Hey John,
So many of us on staff and in the network are beyond thrilled to have Bvlbancha elders Sharon Lavigne and Gail LeBoeuf as headliners for Power Shift 2023. The convergence is geared towards youth but we would be nowhere if it were not for the wisdom from organizers before us who are still fighting for their communities.
Sharon Lavigne founded RISE St. James, a faith-based, grassroots, nonprofit organization fighting for clean air and water as well as the eradication and expansion of petrochemical industries in St. James Parish. Recently Rise St James won a campaign against a billion dollar plastic manufacturing plant reminding us all that winning is possible and that large corporations are more vulnerable than we think they are.
Gail LeBoeuf is the co-founder of Inclusive Louisiana, a non-profit organization started in 2020 dedicated to protecting the residents of St. James and neighboring parishes from environmental harm caused by industrial pollution.
Our focus for Power Shift 2023 has always been about centering Bvlbancha. Since that can be done in so many different ways, we’re breaking down this 3-day climate justice gathering into themes that honor our goals in making PS23 a youth-centered space of joy and skill-building AND with the purpose of highlighting the issues and triumphs present in Bvlbancha. These speakers will ground us in these themes and remind us that our movement intersects these 5 pillars and weaves them together. Additionally, as we strive to make sure PS23 is a place where all freedom fighters see themselves, we hope to explore how the climate movement and other liberatory spaces can work together in the fight for justice and liberation using these themes as bridges.
Let’s CONVERGE to be the change we would like to see in the world.
Iesha Baldwin, Steering Committee Member at PSN
