More Information for Schools Attending the 2018 Rally for the Planet!

Agenda for the Day
(subject to minor changes)

8:30am – 10:00am – Drop-Off and Staging

Busses drop students off at Montpelier High School. There will be a number of activities for students to engage in, such as making signs for the march, face painting, and participating in various art projects.

10:00am – 10:15am – Youth March

Vermont youth and their allies march in solidarity to the Statehouse lawn.

10:15am – 11:00am – Sound Check! Social Justice Band Performs

Link to Sound Check website – http://www.brianboyes.com/soundcheck-1/

11:00am – 11:30am – Speak Out!

Students will listen to young performers and speakers share their thoughts on climate change.

11:30am- 12:00 pm – Tabling, Preparing to talk to your legislators, Music

Learn more about solutions to climate change and proposed legislation, get ready to speak with your lawmakers, and groove to some sweet vibes from Televici, a band of students from Montpelier High School and U32.

12:00pm – 12:45pm – Lobbying & Lunch

Speak directly with your local lawmakers on climate change and/or other important issues. This is also the time to eat lunch (we ask everybody to bring their own lunch) or get ice cream. There will also be a number of activities to participate in on the lawn.

12:45 – 1:00pm – Televici plays again to get everybody back together

1:00pm – 1:15pm – Keynote Speeches

Students will hear some closing thoughts from our keynote speakers.

1:15 pm – 1:45 pm – Tabling, Networking, and More Activities

As Televici plays on, students will have the opportunity to continue visiting the tables and booths and/or engage with students from other schools in a dialogue about how to follow up on our rally.

Departure Time

There will be rolling departure times, to accommodate the needs of different schools:

1:00pm, 1:15pm, 1:30pm, 1:45pm & 2:00pm departure slots will be available

Bus Drop-Off & Parking

We are asking school busses to drop off students at Montpelier High School between 8:30am and 10am. After dropping off students, bus drivers can find ample parking either in the front parking lot at Montpelier High School (the dirt parking lot) or at the State of Vermont Department of Labor Parking Lot (see map below). Parking for cars is available in many locations throughout Montpelier, but there are no ‘official’ parking lots for this event. You may also use the State of Vermont Department of Labor Parking Lot if you’d like.

The Staging Area

After students are dropped off at MHS, they can stop by the VT Youth Lobby table for more information about the day’s events. They can also engage in a number of activities, including sign making, face-painting, tattoos, etc.

The March (Note: We will be marching from MHS this year, not the VCFA)

The march from the Montpelier High School to the Statehouse Lawn will begin promptly at 10:00. All marchers are required to stay in one lane of the road and obey all instructions given by the event marshals.

Code of Conduct

Please share with your students how special this event is and remind them to be respectful at all times. All normal school rules apply.
Please remind students this is a rally, not a protest. We are encouraging all students to be positive and productive, and to engage at all times in respectful dialogue and civil discourse.
Please remind students to be good environmental stewards by picking up trash whenever and wherever they see it. We want to leave the Montpelier cleaner than we found it. Remember to leave no trace.
Please encourage students to dress up for the event and look professional.
Please remind students the event is on the Statehouse lawn and we are asking all students to stay on the Statehouse lawn and to refrain from walking downtown.

Please Pack A Lunch

Lunch will not be available at the event and we are asking all students to bring a packed lunch. We are also requesting that students stay on the Statehouse lawn and refrain from visiting any downtown restaurants. Our goal is to produce as little trash as possible, so please share the following tips with your students…

Tips for Creating a Lunch with Less Waste

Ditch the brown bag and choose a reusable lunchbox or lunch bag instead.
Use a cloth napkin (i.e., one that can be washed and reused) instead of paper napkins or towels. 3. Pack metal utensils instead of plastic.
Use a refillable water or juice bottle (i.e., don’t pack juice boxes and plastic water bottles).
Avoid single serve packaging; buy your food in bulk and pack in reusable containers.

Try to avoid plastic bags. Remember to compost your food scraps at the end of lunch, recycle any plastic containers (that is not a reusable one from home) and bring home any containers, napkins or utensils to be washed and used again! These small changes will end up making a big difference.

Legislation We Support, Signs, and Chant Ideas

(Note: While the students in the Youth Lobby have identified specific positions on particular legislation, individual students are free to lobby for or against any legislation they feel strongly about.)

Check out our Supported Legislation/Signs/Chants Document for specific suggestions on legislation we support, possible language for signs, and chants.

