Vermont Legislature SmartTranscripts:

[Speaker 0]: Are you ready? One G.

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: Two Gs if you count the initial one. Okay.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Why don't we go live?

[Rep. Dara Torre (Clerk)]: We're live.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Alright. Welcome everybody to House Energy and Digital Infrastructure. It is January 29. And we are here with members of the youth climate lobby for one of our annually anticipated days of youth advocacy in the state house. So we're always happy to welcome you guys to our committee room. We'll go around the room and introduce ourselves, everybody, and then we'll turn it over to our lead off witness in the chair. So I'm representative Kathleen James from Manchester.

[Rep. Christopher Morrow (Member)]: Chris Morrow, Windham, Windsor, Bennington. Michael Southworth, Caledonia two. Christopher Howland, Rowland four.

[Rep. Dara Torre (Clerk)]: Dara Torre, Washington two.

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: Bram Kleppner, Chittenden 13, Burlington.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: And sorry, our vice chair and ranking member are on their way. So in the room joining us.

[Claire Palmer (The Valley Reporter)]: Claire Palmer with the Valley reporter.

[Miranda Cagey (Adult Advisor, Youth Lobby)]: Miranda Cagey, and I am the adult advisor for this wonderful group of people, Morris Temple and Douglas.

[Julia Wolfe (Student, Harwood Union HS)]: Julia Wolfe, and I go to Harwood, I'm from the Waterbury. Awesome.

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: Jack Cabledo, I work with the Vermont Natural Resources Council.

[Evelyn Seidner (Advisor, Vermont Natural Resources Council)]: Evelyn Seidner also work with the Vermont Natural Resources Council as an advisor to this wonderful group of students, and I live for. Great. I'm Astrid Longstreth. I live in West Bolton and I go to FFU. Awesome.

[Astrid Longstreth (Student, Mount Mansfield Union HS)]: I'm Harmony Depot. I live in Warren and I go to Harwood.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Great. Now just to make sure we

[Speaker 0]: don't run out of time,

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: how many of you guys are going give us comments today?

[Speaker 0]: Three. Three? Okay. And we've got

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: about half an hour? We've got. Oh, we don't. We have a little bit more time than that. So we're not in a particular rush. Our next commitment is at two. So, okey dokey. So for the record, if you could introduce yourself. My

[Jane Schafer (Student, Harwood Union HS)]: name is Jane Schafer. I'm a junior at Harwood Union High School, and I live in Wakesfield. I'm a ski instructor at Sugarbush and wanna protect our winters. I spend my summers by the Mad River and I'm tired of the drops and floods, and I'm terrified of what is becoming of our country at the federal level. That is why I sit before you today. But you were to if you were to ask any of the kids in this room or truly any kid you come across, they would tell you their reasons for wanting to prevent climate change. It's our future that we're fighting for. I hope you've noticed us around the State House today in these black t shirts, but as a formal introduction, we are Youth Lobby. Youth Lobby began with one simple question. What about us? In a civics class of twenty fifteen, a Harvard student learned about lobbyists. She learned that people who have more power and resources are able to spend money to hire professionals to lobby for them. The student raised her hand and asked, do the youth have lobbyists? The answer was no. Thus began her Civic Action Project. If students can form a group of very well informed young people and are willing to organize and use their voices and ideas, they have just as much power as any adult. Flash forward more than a decade later and here we are, still in the state house, still a group of dedicated young people. Youth lobby was here when the Global Warming Solutions Act was written into law, and we came back again last year to make sure it stayed. On my very first lobby day, we squeezed 50 people into the Senate chamber and watched the first vote on the climate super fund. In the following weeks, we watched it make its way to becoming a bill. Every year since the group started, we've had semi regular lobby days along with a rally for the climate towards the end of the legislative session. Last year, we changed that up and instead of a big carnival on the front lawn, we had a record breaking number of students march down Main Street and have a rally on the front steps. It followed with the dedicated few coming in and speaking with legislators. We're not here to disturb, simply to show up and be heard. We are constantly changing and shifting to work towards our climate goals, and we ask the same of you. That part has never changed. So please listen to us, work with us, ask us questions, because we are here to speak for all the youth of this state, and we are its future. Thank you. Thank you. Why don't we hear from all of

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: you, and then we'll ask questions of all of you. Does that sound good?

