Long-term strategizing can feel like a whiteboard exercise with so much time and energy invested in hopeful, incremental shifts and safe bets. But while representing Young, Gifted & Green at the Climate Action Campaign’s (CAC) workshop, I realized that for Gen Z, the ‘long-term’ is actually our entire lives rather than a projection. Every step of the strategic framework we make today is another opportunity to protect our homes, families, and communities for years to come. It is only with this intentionality that we can hope to build a bright future.

The workshop centered on a primary principle: developing strategic, achievable policy goals that prepare us for future political windows. This was the framework I kept in mind while moving through breakout groups, thinking to myself: “How can our current connections and resources tee us up for a major win down the line?” I quickly realized I wasn’t alone in this mindset: Across local, state, and federal levels, leaders from across the country identified the power players we need to engage and the representatives we must hold accountable to the communities they serve. 

But strategy is only as strong as the people behind it. Between sessions, I sat with a frontline leader from the Phoenix. As she described the intense heat experienced by communities struggling to decide between energy bills and grocery bills, the “technical machinery” of the policy we were drafting suddenly felt that much heavier and more urgent. Building these deeper connections is what transforms a coalition into a movement. Working alongside frontline partners who feel the direct consequences of policy decisions was a powerful reminder that our ‘bit-by-bit’ daily labor is the only way to build a world we can truly be proud of. 

I left Michigan feeling hopeful: We successfully developed a roadmap that felt personal, achievable, and effective. At Young, Gifted & Green, we understand that the technical machinery of policy (the budgets, reports, and legislation) is only meaningful if it serves the people I sat across from this week and the communities they represent.

In D.C., “long-term” is often shorthand for the next election cycle. But for a Gen Z leader, audacity is born from a lack of time. While I respect the decades of expertise in the room, my role isn’t just to listen. Instead, it’s to remind my partners that the “future” we’re debating is already outside the window. Standing among seasoned veterans can be daunting, but our lived reality is the one at stake. I’m learning the dance of when to listen and when to speak up, but I know this for certain: our adaptability isn’t just a trait. It’s a requirement for the world we inherited. 

The roadmap is set, and the fuel is the community we built in Michigan. Now, we return to the Hill to ensure that these policies don’t just stay on whiteboards, but reach the frontlines. At Young, Gifted & Green, we’re done waiting for a turn at the wheel. We’re already driving.