And just like that, Fall is nearly here! Just a matter of weeks before changes sweep over our colorful state, and with many of the things a lot of us love about the Equinox. Whether that’s the air that feels so cool and right, or the bursting colors of the leaves all around, the new season gives us a perfect opportunity to reflect and appreciate how we’ve gotten here.
And thanks to the steady efforts of interns Angie, Sadie, and Lily-Ann, our September Climate Heroes of the Month, we can confidently say that their shared impact has made a serious difference for climate wins in Colorado!
Angie Berktold
In Angie’s words, she is an enthusiast of snow, mountains, outdoors, movement, and connecting with nature. She grew up in Minnesota, came to Colorado for a music therapy internship and happily stayed. Her background has primarily been as a practicing board-certified music therapist, working in mental health hospital units as well as home & community based services.
Then Angie began working as the Development & Grant Specialist intern in August of 2023. She found 350CO as a way to engage more in environmental justice (while also remembering the social side). “As a Grant Specialist Intern, you probably haven’t seen her front and center much,” said Brigit Stattelman-Scanlon, the 350CO Development Director. “But she has been integral to helping us as we write and apply for grants to support our programs.” And since the very beginning, Angie had been very motivated, passionate, and organized. It was clear she cared deeply about local climate action, and by always looking for new opportunities and ways to innovate, she brought magic to the organizing experience.
During her time in the role, Angie was responsible for a number of things; researching new grant opportunities, outreach to local businesses, tracking and reporting, and leading full grant applications. “Angie was a key player and leader for a massive CDPHE Grant application to fund our climate justice work in Greeley,” said Brigit. “With her leadership and guidance, we were ultimately awarded 173k for this program!” A truly incredible achievement, as funding is a critical part of doing organizing work well.
And work for this is now well underway! We are activating in the community and raising awareness around the health impacts people in close proximity to fracking face (and we all face) and how it worsens our air quality. You do not need to reside in Greeley to be a part of this work either, which will go on until July 2025. If you can take up a role or action in this important project please complete this interest form here.
“Angie has been such an amazing asset to 350CO and the team! We were so lucky that she was a part of our work.” – Brigit
Angie is also a fan of continued learning, earning her MBA, with added courses in sustainability. She is now looking for the next step of the journey. Angie also loves animals, including spending time with her pup Groot. As a nature and animal lover, she can be found on the trails with her furry friend, and her favorite season by far is winter!
Angie shared that she “appreciates all that has been learned from the amazing folks at 350CO :)” – and the feeling is oh so mutual! The time you spent Angie finding ideas to pursue, working on strong language, developing/organizing documents, contacting and engaging with folks, and much more, all helped move the needle towards a better world for us all. We appreciate all that we have learned from you over this last year, thank you endlessly for your many contributions!
Sadie Forkner
A little about Sadie to set the stage; she is originally from Denver but grew up in Fort Collins. She is a student & community member in the Johnston Center for Integrative Studies at the University of Redlands in California, where she studies writing, literature, and community.
As the Movement Building intern for the summer of 2024, Sadie made every single day count. From the time she started in early June, until the time she wrapped up in mid-August, there really wasn’t a week in which she wasn’t keeping things moving along, if not ahead of schedule!
“I was impressed with Sadie from the first time I interacted with her,” said Chelsea Alexander, the 350CO Movement Building & Volunteer Director. “It was clear she was a person with not only vision for the kind of impact she wanted to make, but also will to roll up her sleeves and get it done.”
Take the Climate Leadership Workshop we put on in Longmont in June. This wasn’t set to originally be an explicit part of her internship, but she was proactive to ask what help was needed and eager to be supporting many different pieces of the event. Checking people in, supporting with tech and timing, refining content, and ensuring the day ran smoothly with setting up and breaking down, Sadie found multiple ways to pitch in.
Her main focus in the internship was working on and helping manage the ZIP Leader project; that’s ‘Zoning Interpersonal Power’, and also referring to establishing and building leadership right within one’s own zip code. Getting this idea off the ground started back in February (thanks to another Climate Hero of the Month, shout-out Shelby!), and when Sadie joined the team she was ready to be a part of recruitment, training, engagement, and retention of leaders we brought on.