[Astrid Longstreth (Student, Mount Mansfield Union HS)]: Hi, again, my name is Astrid Longstreth. I live in West Portland and I attend Mount Mansfield Union High School as a sophomore. One of the topics of the euphoria I've been focusing on recently is the Climate Superfund Act, as it faces lawsuits and pushback from our federal government and big oil corporations. That is why we are participating in the National Make Polluters Pay Week of Action, to make sure our state leaders know how important this law is to our future, Vermont's future, and to stand in solidarity with states across the country who are following in our footsteps by advancing climate superfund bills and working to hold big oil companies accountable for their damaging actions. I want to thank state lawmakers and leaders for not backing down federal government and fossil fuel corporations. As youth in Vermont, the continued implementation of the Climate Superfund Act represents a step forward protecting the future of the planet and the next generation. We will be the ones inheriting an Earth with a warming climate with polluted air and rising sea levels. We should not have to be the ones to bear the responsibility for it. This is why the Climate Superfund Act is so important. It makes those who are truly at fault for the continued impacts of climate change be part of the solution. It seeks reparations for Vermonters who have already suffered so much of enhanced climate change. With the funds generated from compensation from fossil fuel companies, Vermont can better prepare for future impacts of climate change by investing in infrastructure and efforts that will increase our climate resilience. At a time when federal action is moving against, rather than for, climate advocacy, activism is more essential than ever. This is not a time to be idle, to wait for things to improve, because they won't unless we do something. The future is not something that is going to happen. It is something that we can shape and take action to protect, while there's still time to do so. Must happen not just for Vermont, not just for youth, not just for people, but for the earth itself. Taking steps forward to stop climate change will benefit everyone and cause the planet our home. The Climate Superfund is an extremely important policy. However, it cannot be implemented without sufficient funding, which is why I ask the legislature and governor to ensure that the agency's natural resources receives enough funds to be able to implement it successfully. Additionally, I would like to thank all of the legislators who have fought to pass or launch current climate laws. These are essential in our journey to protecting the planet and stopping climate change, and more action must be taken in the future if we are to complete this journey. The Climate Action Plan is an important document, one that outlines many recommendations for future actions to fight climate change and respond to its effects. One of these recommendations is on creating a greenhouse gas reporting requirement for the transportation and heating sectors. Currently, these two sectors contribute the largest percent of Vermont's greenhouse gas emissions, yet we have the least amount of data on them. Without their collection of further information on the transportation and heating sectors, we will not be able to successfully curb the emissions generated by them. This policy would provide information that could support better local and statewide planning, as well as future policies and regulations. Taking this step forward is essential in order for law to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and cost in the transportation and thermal sectors. Thank you for your time and for your hard work, Kathleen.

[Rep. Dara Torre (Clerk)]: Thank you.

[Speaker 0]: Good afternoon. My name is Harmony Belle Debo. I'm a member of Youth Lobby and the Vermont State Youth Council. I go to Harwood Union High School and I live in Warren in Washington County. In July 2023, I observed the violently rising Mad River as the water made its way up the riverbank and the rock barriers protecting our town from its currents.

