Alaska Teens Lobby Governor On Climate Change

A group of teenagers are calling on Gov. Bill Walker to create a climate change task force.

Alaska Youth for Environmental Action delivered a petition with more than a thousand signatures to the governor’s office on Tuesday. Roan Rediske, a high school freshman from Homer, was one of the 22 delegates who attended the meeting.

“It hurts to think that my kids, and their kids, and so on and so on, wouldn’t be able to experience even what I’ve experienced in only 14 years of being here,” says Rediske.

Former Gov. Sarah Palin created a climate change task force during a tenure, but it went dormant in 2009. Barae Hirsch, a high school junior from Anchorage, says Walker was receptive to their ideas.

“One of our suggestions and our hopes is that we can have a youth seat on this
climate change task force,” says Hirsch.

As part of their spring break trip to Juneau, the teens are also lobbying legislators on bills dealing with Arctic policy and energy efficiency.