ISEC Fall Conference 2011
DePaul University was the place to be this weekend when over 30 students from across the region gathered to address Illinois’s environmental issues at the annual ISEC Conference. The two day conference consisted of several training and networking sessions plus a guest speaker.
The majority of the first day, Saturday, was spent on leadership training. Interspersed with some food breaks, the first rate training, run by Allison Fisher of the Sierra Club, was long and intense but highly informative and enlightening. Students learned how assess themselves and their motives, how their interest intersected with the self interest of potential recruits and allies, how to plan and run effective meetings, and it all comes together to make positive change. In the later half of the day, ISEC training students gathered with IRON student network trainees in a discussion of common values and goals.
Sunday, was broken down into multiple sessions. The day opened with a “global warming café” where various tables of participants were given a question on a large sheet of (eco-friendly) paper and were to write down their responses. There were three trainings through the day all about different forms of advocacy led by students and field experts. Jennifer Walling of the Illinois Environmental Council, gave an excellent and inspiring key note address and the day ended with Caroline Wooten of University of Chicago giving everyone a perspective of their work and efforts in the larger picture.
In the end the conference was an overwhelming success with attendees very happy and empowered. Here’s hoping to a bright and victorious future for student environmental initiatives in Illinois!
Global Warming Cafe
Below are photos of the posters we completed during the Global Warming Cafe. Each person spent five minutes at each poster and discussed the relevant question with a small group of students. They wrote down the ideas and thoughts that were inspired by each question.
Click on the image to view a larger version and read the comments on each poster.