[Harmony Belle Debo (Student, Harwood Union HS)]: As the grass flooded, farmers lost top soil and crops, homes first floors were submerged, and businesses were ruined and forced to throw away thousands of dollars worth of goods. As a 14 year old, when I should have been able to enjoy my summer outside, swimming in clear Vermont waters, I instead observed my town in a climate crisis, flooded with sediment filled water. Vermont is not a safe exception when it comes to environmental disasters and the devastating effects of climate change. When we experienced similar floods in December 2024, I had a similar sinking feeling as the rivers rose again. As my peers and I were bused home early from school, missing education due to an unsafe outdoor environment to return home in, I realized the impact climate change has on Vermont is not just going to be a single storm, but a growing pattern of environmental disasters immensely worsened by the use of fossil fuels. Big oil companies contribute to climate change in Vermont by selling polluting and volatile fossil fuels that lead to climate impacts like the disastrous floods our state has experienced, pushing Vermont to hold these global producers financially responsible for their share of these costs. People often ask how much it will cost to combat climate change. Question that is as important to ask is, what is the cost of inaction? As a young person, living in a state ranked nationally for having the highest natural disaster declarations makes me feel that I must navigate heightened anxiety, fear, and worry for my communities, and has caused me and other youth in our community to adopt premature resilience. It makes me disappointed in my leaders that haven't been able to combat the growing effects of climate change sooner, which we have been made aware of for decades now. The fact that Vermont is importing dirty and expensive fossil fuels that do not contribute to our state's environmental or economic well-being and instead actually harm both, while renewable energy is a more affordable, clean option that supports Vermont economy by creating jobs and recirculating dollars in our economy shows that there is an obvious opportunity placed before us to benefit our community, environment, and economy. Vermont ranks fourth in the country for per capita post disaster federal assistance. In the county I live in, Washington County, had the highest number of disaster declarations in the state, 22 disasters. As a young person growing up among these climate disasters, this is frightening and disturbing. In 2023 alone, Vermont faced over $2,000,000,000 in climate disaster costs, while big oil companies like Shell and ExxonMobil reaped over $200,000,000,000 in profits. This is a reality that spurred our first in the nation Climate Superfund Act to make big oil pay and take responsibility for their impact on climate change in Vermont. These funds would go toward much needed investments in environmental resilience and adaptation strategies for our state, which would provide young people like me a feeling of confidence in the safety and well-being of our communities going forward, It would allow us to avoid high future cleanup costs that young people would otherwise be forced to pay for. The cost of doing nothing is too high. The legislature does not make big oil pay for the mess they've made. My generation will inherit these costs. We will rule up with the bills for infrastructure that is washing away. How would you feel if as a child, especially among the current state of our economy, you had the knowledge that when you grew up, you would be forced to pay for the repair of damage done by climate change caused by adults running these big oil companies moving over you. The Climate Superfund Act's polluter pays principle uses logic that we learn at a young age. If you make a mess, you clean up after yourself. You don't expect others to clean it up for you. It is unacceptable and unfair for Vermonters to be the ones paying for damages caused by companies that have known for decades about climate change and their contributions to it. It is extremely empowering to be listened to as a member of Youth Lobby in Vermont, the state leading the nation in climate action. It is heartening to see the Attorney General and Treasurer defending the Climate Superfund Act against lawsuits in the American Petroleum Institute. Your support for this act is crucial because it's the state's primary tool to make fossil fuel companies pay for climate damages like floods and fund essential adaptation projects, easing the financial burden on Vermonters, especially after recent severe disasters, and serves as a national model for holding polluters accountable. As a young person, I experienced persistent climate anxiety. When I stood in silence at a protest with my fourth grade class for 11 in 2019, representing the eleven years we have left before the effects of climate change were irreversible, I felt overwhelmed with fear for the safety and well-being of our environment and communities. Now, seeing the possibility of big oil being held accountable for the harm and disaster their fossil fuels have caused our state gives me immense hope in the possibility of a future where people and the planet are delivered the environmental justice they deserve. I want to thank you for all the work you have done to protect our climate and urge you still to keep making progress for future generations of Vermonters. The Climate Action Plan outlines many top recommendations for how Vermont can keep improving our climate action and resilience. Creating a greenhouse gas reporting requirement for the transportation and heating sectors is one of those top recommendations. Right now, transportation and heating make up the largest share of Vermont's emissions, but we know the least about them and they're the least regulated. You can't manage what you don't measure. This policy would serve as foundational baseline of information to support better local, regional and state planning, as well as potential future policy and regulatory approaches. It is essential to begin to significantly reduce climate pollution and costs in the fossil fuel intensive transportation and thermal sectors of our state. Other environmentally important laws to youth right now that I urge you to please protect are the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2020 and the Renewable Energy Standards of 2024. I want to thank the committee for all the work you've done and continue to do to pass laws that will protect my future. And I ask you to please stand strong and continue to fund the Climate Superfund legislation passed in 2024 and implementation of this very important law in order to defend the safety of our land, communities, and future generations. Thank you for your time.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Thank you very much. Well, guess I can kick off the questions. I'd be curious to hear from each of you or anybody who wants to chime in, you don't have to, about how you first got involved in the youth lobby and then maybe what work you're doing back home in your high school or in your community.

