The 24th annual Brower Youth Awards ceremony, a flagship event of the New Leaders Initiative presented by Earth Island Institute, was held on October 17, 2023, in Berkeley, California. The evening celebrated six outstanding youth leaders for their accomplishments in the environmental movement, featuring special videos and speeches from the awardees.

This year's theme, "Moving Forward Together," underscored the power of teamwork and diverse contributions, inspired by the proverb: "If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together." The awards, which have recognized environmental youth leaders since 2000, highlight how young leaders are redefining traditional leadership roles. For more information, visit broweryouthawards.org.

Angelina Xu delivered a compelling speech at the annual Brower Youth Awards ceremony. This prestigious event celebrates young environmental leaders and their impactful contributions.

The ceremony took place on October 17, 2023, at the Freight & Salvage, a renowned venue located in Berkeley, California.

Muskan Walia delivered a notable speech at the Brower Youth Awards ceremony. This prestigious event recognizes young environmental leaders.

The ceremony took place on October 17, 2023, at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, California.

Katherine Martínez Medina delivered a notable speech at the Brower Youth Awards ceremony.

The event took place on October 17, 2023, at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, California.

Maanit Goel delivered a speech at the prestigious Brower Youth Awards ceremony.

The event took place on October 17, 2023, at the Freight & Salvage venue in Berkeley, California.

Will Charouhis' speech at the Brower Youth Awards ceremony, held October 17, 2023, at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, California.

Riya Chandra delivered a speech at the Brower Youth Awards ceremony.

The event was held on October 17, 2023, at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, California.

Angelina Xu, 17, founded a food recovery and composting program in 2018, addressing middle school food waste and insecurity. It collected unopened food for school food banks and sent cafeteria waste for composting. By 2021, her program became Compostology, a youth-led nonprofit now involving 35,000 participants managing 24 K-12 school programs across Maryland.

Compostology received a World Wildlife Fund grant in 2021. In 2023, a student campaign spearheaded by Compostology passed SB 124, allocating $1.25 million for K-12 schools to implement their own programs. Compostology is now rolling out this grant program, ensuring accessibility for all schools.

After graduating high school in Utah’s Davis County, Muskan Walia committed to climate justice. In 2020, collaborating with the Sierra Club Utah Chapter, she launched the Davis School District’s first student-led Clean Energy Schools Campaign. This initiative aims for 100% clean electricity by 2030 and all energy sectors by 2040. Walia and her team successfully passed a nationally recognized policy for energy efficiency and building upgrades, inspiring similar clean energy resolutions in other Utah school districts.

Walia, 21, also co-leads Utah Youth Environmental Solutions, a network activating youth for climate justice. She coordinates an annual curriculum that equips young people with the skills to organize clean energy campaigns in their schools and communities.

Since 2000, Earth Island Institute's New Leaders Initiative (NLI) has offered innovative programming for North American youth leaders. Its core mission is to engage, grow, and support environmental and social justice activists, helping them reach their full potential.

NLI's flagship event, the Brower Youth Awards, recognizes outstanding young environmental leaders. This national awards ceremony is hosted by the New Leaders Initiative and presented by Earth Island Institute.

Please join us for this extraordinary event in October!

Raghav Kalyanaraman delivered a speech at the Brower Youth Awards ceremony.

The event was held at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, California, on October 18, 2022. For more details, visit: broweryouthawards.org.

Lauren Ejiaga delivered a speech at the Brower Youth Awards ceremony on October 18, 2022. The event was held at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, California.

Further details about the awards are available at broweryouthawards.org.

Hamid Torabzadeh delivered a speech at the Brower Youth Awards ceremony on October 18, 2022. The event took place at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, California.

For more information about the awards, visit broweryouthawards.org.

Annika Weber delivered a speech at the Brower Youth Awards ceremony.

The event was held on October 18, 2022, at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, California. For more details, visit broweryouthawards.org.

Ilana Cohen delivered a speech at the Brower Youth Awards ceremony, held October 18, 2022, at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, California.

For more information, visit: broweryouthawards.org.

Amara Ifeji, 20, recognized the lack of environmental opportunities in marginalized communities. In 2018, she began facilitating environmental learning for students of color. She later became a director for the Maine Environmental Changemakers Network, an intergenerational group of 400+ youth promoting a just, inclusive, and equitable environmental movement.

Amara elevates youth voices in state and federal policy. In 2021, she coordinated Maine’s first climate education summit, gathering young people’s visions. This led to her helping create and implement a bill funding over $2 million for climate education in the state. Learn more at broweryouthawards.org.

Annika Weber, 18, co-founded the Northwest School Carbon Neutrality Task Force in early 2021. Observing widespread burnout among youth activists, she sought to combine youth passion with adult experience for sustained, tangible results. The task force, including students, parents, and faculty, researched how her high school could achieve carbon neutrality by 2030.

They surveyed the community, collected baseline data, and presented a report to school leadership. The school is now finalizing the adoption of these recommendations. If implemented, it would be the first 6-12 school in the U.S. to target carbon neutrality by 2030 without carbon offsets.

broweryouthawards.org

Since high school, 17-year-old Hamid Torabzadeh has volunteered with the American Red Cross, empowering youth to prevent and alleviate human suffering amidst increasing climate and public health disasters.

He leads the Los Angeles READYteens Program, educating high school students on disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. READYteens trains youth in CPR/First Aid and emergency communications, prioritizing vulnerable communities most susceptible to climate-related emergencies.

Hamid's efforts have reached over 10,000 youth volunteers nationally, trained 350 LA students, and educated 1,000+ LA households on fire and earthquake safety.

broweryouthawards.org

In 2018, Ilana Cohen co-founded the New York City chapter of Zero Hour and organized one of the nation’s first Youth Climate Marches, spurred by political inaction. As a Harvard student, she relaunched the Fossil Fuel Divest Harvard campaign, securing a historic victory when the university pledged to divest its $53 billion endowment from fossil fuels.

Cohen, 21, later co-founded Fossil Free Research, an international grassroots campaign. It unites students and experts against Big Oil’s influence on climate research, aiming to protect academic integrity and accelerate a just energy transition. The campaign has published an open letter signed by over 740 academics, staged international actions, and formed campus coalitions.

broweryouthawards.org

In 8th grade, Lauren U.C. Ejiaga's science fair project on ozone depletion and Louisiana's marsh grasses won a top prize at Broadcom MASTERS. This experience highlighted the importance of environmental awareness alongside research, inspiring her to educate peers.

Now 17, Lauren leads multiple native plant restoration projects as a cohort leader for the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana. She also founded the "Conservation and Restoration Conjunction," a series of workshops promoting STEM education and coastal protection among youth. She recruits national science fair winners to speak about STEM careers.

broweryouthawards.org