From Greenlight Award™ Student To Climate Activist: Oona Spaeth
Oona Spaeth, a former Greenlight Award™ student, Hastings High School senior, and organizer of the 2024 Westchester Youth Climate Summit, has always felt the urgency of the climate crisis, and she’s not alone.
In a 2021 survey of 10,000 young people across the globe, researchers found that “75% said that they think the future is frightening, and 83% said that they think people have failed to take care of the planet.” The best remedy for climate anxiety is action. The Greenlight Award™ program aims to mentor, inspire, and empower future changemakers—like Oona, a testament to the passion and power of our participants.
Throughout the Greenlight Award™ program, students gain experience in all aspects of project management—planning, researching, organizing a strategic plan, implementing, and communicating with experts and stakeholders. We encourage them to workshop the issues of feasibility, funding, and real-world impacts, developing participants as problem-solvers well-suited to the complexities of fighting climate change.
“I have always been passionate about the climate crisis, and the Bedford 2030 Greenlight Award™ was an amazing resource in helping me gain a better understanding of what it takes to make change and the process of project planning.”
—Oona Spaeth, Former Greenlight Award™ Student, and Westchester Youth Climate Summit Organizer.
Bedford 2030 is proud to have helped Oona put her passion into action. On October 26th, Oona will host the 2024 Westchester Youth Climate Summit. By leveraging her tenacity and experience, Oona secured a grant from the Hastings-on-Hudson Youth Climate Fund via Bloomberg Philanthropies that makes this event possible. High school students throughout the county are invited. They can expect hopeful inspiration from acclaimed speakers, motivating panelists, and a climate mitigation and adaptation workshop. This is the place for the climate changemakers of today and tomorrow.
The Youth Climate Summit Experience:
- Author Seth Godin, entrepreneur, author, marketing genius, and coordinator of The Carbon Almanac, will be the keynote speaker, providing an overview of the history of climate change and how we got here.
- Panel discussion amongst undergraduate student activists Lucy Whitney from NYU of the New Roots Institute, Jasmine Wynn from Harvard University of Fossil Fuel Divest Harvard, and Nicole Xiao from Colombia University of the Colombia Policy Institute.
- Climate solution workshop from Leo Bachinger of the NY Department of Environmental Conservation.
We are so proud of Oona and are pleased to invite all local high school students to attend the 2024 Westchester Youth Climate Summit. The first 100 people to sign up will receive a free copy of Seth Godin’s “The Carbon Almanac.”
Date and Time: October 26th from 12:00 to 3:00 pm.
Location: Farragut Middle School Auditorium, 27 Farragut Avenue, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY 10706
“I am so excited and grateful to finally have the opportunity to bring to life a project that I have been dreaming about for years and hopefully make an impact inspiring other young people to want to make change, too.”
—Oona Spaeth, Former Greenlight Award™ Student, and Westchester Youth Climate Summit Organizer.
Join the Bedford 2030 Greenlight Award™ Program
Bedford 2030’s Greenlight Award™ program is a competition for local high schoolers that runs through the academic year. It culminates in a Finals event in April, challenging students to create innovative solutions to the climate crisis. Our program structure and mentorship serve as an incubator for the most important generation of climate heroes, offering students a launching pad to become activists and test the limits of what is possible.
We invite Westchester-area high school students to join us, following in Oona’s footsteps, for Bedford 2030’s 10th annual Greenlight Award™ competition. Take charge of the future and make change in your community—we’ll help greenlight your big idea.
Get Greenlight Award™ program information, get your brainstorming tool kit, and register to compete by the end of October.