Who:
Greg Casini
Administrative vice-president, Sierra Club Board of Directors
Where:
Denver, CO
I spent my day with 14 leaders of the San Diego Chapter. We gathered at the Mission Trails Regional Park, not to hike this beautiful canyon, but to engage in dialogue and to make choices -- choices about where to focus energy and resources for maximum impact, both in terms of opportunities for local conservation victories and ways to build the chapter's power.
It was as inspirational to be indoors with these leaders as it would have been to be outside exploring the canyon, witnessing a group of committed leaders, each with his or her own personal vision, engaging in dialogue and coming to consensus on a shared vision for moving forward together. I learned a lot as the group's facilitator that I can take back home and apply at the national level of the Club.
I learned about their Canyons Coalition Campaign that has built 30 neighborhood canyon groups that offer community-centered opportunities for people to work together to improve their local environment, but I also came to realize how this program could be a model for building environmental community throughout the Club.
I learned about the challenges that the cultural and political environment of San Diego poses for local activists, but also came to see how their situation mirrors the challenges we face nationwide in reaching out to the majority of Americans who care deeply about the environment -- people we have yet to connect with.
I'm always amazed (and gratified) at how much a group of committed Sierra Club activists can achieve when they get together for just one day. When the leaders of the San Diego Chapter look back a year from now, they will realize how much this day mattered in determining their future. It certainly meant a lot to me.
