Greenhouse Lasses Greenhouse Lasses

With so much attention to social justice and climate change, companies are evolving their messaging from strategic branding with feel-good sprinkles of philanthropy and social responsibility, to leading their brand with purpose. This sounds great, but what does ‘purpose-driven’ even mean? How can companies not only drive responsible practices, but leverage their unique strengths as a business to create meaningful social impact for their communities? In this episode, we chat with Christine Lacayo and Suzie Gamboa, co-founders of Siembra Studios. Siembra Studios helps changemakers and social impact brands unearth their message and identity of change for a more sustainable and regenerative future. Christine and Suzie’s combined strengths of multilingual copywriting and narrative development, ethical brand identities, graphic design and responsible business practices enable them to help brands lead with purpose.

Notes:


Siembra Studios: Learn more about Siembra Studios at their website: https://www.siembrastudios.eco/ and/or by emailing them: hello@siembrastudios.eco
Learn more about the triple bottom line: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/triple-bottom-line.asp

Ever wonder what it’s like to protect public spaces and communities, from parks across the Garden State to the Amazonian Rainforest? Us, too! Join us as we chat with Jamie Carpenter, Program Specialist with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. In this episode, Jamie tells us about volunteering in the Brazilian Amazon with the Notre Dame Mission Volunteers International, recounts trekking across the Alaskan wilderness surviving on pancake mix, and reveals which Parks and Recreation character she identifies with alongside her public service experience advancing disaster relief and public land allocation...Notes:

Interested in the activism work Jamie did in Brazil? Get involved! https://www.ndmva.org/ 

Learn about the Green Acres Program here: https://www.nj.gov/dep/greenacres/ and Blue Acres Floodplain Acquisitions here: https://www.nj.gov/dep/greenacres/blue_flood_ac.html
Learn more about Rayanne Cristine Maximo Franca and many other Brazilian women activists worth your support: https://www.dazeddigital.com/politics/article/45703/1/the-fight-to-save-the-amazon-rainforest-youth-activist-protest

Learn about the land rights activist and Catholic nun Dorothy Stang who was killed and help remember her: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/religion/sister-dorothy-stang-died-fighting-for-brazils-landless-10-years-later-not-much-has-changed/2015/02/12/c68a64a0-b2f7-11e4-bf39-5560f3918d4b_story.html

When asked to define her purpose, Brittany wrote: ‘Commitment to securing a safe climate by championing civic engagement, dismantling white supremacy and empowering problems solvers to build a more sustainable world.’ Brittany Bennett is a Development Director at Data For Progress, helping define what the job market will look like under the Green New Deal and how to integrate racial justice initiatives that better diversify the emerging low-carbon workforce. Brittany studied engineering at Smith College and became Executive Director for the Engineers for a Sustainable World conference, which focuses on empowering young engineers to build purposeful careers. In this episode, she shares her journey of finding the best way to leverage her unique skills to make the world better, the importance of self-care, the power of young people today and how we can all step up in pushing for positive change for our planet, our people and our economy.

This episode was recorded on August 11, 2019.

Notes:
- Shortly after we recorded this episode, Jay Inslee dropped out of the presidential race and is now seeking reelection as governor of Washington state. Check out his plans for 100% clean energy, community climate justice and more: https://www.jayinslee.com/issues
- Learn more about Data for Progress, an interdisciplinary group of experts leveraging data science to inform progressive policies and initiatives: https://www.dataforprogress.org/
- Learn more about The Sunrise Movement, a movement of young people to stop climate change: https://www.sunrisemovement.org/
- Learn more about SustainUS, a youth-led organization advancing justice and sustainability by empowering young people to engage in advocacy: http://sustainus.org/
- Website mentioned to help you find work in the clean energy sector: https://www.dayawaycareers.com/
- Sierra Club & Women’s Earth Alliance Accelerator for Women Environmental Leaders: http://womensearthalliance.org/projects/u-s-grassroots-accelerator-for-women-environmental-leaders/
- Are you a student interested in developing solutions to our climate crisis? Check out upcoming environmental hackathon dates at https://www.earthhacks.io/our-hackathons

