Many of our core American values will be challenged over the next four years – liberties, freedoms, civil rights. I am daunted by the battles that lie ahead to defend the progress our country has made, but it is a fight we cannot afford to back down from. 

Our history has blessed us with the likes of Susan B. Anthony, Harvey Milk, Martin Luther King, Jr., and countless other anonymous heroes who pushed against what seemed to be insurmountable obstacles for causes they believed in. I expect they had their own moments of doubt, times when their confidence was shattered, but they pressed on. Despite the disappointment, we must also search for a path forward. 

There are many objectives that I could support – immigration rights, abortion rights, LGBTQ rights, religious rights, gender equality, racial equality … But what I feel most passionate supporting is our planet – saving our environment, fighting climate change, and finding a way to clean energy and sustainable food systems. 

I know that President Obama has been a great defender of our environment, at home and abroad. Under his presidency, he has used the Antiquities Act of 1906 to establish 23 new national monuments and expanded several others, more than any other president. In September, he formally joined the Paris Agreement to address reducing greenhouse gas emissions with China. He enacted a Climate Action Plan and has been striving towards energy efficiency. President Obama will be a sorely missed ally of our Earth.

I was flabbergasted when I read that President Elect Donald Trump plans on having Myron Ebell lead the transition of Obama’s EPA. It is no surprise that the Sierra Club is pleading people to tell President Obama to safeguard our environment from Donald Trump. (Please Do!) As this is the cause I am interested in fighting for (at this time), I turn to you – friends, colleagues, former teachers, acquaintances, the Internet – to figure out the best ways to get involved. Please share!