra Club leaders on retreat, planning for 2019
I see the same pattern all around me. Sierra Club, and the broader movement for environmental and climate justice, have never been under greater pressure in all our long history. We have only 12 years remaining to avoid catastrophic levels of climate change. Meanwhile, this country is led by a person who believes climate change is a hoax. Our communities are being divided by family separation and physical walls. Hate crimes are on the rise. But in the midst of all this pressure, all this ugliness -- we are growing seeds.
At the meeting, I was grateful to hear about some of those seeds that we’re growing. We spent a lot of time discussing our Clean Energy for All initiative, which is all about unifying Sierra Club’s existing and evolving energy, movement, justice and equity work into one cohesive and inspirational vision designed to fundamentally transform not just how we power this country but also who has power in this country. Clean Energy for All is led by trusted organizational leaders Eva Hernandez-Simmons and Hop Hopkins, who are putting forth a vision that says communities impacted first and worst by climate change and environmental injustice should benefit the most from the transition to a clean energy economy. The seeds they are offering into the world are profound -- whole new ways of thinking about how to live by the Jemez Principles in everything we do, and how to transform our whole economy and society at the scale needed to meet the coming climate crisis.
Realizing this vision wouldn’t be possible without the work of leaders like Sarah Matsumoto, Byron Gudiel, and Lisa Hoyos. They are transforming Sierra Club’s organizing department and Climate Parents to build collective power among communities beyond Sierra Club, and to work in partnership with local communities in a way that honors their self-determination. The actions of the current presidential administration, and their allies in state and federal office, are constantly driving people to take action to protect the planet, people who might never have been inspired to do so before. Our victories may be slower, and our challenges greater under this administration, but we are using this moment of opportunity to grow and organize. Every day organizers at Sierra Club are cultivating seeds of new volunteers, new relationships, and building bridges between struggles.
At the meeting, I found myself being particularly inspired by our plan to train over 2,000 people in equity-centered movement building and self-transformation over the coming years. Our training team, led by Alicia Ybarra, is creating thousands of seeds by investing in the skills of people in the Sierra Club community. Thanks to her and the training team, I feel confident that we are working to build the most highly skilled movement possible. Every one of us is a seed, and we have everything we need right here in our community and our movements to reverse the course of our backwards democracy and to unwind the climate crisis ahead.
The leadership of every one of the people I mentioned was cultivated and fostered in one way or another by a person to whom we gathered last week in part to say goodbye. Sarah Hodgdon is an icon at Sierra Club, someone who has led organizational transformation processes, pushed for equity and justice commitments, mentored young women and people of color, and invested in the success of future leaders. After 12 years of leadership at the highest levels of the organization, Sarah is leaving Sierra Club. Behind her, she leaves a legacy of all that is good, upright, bold, and brazen. She leaves behind a multitude of leaders that are ready to step up, seeds ready to be released into the world.
Sarah and Nellis
On my way to the meeting, I stood in line at the gate to board and was bombarded by three different TV screens, all different news stations, all crawling with updates about Trump’s threats to shut down our government if he doesn’t get his border wall. A white man can stomp his feet and tweet and throw a tantrum and suddenly his face is on every TV.
Our work is much quieter, much slower, and more thoughtful. But despite the pressure, the fire, and the hate-filled violence that Trump has brought into our world -- our seeds are many, and ready to release.