While there will be some supplies and an opportunity to create banners and signs from 9am-10am at Montpelier High School, we are highly recommending that schools create most of their signs ahead of time. Try hosting a Sign-Making party at your school!

We are also asking each school to create a large banner identifying the school they are from.

Banners and posters can have general messages about taking action on climate change or more specific messages that support some or all of the following legislative actions we supported this year:

We support the Essex Plan to put a price on carbon pollution and the recommendation made by the Governors climate commission to conduct a feasibility research study on a carbon pollution tax.

http://vnrc.org/the-essex-plan-pricing-pollution-to-boost-vermonts-economy/

https://www.energyindependentvt.org/

We support legislation that would ban all new fossil fuel infrastructure in the state of Vermont.

http://350vermont.org/prevent-fossil-fuel-infrastructure-testimony/

https://secure2.convio.net/vpirg/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=466

We support spending 85% of the Volkswagen ‘clean’ diesel settlement on electric school buses.

http://www.youthlobby.org/magicschoolbus/

http://www.youthlobby.org/magic_schoolbus_update/

http://www.youthlobby.org/dont-forget-to-sign-the-electric-school-bus-petition-and-contact-the-anr/

#WeRally “Sign Holding” Project

Sign Holding refers to the act of participating in a social or political movement by taking a selfie, or posing for a picture, with a handwritten sign featuring a message about the issue and sharing it online under the designated hashtag. Since first rising to recognition through the “We are the 99%” campaign in 2011, online picketing has become a popular tool in social media activism.

We are asking students to share a message with VT lawmakers. Here is how to participate:

Write a message to VT lawmakers using one of the following templates…

Take a close-up photo

1. Please make sure your message can be clearly read in your photograph.
2. Use large writing and take a close up photo
Share your photo with us on social media
1. Like our Facebook Page – https://www.facebook.com/youthlobbyvt/ – then use @VermontYouthLobby to share your photo with us. Include #YouthRallyVT in your post
2. Follow us on Twitter – https://twitter.com/youthlobbyvt – and use hashtag #YouthRallyVT and @youthlobbyvt
3. Follow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/youthlobby/ – and use hashtag #YouthRallyVT and @youthlobbyvt
4. Email your photo to youthlobbyvt@gmail.com

Your photos will be gathered together to form a large collage we hope to hang in the Statehouse cafeteria for a few weeks after the rally. The purpose is to remind VT lawmakers not to ignore the opinions of their youngest citizens.

Tabling

There will be a number of tables where students can learn more about climate change, energy alternatives, and proposed climate change legislation.

**New this year will be an area for school clubs to set up tables informing participants about issue they are taking action on, other than climate change. If your school group would like to have a table at the event, please send a quick email to mhenchen@wwsu.org.

Also be sure to stop by and check out the Youth Lobby Table to pick up some sweet Youth Lobby tattoos, buttons, and stickers!!!

Ice Cream

In order to reduce the lines, students will have to work for their ice cream this year. We ask that every student participate in the #WeRally Sign Holding Project to earn a ticket they can use to pick up their free Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream.

No ticket, no ice cream!

Meeting With Your Legislators

If you check out the agenda you’ll see that there is some time set aside during the lunch hour for students to meet with their elected officials on the lawn. This can be a real challenge to organize and this year we are asking schools to take a more active role in planning a meeting with their legislators.

This year we plan on having a special area set aside where student lobbying can take place. We will also have a schedule and a map that will identify when and where a particular legislator will be available for conversation. It will be the school’s responsibility to go to the designated area at the designated time to engage in your civil discourse.

If you are interested in meeting with your legislator, it is very important that you:

Let us know in the registration survey or in a follow up email (mhenchen@wwsu.org)
Identify the specific students who will be lobbying
Make sure the student lobbyist are prepared for the meeting (see ‘Preparing to Lobby’ below)

If you are interested in a more advanced level of lobbying inside the Statehouse or possibly even formally testifying, please email Nic Wahlers (nwahlers@vpirg.org) – he will help coordinate that opportunity.

Preparing to Lobby

It is very important that students are prepared to speak with their legislators. Here are a few tips:

1. Students to do not need to know everything about a particular piece legislation to have a great conversation with their lawmakers. However, they should know enough about the legislation that they understand what the legislator is talking about. If students have not had the time to study the legislation, please encourage them to ask their lawmakers to explain the legislation to them and discuss how they feel about it. Students who have not studied legislation in-depth should be encouraged to listen more and speak less.
2. If you do have a group of students who have studied the legislation in-depth and have strong opinions either way, they should be encouraged to share their opinions with their legislators, but to do so in a respectful, non-adversarial manner. We are there to talk and listen – not to attack!

DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK QUESTIONS- about the legislation or their stance on issues your students care about. Asking a question can sometimes be more powerful than stating facts!

Final Thoughts

As the event draws nearer, we are getting more and more excited to make a meaningful impact on the Statehouse Lawn at this critical time in the legislative session. Above all, we believe it is our role to lift up the voices of students and youth across the state.

Nic Wahlers, from VPIRG (the state’s largest non-profit environmental advocacy organization) and also a member of the Youth Lobby Day’s Planning Committee will be lending a hand to the advocacy efforts of YLD attendees and is offering this youth lobbying guide that we hope you’ll find helpful.

Feel free to reach out to Nic with any questions or concerns regarding the attached guide or lobbying on April 12th.

Nic Wahlers

VPIRG

nwahlers@vpirg.org

Student Pickup

We are asking busses to pick up students on the side of the Statehouse between 1:15pm and 2:00pm. Schools from further away will need to leave earlier than others, so if you can pick up your students later that would be very helpful. Earlier pickup is also possible, though you may miss out on our keynote speakers.

***Please email me at mhenchen@wwsu.org to let me know what time you would like to pick up your students (1:15pm, 1:30pm, 1:45pm or 2:00pm).

Educational Resources on Climate Change

Below are some useful resources to share with your students to help them become better informed about climate change and proposed legislative efforts to address the problem.

Do The Math (45 Minute Climate Change Documentary produced by Bill McKibben and 350.org)
The Case for Optimism on Climate Change
Before the Flood (Leonardo DiCaprio Documentary)
Merchants of Doubt (excellent film that exposes the reality of climate change denial) $
Proposed VT Carbon Pollution Tax
How 350.org Works
The 350 Movement in 90 Seconds
Divestment in Vermont

Consider Donating

350VT is collecting funds for the Youth Lobby Day. All donations will go directly to the Youth Lobby Organizing group. All donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowable by law; no goods or services were received in exchange for this donation.

**Any donations from schools will be used to coordinate a two-day Youth Activism Conference this Fall. Please donate – every bit helps.

Please SEND CHECKS TO:

350 Vermont

255 S. Champlain St., Suite 11

Burlington, VT 05401

802.444.0350

Or DONATE ONLINE:

https://350vt.nationbuilder.com/youth_lobby_day_donation_page

350VT is a 501(c)3 organization (tax ID 46-3647561)

Contact Us

Website

http://www.youthlobby.org/

Email

youthlobbyvt@gmail.com

Facebook Page

https://www.facebook.com/youthlobbyvt/

Matt Henchen (Adult Mentor)

mhenchen@wwsu.org

(802) 324-4521 (email preferred)

Camille King (Student Leader)

cking2018@wwsu.org

Orielle Koliba (Student Leader)

okoliba2019@wwsu.org

See Sample Field Trip Form below

Sample Field Trip Form

Youth Lobby – Rally For the Planet – Permission Form

On Thursday April 12th, 2018 the Vermont Youth Lobby (a youth voice organization of students and teachers from several Vermont schools) is organizing a Youth Lobby Day. The purpose of the Youth Lobby Day is to provide students with the opportunity to speak with their local lawmakers on the topic of climate change and to push for greater legislative action to address this important issue. Students from around Vermont will learn more about legislation that positively addresses climate change, listen to a variety of speakers and performers, and visit informational tables and booths. Students will also have the opportunity to march from Montpelier High School to the Statehouse Lawn as a show of their collective student voice.

The [insert your club here] is organizing a field trip to take part in this event. In the interest of expanding support for these issues, we would like to invite all interested 7-12th grade students to attend.

Student Name________________________________________________ has my permission to attend the Youth Lobby – Rally for the Planet on Thursday, April 12th.

Student Signature:_____________________________________________

Student Email:_________________________________________________

Parent Signature (If student under 18):_____________________________

Please complete this permission form and return it to [Insert your info here]. If you turn in your permission form after this date, there is a chance you will not be able to attend the rally.

Thank you for your support,

We are also looking for adult chaperones…

If you would like to help chaperone this event please print your name, email and phone number.

Printed Name	Email	Phone Number