Submitted by Jim DeVries, NE MN YES! Coordinator
October 16, 2017 was the day of the Northeast Region Fall Summit. We had 4 teams represented with over 40 participants. The day started with some outdoor team building activities. Teams were blended to enable connections to other schools in hopes that cross communications would offer insights into how other teams function.
After a brief stint outdoors the teams gathered in the main lodge at the Laurentian Environmental Center for a learning session on Climate Change and how to organize for a Climate Convening. Josthna Harris and Jenna Tots were the presenters. Students were thoroughly engaged in the climate change discussion. Many questions were answered and a completely fresh understanding of how our climate is actually changing made this a wonderful session. Two of the teams are excited to host a climate convening in their communities as a result.
Lunch was next on our agenda and everyone enjoyed a meal of homemade spaghetti and bread sticks while the coaches met for a brief run down of the details that keep things on track throughout the year of YES!.
Alexis Troschinetz from the Clean Energy Resource Teams (CERTS) was our next speaker. She presented three ideas on energy savings and introduced teams to how these simple energy tips could translate into a fundraising idea for the team. The three energy tips included low flow shower heads, smart power strips and LED light bulbs. The teams then broke out to learn more about each item in hands-on presentations. The presentations were designed to demonstrate how each item saves energy. There were additional educational components and challenges for the teams to engage in rounding this out topic to a higher level. Teams then met to wrap up the day and everyone left energized ready to tackle the mission of YES! for another year.
