A Philosophy of Change

The Sierra Sustainability Summit is not an ordinary speech and debate competition. Our focus is not trophies or titles or an equal playing field. We focus on activism and advocacy aimed at increasing sustainability and equitable access to public lands for all Americans. Because of this our present-and-defend style case competition is judged by local officials with decision making power.

Tuolumne County’s local officials with decision-making power are primarily cisgender, heterosexual, White men. This reflects the demographics of the region. Putting students in front of officials who can make change means our judging panels lack diversity, but we are committed to using judges with a history of being allies in the movement to make public lands more accessible to all Americans regardless of their backgrounds or identities. Representing this reality, one in which advocates and activists in Tuolumne County must engage with mostly White, cisgender, heterosexual, male policy makers, serves the pedagogical function of creating a competition that exhibits fidelity to the working conditions advocacy professionals in this region face.

What the Sierra Sustainability Summit lacks concerning the diversity of judging panels is offset by the potential to make lasting, real-world change that diversifies who visits, works, and lives in and near our public lands. We understand that this may not be the most comfortable situation for students of minority status to find themselves in, and that it is not for everyone. However, creating lasting societal change is rarely a comfortable experience, and our judges report working to implement policies our participants have presented to them.

Lasting change is a long term proposition. We are committed to diversifying our panels as much as possible as demographic changes allow.