Over the summer Sadie helped recruit 15 people into the new role, spread from Colorado Springs up to Fort Collins. She expanded on and refined the materials for these activists in the ZIP Leader Toolkit and the training guidelines, and she created from scratch the comprehensive directory for leaders to use, with all 500+ zip codes of Colorado listed with their respective counties and Senate & Congressional districts. If you are interested in being a ZIP Leader for your zip code complete this interest form here and we will be in touch!
Then in July, 350CO had the opportunity of tabling for two nights at AJR concerts in Denver. Despite the long(er) drive for her to make down from FC, Sadie was there on the first night, navigating the seas of people looking to take action with us. She also helped with engagement efforts after the event to ensure new folks had the means to get involved as seamlessly as possible.
Sadie also lent her skills to graphic design and creation of catchy images to promote opportunities and events, and wrote powerful blog posts for the August newsletter, showcasing her writing skills and ability to tell great stories. You can find those here and here! As a writer, Sadie is interested in the role of effective outreach, education, and communication in building movements that work toward environmental justice. In her spare time, Sadie watches movies with friends, reads, writes essays and poetry, and explores the wildland urban interface.
Thank you so much Sadie for making such a positive impact, both before and during this internship. It was a pleasure to have the chance to collaborate with and learn alongside you in this ever-moving landscape we call organizing.
Lily-Ann Smith
Lily-Ann is from Estes Park, Colorado. She initially joined 350 Colorado efforts in high school through the Youth in Action Committee (YAC). She became the social media director and ran their Instagram page. One of the big events she helped plan and manage was the ‘For Our Future’ Youth Climate Conference in October 2022, at which she emcee’d and spoke at the event, powering up organizers and attendees. In that time she also helped plan a National Day of Action Chalking and a cloth recycling event.
After 2 years in that realm of work, she graduated high school and started attending Denison University in Ohio. At university, she is a member of her school’s Net Zero initiative, which seeks to take action to hold our universities to their plan to reach net zero carbon goals by 2030.
As the Northern Colorado Team intern for the summer of 2024, Lily-Ann worked on advocacy on the effects of fracking in Weld County and community outreach in Estes Park. Her work included making infographics, pamphlets, and information documents.
“I was so lucky to have the pleasure of working with Lily-Ann over the summer,” said Sarah Burke, 350 Northern Colorado Team Coordinator. “She is always willing to throw down on a task, no matter how dense or menial it may seem. She makes an absolutely killer powerpoint and has a natural gift for presenting.”
Much like Angie, Lily-Ann played a role in getting the Greeley Clean Air work off the ground this summer. When July was a little all over the place, Lily-Ann helped bring the Welcome Call for involved activists and organizers together. She presented sections of the call as well, engaging people with tools and activities that helped them understand the scope of fracking and its impacts in Colorado. Having her support was instrumental to keep things moving along!
And in her hometown of Estes Park, Lily-Ann also completed extensive research to better understand the landscape and leaders of the town. Whether that be in identifying elected officials, businesses, or groups, she created a comprehensive list of contacts to really boost organizing efforts there and ensure Estes Park is a part of the transformation that Colorado needs.
“Her passion for climate action is truly inspirational and I learned so much from her this summer.” – Sarah
Some of Lily-Ann’s other interests are LGBTQ+ advocacy, student government, education equity, and competitive debate. She also likes painting, sewing, leather working, cooking, and exploring nature. “She taught me about echidnas, and since then their little faces have stuck with me (if you have never seen one look them up),” said Sarah. After school Lily-Ann wants to work to advocate for environmental activism on a governmental scale.”If Lily-Ann is the future of this movement, there is a whole lot of hope!” We appreciate you Lily-Ann, for all your years of hard work, and for making this summer such an impactful one!
Thank you so much to each of you for your unwavering commitment and care for making a difference. The team at 350 Colorado and the climate movement has a whole have been empowered by your good deeds and vision for a healthy and regenerative world, and we wish you all the best as your organizing continues in unique and important ways!
– Written by Chelsea Alexander, Brigit Stattelman-Scanlon, and Sarah Burke –