Youth leaders from the Berkeley Chapter supported by Chapter Advisor and teacher Jacqueline Omania took big strides inspiring their community and others to #breakfreefromplastic!
“Berkeley Heirs had quite an exciting year!
They spoke at 2 school board meetings in support of reusables in the Berkeley Unified School District as single-use plastic should not be used in school meals, and they succeeded in pushing through a reusables pilot program at 3 schools.
The United Nations Plastic Waste Partnership also chose to feature Berkeley Heirs for their PLASTIC IS FOREVER exhibition in Geneva, Switzerland, that will travel to Stockholm and Rotterdam and then be installed in the Halls of the Environment in Geneva making an impact with international policymakers. Berkeley Heirs participated in beach sweeps and brand audits at the Berkeley Marina and Albany Beach working to hold corporations accountable for plastic waste.
Lots of speaking opportunities this year! Berkeley Heirs participated in a panel for Children’s Environmental Health Day on “Ditching Disposables: Eliminating Harmful Chemicals in Foodware for Healthier Kids + Planet” hosted by the Center for Environmental Health (CEH). Heir Mabel spoke in the Brains On Podcast. Heir Shanza spoke in the “Eat Your Peas not PFAs”. Additionally the Berkeley Heirs joined a KQED Special Report on plastic pollution, and they helped pass the Climate Literacy Resolution for K-12 Climate Education in the Berkeley Unified school district.
They closed out the year strong receiving the Berkeley Mayor’s Proclamation for their work on reducing plastic waste in their school district. Congratulations to the Berkeley Heirs!”
By Jacqueline Omania, H2OO Berkeley Chapter Advisor