EJ Changemakers are driven to know more about the world and make a habit of observing, pondering, and questioning their environment. 

EJ Changemakers strategically seek out reliable sources of data, on both the past and the present, and use that data to inform their understanding of the climate crisis and their decisions on how to restore environmental justice. 

EJ Changemakers maintain optimism by being well-informed on liberatory solutions to environmental crises, and draw on these solutions while advocating for change to encourage enthusiasm. 

As part of our coursework, we were required to create ten Professional Development write-ups on any topic related to environmental justice. I mainly based mine on the documentaries or videos I watched about solutions such as Drawdown or global warming. However, I also wrote some based on a book, field trips, events, and other sources.

My two favorite write-ups were on documentaries called "Fantastic Fugi" and "Kiss the Ground." These documentaries sparked my interest in learning more about agriculture and the secrets of our forests. "Kiss the Ground" also made me aware of the impact of farming on our diet. This assignment made me more curious and passionate about the environment. I appreciated the freedom to choose my own topics and dive deeper into the issues.

During the Forest Resilience class, we had a lot of fun while monitoring some minor invasive species, such as buckthorn and vinca. Our project was to keep an eye on the vinca that was growing near the creek. We got to learn about the popular decorative plant that has been taking over native species, as well as how to remove it. However, before we started working on the vinca, we began by pulling buckthorn, which was located back in the woods. We noticed that in one sunny spot, there was a lot of buckthorn taking over, just like the vinca was doing near the creek. As a team, we pulled as much as we could in an hour. 

A couple of months later, we noticed how nice and open the space was and how new native plants were growing bigger. During this class, we managed to take care of both the vinca and buckthorn, and I learned a lot about how to do field tests. This also made me very aware of what invasive species could be growing in my backyard and how to remove them.

We had some amazing guest speakers visit our school. They taught us a lot about their professions, their positive impact on the environment, and their efforts to restore environmental justice. It was inspiring to hear from such a diverse group of individuals, each with their own unique story. Some of the speakers focused on education, while others discussed scientific topics such as marine biology and the GIS data program. They all shared interesting solutions for protecting the environment and emphasized the need for change, especially in the Cleveland area.