Author's posts
Nov 09 2022
Students Vote For The Planet
October 27- November 9, 2022: STF chapters hosted mock elections, interactive tent events, and classroom presentations as their final get out the vote efforts leading up to the 2022 midterm elections. STFers highlighted the importance of being prepared and making informed decisions about candidates and propositions when voting. Chapter members extensively researched the issues of …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/students-vote-for-the-planet/
Oct 06 2022
STF Shines at HRW’s Voices for Justice Dinner
Photos by Sarah Desage, Kamelia Photography and Leela Cullity Younger October 6, 2022: Attendees at the 2022 HRW Voices For Justice Dinner enjoyed an evening with Human Rights Watch staff who investigate US democracy, children’s rights and LGBTQ rights. To kick off the event, in a private meet and greet with HRW researchers Hye Jung Han and Amanda …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/stf-shines-at-hrws-voices-for-justice-dinner/
Sep 30 2022
Challenging Caruso at Rally
September 23, 2022: Late last Friday afternoon, as the STF Global Climate Strike demonstration was ending on Sunset Boulevard in Pacific Palisades, one student shouted, “There’s Rick Caruso!” The Los Angeles Mayoral candidate (versus Karen Bass) was across the street, walking his dog while touring his mall, Palisades Village. Several STFers from Palisades Charter High School waited for a green light, then ran across Sunset and talked Caruso into visiting their rally…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/challenging-caruso-at-rally/
Sep 27 2022
Registering for the Planet
STFers across Southern California hosted events and rallies in honor of National Voter Registration Day and the 2022 Global Climate Strike. They urged classmates and community members to consider the future of the planet at the polls this November and joined in solidarity with thousands of young people worldwide who strive to keep the climate crisis front of mind for those in power…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/registering-for-the-planet/
Sep 13 2022
Let’s Get Started!
It’s time to hit the ground running on our Fall 2022 Vote for the Planet Campaign! Be sure to explore the resources and information available in our new toolkit to help you get started. It’s up to us to demand climate change is addressed and encourage our communities to vote for the planet this fall…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/lets-get-started/
Sep 10 2022
Disrupting the System
September 10, 2022: “The most critical thing youth can do right now is to combat greenwashing. Call out BS where you see it. Educate yourself so when the time comes for you to advocate on this issue, you can knock these people flat down,” said Sim Bilal, 20-year-old climate activist from South LA, to participants at STF’s 2022 Fall Leadership Workshop…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/disrupting-the-system/
Sep 01 2022
STF’s Human Rights and the Climate Crisis Campaign in Review
We’re thrilled to share our Human Rights and the Climate Crisis Campaign in Review! Explore highlights from STF’s work to bring renewable energy and climate education to campuses. Students and teachers will use this resource in our ongoing activism to fight climate change during this Fall’s midterm elections. Congratulations on all your accomplishments, we look …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/stfs-human-rights-and-the-climate-crisis-campaign-in-review/
Aug 24 2022
RSVP Today! STF Fall Leadership Workshop, Saturday, September 10
Join us Saturday, September 10 from 11am to 1pm on Zoom for our 2022 Fall STF Leadership Workshop! We’re excited to announce Sim Bilal, a youth climate activist featured in the LA Times, will help us kick off our Vote for the Planet Campaign…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/rsvp-today-stf-fall-leadership-workshop-saturday-september-10/
Aug 18 2022
Student-Led Green Energy Plan Passes in Long Beach!
On Wednesday evening, the Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD) school board unanimously approved Board Proposal 3510.1, better known as the Green School Operations – Energy and Sustainability Policy. That action was the culmination of two years of activism by the Long Beach Green Schools Campaign…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/student-led-green-energy-plan-passes-in-long-beach/
Jun 08 2022
HRW’s LA Film Club is In-Person!
The Human Rights Watch Film Club invites you to an in-person screening and discussion of: Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America. The screening will be held at New Roads School (map) on Sunday, June 26, 2022. Doors open at 4pm. The film will be followed by a Q&A and reception with food. Student and educator …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/hrws-la-film-club-is-in-person/
May 27 2022
Standing Strong for Climate Action
To end the academic year strong, several STF chapters hosted events throughout May. They demonstrated their firm commitment to the Human Rights and the Climate Crisis Campaign by continuing efforts for climate action and education within their communities…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/standing-strong-for-climate-action/
Apr 29 2022
Save the Date! Saturday, May 21, STF’s Year-End Celebration
Please join us at the beach for STF’s 2021-2022 Year-End Celebration on Saturday, May 21! We will have a short program reflecting on the year’s accomplishments and a chance to get to know members from across STF. Lunch and tents will be provided. Bring a beach chair or blanket!
RSVP by May 14 to let us know if you can attend!
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/save-the-date-saturday-may-21-stfs-year-end-celebration/
Apr 22 2022
Earth Day The STF Way!
April 22, 2022: Students across STF campuses participated in events to acknowledge Earth Day. From educational activities on environmental justice and renewable energy to die-ins and climate games, STFers raised their voices for the planet and challenged their peers to do the same. Check out this sampling of STF’s Earth Day events!
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/earth-day-the-stf-way/
Mar 31 2022
We Mourn the Loss of a Witness to the Holocaust
March 31, 2022: STF mourns the loss of William (“Bill”) Harvey, who generously shared with students his heartrending story of surviving the Holocaust, including two of the infamous Nazi concentration camps, Auschwitz and Buchenwald. In 2020, right before Covid closed our schools, Bill spoke at the STF Winter Workshop. How fortunate we all were to meet and learn from his testimony…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/we-mourn-the-loss-of-a-witness-to-the-holocaust/
Mar 23 2022
Crisis In A Tent!