So 100%, we all understand the importance of access to and emphasis on clean, renewable energy, but are we talking enough about energy poverty? Over 30% of people in the US struggle to pay their energy bills, with some dedicating up to 20% of their total income to this expense. Of the people surveyed reporting this burden, over half identified as Black and 40% identified as Latinx, making this a racial equity issue. While in some parts of the country, deregulated energy markets allow customers to shop around for the best rates, the process can be confusing and misleading. With this in mind, Naman and his co-founder Ben created WattBuy to help build transparency in the electricity market, and empower customers to make informed decisions to reduce their energy costs and opt into renewable energy. Between working on the Obama administration, one of the biggest tech companies in the world and running a start-up, Naman has a diverse perspective on just how serious the problem of energy burden is. Tune in to this episode to hear about Naman’s experience in these three sectors and how you too can tap into your strengths, skills and interests to drive positive change.
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Learn more about WattBuy: https://wattbuy.com/
Info on Regulated & Deregulated Energy Markets: https://infocastinc.com/market-insights/solar/regulated-deregulated-energy-markets/
One in three U.S. households faces a challenge in meeting energy needs: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=37072
Lifting the High Energy Burden in America’s Largest Cities: How Energy Efficiency Can Improve Low Income and Underserved Communities: https://www.energyefficiencyforall.org/resources/lifting-the-high-energy-burden-in-americas-largest-cities-how-energy/

It’s 2019, yet our society wants mothers to work as if they don’t have kids AND for mothers to have kids as if they don’t work. Join us for Episode 7 with Energy Bees co-founder Sadie Bronk as we walk through her career and life journey from navigating an unexpected career path out of college, becoming a director by age 35, to starting a small, women-owned and LGBTQ-owned business soon after becoming a mother.
Notes:
Learn more about Sadie’s company Energy Bees: http://www.energybees.com/
While we didn’t cover it in this episode, we want to reiterate that reproductive rights and the right to family leave is not solely a women’s issue. Our current dialogue leaves out trans and gender non-binary + people out, but they have just as much of a right to these as cis-gender women: https://www.peoplesworld.org/article/trans-communities-are-being-left-out-of-abortion-debate/
Further reading on parental leave:
How the US Ranks Globally: https://time.com/5590167/paid-family-leave-united-states/
Conversations Around Corporate Funded Leave: https://www.forbes.com/sites/marybethferrante/2019/01/10/in-the-fight-for-paid-parental-leave-6-months-should-be-the-minimum/#686dcc512073

Environmental health issues disproportionately affect communities of color, yet these very communities are underrepresented in green advocacy groups. On this episode, we chat with Virginia Palacios, a 10th generation Tejana, grasstops activist and environmental scientist turned eco-entrepreneur about her work on environmental justice issues in Texas, how she helped expand Environmental Defense Fund’s diversity initiatives and her hopes to continue working on the intersection of energy, government and advocacy in her hometown community of Laredo, TX and beyond. 
Notes:

Check out Virginia’s blog posts from her time at EDF for more background on her environmental justice work: http://blogs.edf.org/texascleanairmatters/author/vpalacios/
Green and Healthy Homes Initiative: the organization discussed that completes energy efficiency retrofits in coordination with public health funders for indoor air quality
For more stats and reports addressing diversity in green groups, follow Green 2.0’s work: https://www.diversegreen.org/the-challenge/
Confronting Racism article discussed by Lesley: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/mar/28/confronting-racism-is-not-about-the-needs-and-feelings-of-white-people
Mayor Ron Nirenberg won re-election, read the San Antonio Climate Action and Adaptation draft plan here: https://saclimateready.org/about-us/draft-climate-action-adaptation-plan/