For me, seeing energy and organizing from young people is incredibly motivating. I grew up feeling ambivalent to the world. I knew things were wrong,… - Yessenia Funes

Vote! What we need is systemic change, and that'll only happen if the right people are in office. So vote! Or if you can't vote, contribute to get-out-the-vote campaigns. Phone bank. Post to social media. Call your local representatives. Make change happen on a bigger level than yourself. Definitely do your part, too, but know that's not enough. Not at this point. The situation is too far gone to rely on individuals to clean this up. It's up to world leaders to enact policy that'll end fossil fuels for good and create a just, sustainable world for us all.

My greatest hope is the youth. They see the issue for what it is. They see it through this racial lens. They understand all the ways it's set to impact their lives, their futures, the world.

For a long time, environmental justice was kept separate from the environment at large. It's become "mainstream" only recently, so it just wasn't something the general public–including reporters—really knew about. We see that slowly changing, and we're seeing more environmental reporters become more sophisticated in their understanding of environmental issues and how they impact communities of color. I pursued this because I was, first, interested in racial justice. I knew I wanted to be a reporter that uncovered societal harms right away, but it was only when I realized the severity of the climate crisis that I bridged those two interests together. Once I found out what "environmental justice" was, it was a wrap. I knew that was the beat for me. And it was clear to me that there weren't enough reporters out there covering it.