Sustainable Innovation MBA Students Strike for Climate Change

This post was written by Jackson Berman ‘20

On Friday, September 20, 2019, MBA students from UVM’s Sustainable Innovation MBA Class of 2020 joined forces with youth activists, students, and workers around the world to demand a just future free from fossil fuels. These global strikes are happening before the UN Climate Action Summit next week – our goal is to put pressure not just on politicians, but people from all generations. Climate change is a moral issue, it’s happening now, and we have an opportunity to take action.

Students from the Class of 2020 at the Burlington, VT Climate Strike on September 20, 2019.

Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and Amazon will all be participating in strikes across the country. Locally in Burlington, SI-MBA students followed in the footsteps of Burton Snowboards, Ben & Jerry’s, Seventh Generation, and environmentally focused non-profits such as 350 Burlington, VPIRG, Climate Disobedience Center, and Sunrise Movement.

Students from the Class of 2020 at the Burlington, VT Climate Strike on September 20, 2019.

We as the Sustainable-Innovation MBA Class of 2020 have also teamed up with some inspiring alumni to march for climate justice! I talked with Brodie O’Brien ’14 and now Digital Marketing Manager at Ben & Jerry’s.

“Here at Ben & Jerry’s, we see our opportunity as providing people with an onramp first-step into engaging in large-scale issues that may feel insurmountable. Climate change is a big, scary topic that’s too big for one person to address alone: we think that the power of collective action can change the system. That’s why we’re here at the Burlington Climate Strike scooping today – we want to celebrate our fans who are already involved with Climate Action, and provide a fun way for new people to get excited about creating real collective positive change.” Brodie also noted that “we use our digital channels to raise awareness of movements amongst fans, it goes beyond just showing up physically at events.”

Brodie O’Brien ’15 (right), Digital Marketing Manager at Ben & Jerry’s

Climate change is truly a world crisis: we have an obligation to create sustainable business solutions that meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.