What are we asking our elected officials to support?
The goal of the Nationwide Youth Lobby Day is to support science-based and equitable climate policy in states across the country. States serve as laboratories for democracy, and by passing strong state-level climate policy, we will reduce emissions now and lay the groundwork for federal action.
Our Climate supports the following policy principles; in some states, legislation has been introduced that aligns with this platform, and we are working closely with state partners to get the policy passed. If you’re not sure what specific policy to ask for, we encourage you to ask your elected officials to sign the Nationwide Youth Lobby Day endorsement. If you’re organizing lobby visits and would like support formulating an appropriate ask, please do not hesitate to reach out to our Deputy Director at [email protected].
Do we need to schedule meetings ourselves?
Yes. Event organizers can schedule the meetings or decide to support attendees in scheduling their meetings. We suggest folks compile a list of elected officials they’d like to meet with on April 9th and then search for the phone number or email of that legislative offices’ scheduler and request a meeting. Most offices will ask if a constituent (a person who lives or is registered to vote in the district) will be present at the meeting. For this reason, we recommend scheduling meetings for the folks who have RSVP’d, as well as any important legislators such as bill sponsors or relevant committee chairs.
If you do not have time or capacity to schedule meetings, it’s okay! You can still drop by legislators’ offices. If further support would benefit you, please do not hesitate to reach out to our Deputy Director at [email protected]
How do I prepare for a meeting?
Our Climate recently published a lobbying toolkit that can support you in preparing for your meetings with elected officials.
Should we track the information from the meeting?
Yes! We’re holding a partner call on April 2nd at 4pm PT/7pm ET to share information and resources that will support the “day of” and “follow up” execution of the event. These calls will discuss how to track information learned in the meetings, important day-of materials, media materials, and more.
What can I do if I live too far from my state capitol?
If you aren’t able to join an action near you on April 9th, we suggest setting up meetings at in-district offices with your elected officials for a later date, or you organize an letter writing event in your community where youth can take action from afar. On April 9th, you can also tweet in support of science based and equitable climate policy using the event hashtags, #YouthLobby and #WhoSaysYouthDontLobby.