The first ripples of change often begin with civil society. Over time NGOs have used their speed, activism and collaborative approaches to influence actors within the UN process, as well as private sector players. Speakers include Jonathon Porritt, Vandana Shiva, Nitin Desai, Lester Brown, Bill Ford, Kris Gopaladrishman, Yolanda Kakabadse and Gro Harlem Brundtland.

Nikki Henderson sends the important message in this video of "gathering people together with food."  Food is a tool for social change.  All of our movements are the same, we are fighting for the same thing happy, healthy, thriving people and planet. The best way to weave us together?: Feed the People. Nikki is the Executive Director of People's Grocery in West Oakland, CA. Under her leadership, the organization has launched a new strategic campaign focused on revitalizing the economy of West Oakland through all aspects of the food system. In 2010, Nikki was featured in ELLE Magazine as one of the five Gold Awardees. She is speaking at the Connecting for Change Conference sponsored by the Marion Institute.

Meet Santa Cruz' Kyle Thiermann, one of the Earth Island Institute's 2011 Brower Youth Award Winners! Kyle's surf videos, Surfing for Change, have created millions of dollars in environmentally responsible investments.

Making environmental education fun and engaging for young folks is Victor Davila's passion, leading him to establish EcoRyders, a series of summer workshops that combine environmental and health education with skateboarding. Workshop participants build their own skateboards and learn about pressing environmental issues in their community. EcoRyders offers a way to tackle both high obesity rates among local youth as well as lack of public transportation in the area. He accepts the Brower Youth Award.

The Brower Youth Awards recognize people ages 13 to 22 living in North America who have shown outstanding leadership on a project or campaign with positive environmental and social impact.     

Rhiannon Tomtishen & Madison Vorva created Project ORANG (Orangutans Really Appreciate and Need Girls Scouts) in 2007. They discovered that the Girl Scouts' iconic cookies contain palm oil, and that palm oil plantations are one of the leading causes of orangutan habitat destruction. They started a campaign to get the Girl Scouts to replace palm oil with a more eco-friendly oil instead. They have since partnered with Rainforest Action Network, co-authoring a petition that has generated more than 70,000 emails to the Girl Scouts headquarters.  Both a great admirers of Jane Goodall.

Alex Epstein co-founded New York 2 New Orleans Coalition, an network of New York City high school students mobilizing around the parallel struggles of New Orleans and their own communities. When he moved to Philadelphia for college, Alex helped co-found The Philadelphia Urban Creators (PUC) — an outfit of young community organizers trying to build relationships with Philadelphia communities to help them develop sustainably, and equitably, from the ground up. He accepts the Brower Youth Award.

The Brower Youth Awards recognize people ages 13 to 22 living in North America who have shown outstanding leadership on a project or campaign with positive environmental and social impact.

Tania Pulido runs a community garden that's more than just a place to grow food. The Berryland garden in the Iron Triangle neighborhood of Richmond, CA, is also a space where local youth can take summer apprenticeships and learn about issues like climate change and environmental racism. Here is a video about her work in her community, a food desert.  Tania is deeply involved in issues impacting the health of her community, including a campaign against the local Chevron oil refinery. She accepts the Brower Youth Award.

The Brower Youth Awards recognize people ages 13 to 22 living in North America who have shown outstanding leadership on a project or campaign with positive environmental and social impact.  

Despite California legislation to address global warming, greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase. Four degree annual temperature rise is what we may expect. Randy Hayes, Rainforest Action Network founder, has been described in the Wall Street Journal as “an environmental pit bull.” He works from Washington DC at Foundation Earth, a new organization rethinking a human order that works within the planet’s life support systems.

How a young activist called Alec Loorz grew to be a main stage speaker at Bioneers.

The message to forget about guarding oneself and masking who you are, rather, to be honest and dismiss the pretense that everyone wil like you or agree with you is essential to furthering cause of sustainability.  The Reverend Renee Ward courageously champions causes close to her heart without worrying about what people think or whether they agree with her.  Her speech was sponsored by TEDxConcordiaUPortland. Their 2012 schedule of speeches is here.