Environmental group Massachusetts Power Shift advocates for climate change solutions

    They've helped push major legislation through the Massachusetts state legislature, organized conventions and rallies attended by hundreds of people, hosted famous speakers like 2004 presidential candidate John Kerry, and raised tens of thousands of dollars for their cause — and they've managed to achieve good grades in college while doing it.
    The majority of the members of Massachusetts Power Shift (MAPS), a recently founded network of activists advocating for immediate and bold efforts to alleviate the effects of climate change, may be young, but their enthusiastic efforts have proven to be effective.
    "There are incredible benefits to having the youth voice," MAPS co-coordinator Craig Altemose said. "Most of our members are college students or young professionals, and that gives us some advantages. Firstly, young people have the moral authority on this issue. Climate change will affect their generation. Also, it takes imagination … to change the status quo, to demand change. Young people truly have that imagination and that power."
    Altemose, a current law student at Harvard University, is one of the three initial founders of MAPS. Since its inception in the fall of 2007, MAPS has grown into a well-known organization with branches at 30 different Massachusetts schools and several successful campaigns under its belt. MAPS has created an Adopt-a-Congressperson campaign in order to pressure legislators to support climate initiatives, organized well-attended rallies for goals like clean electricity and wind power, and is currently working to create a summer grassroots program.
    "We have basically put ourselves out there to be one of the nation's most aggressive state networks," said co-coordinator Katie MacDonald, a freshman at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. "Massachusetts is one of the most progressive states, so it's really important for us to be a leader on the issue of climate change. We should be representing the boldest initiatives out there."
    MacDonald, who participated in eco-friendly campaigns at her high school and has been a longtime activist, said that she was nevertheless overwhelmed by the immediate and prominent opportunities MAPS offered her. She was invited to speak at a wind-power rally last year that, she said, helped result in the passage of the Global Warming Solutions Act, a state bill aimed at reducing emissions by 10 percent by 2020 and by 80 percent by 2050.
    "It was amazing because it was my first public speaking opportunity, and the crowd was huge, and I was in the company of other incredible speakers like … John Kerry," she said. "I felt at first like I was out of my league, but you know … This is our issue. Climate change will affect our future, and no one is going to stand up for our future except us."
    This year, MAPS organized a rally on March 14 to demonstrate citizen support for the We Campaign, an initiative supported by environmentalist and former Vice President Al Gore that aims for 100 percent clean electricity in 10 years. According to Altemose, MAPS expected a turnout of 100 people at the State House and twice as many attended.
    "People care about this," Altemose said. "We're calling on the state to call on the federal government to implement Gore's goal. It's a non-binding resolution, but it puts pressure on the right people … and is a definite step in the right direction."
    The Massachusetts General Court passed the resolution last week, and copies of the resolution will be forwarded to President Barack Obama, Secretary of Energy Steven Chu and the Massachusetts congressional delegation for further approval, according to a recent MAPS press release.
    "Passing the resolution is a show of commitment," MAPS Boston Regional Coordinator and Tufts freshman Daniel Richards said. "We want to harness the energy that we have now … and connect various different environmental groups to push for this goal."
    Richards said that cooperation with other groups and within the group itself is vital to success. "Bridging the gap between activist groups is important," he said. "Bridging the gap between young and old is important. Youth-based groups have many advantages, but one disadvantage is that we do get a high turnover rate every four years when students graduate. But we have good leadership training to combat that … People are trained for their roles one year ahead of time, so they can get acclimated."
    And, since MAPS is a new organization, there are plenty of open roles. MacDonald said that new member recruitment is a main MAPS mission.
    MAPS members, according to Altemose, come from all over the state and from different backgrounds, bringing valuable and diverse opinions to the group. But they all agree that climate change is an important issue that deserves widespread public attention. "Climate change is basically the single most important issue in the history of our species," Altemose said.
    To Richards, caring about the climate is simply common sense. "It almost feels intuitive to me," he said. "The more I learned about the issues facing our planet, the more obvious it seemed to me that our planet needs our help. Curbing climate change is what I want to put my efforts into."
    MacDonald emphasized that climate change is an ongoing threat that must be combated as quickly and effectively as possible. "Now is our time — while we still have time — to fight to curb climate change."