Wednesday, March 23: Palisades Charter High School STF hosted their all-day climate education tent event in the center quad. Seven classes with students from all four grade levels visited the tents. They learned general climate crisis facts and filled out a survey to share if they’ve learned about climate change in school. They explored four types of renewable energy and heard more about STF’s goal to transition Pali to solar-powered energy…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/crisis-in-a-tent/
Feb 11 2022
TREE Academy’s Board Stands with STF
February 11, 2022: Students from the Human Rights Watch Student Task Force (STF) class at TREE Academy for the Creative Arts, New Technology & Social Justice met with their Board of Directors to ask for their support to switch TREE’s campus to renewable energy. Along with giving the Board their petition signed by 85% of students and teachers, STFers presented a proposal asking for financial support to invest in solar panels and purchase renewable energy from the Southern California Edison Clean Power Alliance to transition the school campus to 100% renewable energy…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/tree-academys-board-stands-with-stf/
Feb 11 2022
STF Meets LAUSD Board Rep. Nick Melvoin
Human Rights Watch Student Task Force (STF) members at Palisades Charter High School met last week with Nick Melvoin, who represents LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District) Board District # 4. Their meeting was a result of Pali’s clean energy resolution — the first-ever student-led resolution presented to the Pali Board of Trustees, which was unanimously passed last May, and commits the school to 100% renewable energy within the next 10 years. Palisades students are now looking for Nick Melvoin’s support to push their renewable energy resolution forward in LAUSD, the nation’s second largest school district…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/stf-meets-lausd-board-rep-nick-melvoin/
Jan 29 2022
The Road To “Yes” Is Paved With “No”
January 29, 2022: “Don’t be afraid of rejection. Every conversation you have is a little step in the right direction, and those inches become feet and the feet become miles,” said Anisa Nanavati, a 17-year-old climate advocate from Tampa, Florida, to participants at the 2022 STF Winter Leadership Workshop on Saturday, January 29. Anisa shared her experiences as a climate advocate and encouraged students not to give up on their efforts to transition their schools to 100% renewable energy…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/the-road-to-yes-is-paved-with-no/
Jan 28 2022
Action: Louder Than Words
As we kickoff the final push of our current Human Rights and the Climate Crisis campaign tomorrow at the STF Winter Leadership Workshop, we will reflect on our efforts to transition our schools to 100% renewable energy. STFers have demonstrated time and again that action speaks louder than words! Here is a sampling of STF chapters’ …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/action-louder-than-words/
Jan 09 2022
Learn about “The New Corporation”
We are excited to kick off the year with an HRW Film Club screening of The New Corporation: The Unfortunately Necessary Sequel streaming virtually from January 21-23 in partnership with SIMA.
STF students and teachers are eligible for comp tickets to the virtual event. RSVP to receive the film link and access to the live panel discussion and Q& A on January 23 at 4pm PT.
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/learn-about-the-new-corporation/
Dec 19 2021
Two Student Voices
Victoria Valdez, STF leader at Hamilton HS, and Angel Macario-Flores, STF leader at Palisades Charter HS attended meetings this fall as the only student representatives on the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Clean Energy Task Force. The task force was created to honor LAUSD’s commitment to transition to 100% renewable energy by 2040.
They share about their experience…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/two-student-voices/
Dec 14 2021
STF Honors Human Rights Day
Friday, December 10, 2021 was the 73rd anniversary of the United Nations’ adoption of the Universal Declaration for Human Rights (UDHR), a document that proclaims the rights of every human being, regardless of race, gender, age, nationality, religion, political opinion, birth place, or any other status. STFers celebrated this milestone and raised awareness about human …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/stf-honors-human-rights-day/
Dec 10 2021
Our Shared Humanity
December 10, 2021, by Tirana Hassan, HRW’s Deputy Executive Director and Chief Programs Officer: Human Rights Day – the anniversary of the 1948 adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – is a day to celebrate our shared humanity. We have the chance to reflect areas where we can make rights a reality as we …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/fridaysforfuture-our-shared-humanity/
Nov 28 2021
Heartbreak into Action
To the thousands of STF students and teachers who met and worked with Katie-Jay Scott and Gabriel Stauring,
Last Tuesday evening a local car crash took the lives of our friends Katie-Jay and Gabriel. The devastating news brings not only heartbreak, but also a flood of memories of their actions to spread peace and love. Many of us were blessed to work with these two wonderous humanitarians since 2005. Over the following years, thousands of us followed them via satellite phone transmissions on trips to the Darfuri refugee camps in eastern Chad, and they continually found new ways to introduce us to survivors they befriended in the camps, putting faces and hearts to a distant crisis. We learned from Katie-Jay and Gabriel how to broaden awareness by building Camp Darfurs, and Children’s Rights Camps in our schools, and they worked with us to assemble mobile human rights libraries that traveled in the refugee camps. STFers were inspired to meet with policy makers to press for support for the refugees and ending the genocide. We were all emboldened by Katie-Jay and Gabriel’s call for “Humanity Over Politics.” Once they touched our lives, that can not be taken away…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/heartbreak-into-action/
Nov 16 2021
Sky’s the Limit
Check out this drone footage of Palisades Charter HS STFers collaborating with 5 classes to form a “100” to represent 100% renewable energy for Pali.
This demonstration was their November 5 advocacy event. Pali STF leaders are using this video to raise awareness at school, in the community and in their advocacy with school decision-makers.
We invite each chapter to share their creative activism to fight climate change!
Permanent link to this article: https://www.hrwstf.org/wordpress/skys-the-limit/