[Speaker 0]: I first got started in the youth lobby in ninth grade, when I joined high school and I was just thinking about what kind of clubs I wanted to be in. I grew up attending a lot of climate protests in Boston, where I was raised. And I saw it as a club that really allowed me to reach my legislators and the people who are in power that are making policies that are going to drastically impact my future. And yeah, I joined the club and then we started coming to our lobby days at the state house and I've been part of it ever since. Awesome.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Other folks?

[Speaker 0]: I go to school with Harmony. We're the same age. We started about the same time. Did in middle school. I did a club called Cultivating Pathways to Sustainability, and I would go to elementary schools and read books by BIPOC authors. And I just, there was such a little change, but it just felt so empowering that I was like, I have to keep doing this. And so I joined Youth Lobby and my very first meeting, there were two seniors who had been involved their whole high school career just getting in, like, pretty heated argument. I just this sounds ridiculous, but I was so inspired that they were so into it that they were willing to fight with their best friend to kind of get, make effective change. Well, in seventh grade, I joined the Vermont State East Council. And so I kind of just heard about East Lobby through that because well Harmony, you're also on the State East Council and you do East Lobby. So that was one connection. Just, I think we have a lot of the same interests. And I was on the climate committee of the State East Council and since UD FOBBI has been focusing a lot on the climate, I just heard about it through that. And when my term ended on the State East Council, I decided I want to join Youth Lobby as another way to have my voice heard.

[Julia Wolfe (Student, Harwood Union HS)]: I started out in middle school not as a part of Youth Lobby, but like, occasionally attending Youth Lobby events. And I also worked a lot. We had a really good sustainability program at my middle school, and that was one of my favorite classes. I did a lot of projects in that class, obviously, relating to sustainability. And so then in high school, I pretty prominently joined the sustainability club there. And I was surrounded by, like, by Jane and Harmony and other people who were on Youth Lobby. And for a while, I was a bit confused on how to join or just not sure the step to take, but I did eventually talk to them, and now I'm part of Lobby. Great.

[Claire Palmer (The Valley Reporter)]: I'm not with Youth Lobby. I entered in a newspaper.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Oh, that's right. Sorry. You said that, But it Apologies. I I've got one more question that I'm sure folks around the table have other questions. I was curious to know I know I know you guys are, you know, young and everybody gets this question, but I I would be curious to know if any of you have future careers in mind. Like, what do you see yourself doing? You know? Are you gonna try to enter the field? Or

[Speaker 0]: I hope to be a civil rights lawyer with the ACLU. I want to be a speech pathologist, which kind of has nothing to do with this, but every time I'm here, just feel such a draw to it that, I don't know, we'll see.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: It's a great career?

[Speaker 0]: I don't know. I have a lot of things I want to do. I mean, I'm really interested in journalism and a lot of science fields, but also politics and also being a lawyer. I don't know. There's a lot of things that I can't decide.

[Julia Wolfe (Student, Harwood Union HS)]: So, Maya is very unrelated. I plan on going into performing arts. I don't plan on stopping this. Obviously, it's super important to me as a human being who exists on this planet. So I plan on continuing researching and, like, advocating for these policies. But, yeah, I'm planning on going into performing arts. Cool. So, yeah, first class

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: impressively precise career goals

[Rep. Laura Sibilia (Ranking Member)]: I know. To her in high school. No. So I apologize very much for being late. Laura Sibilia from Windham too. And I just want to applaud you all for coming here and really stress to you that it is so important, your voices here. Democracy requires participation, And, the changing climate is it's really you know, you all are growing up and living in a different time than a lot of other folks, and your voices are so critical. Change of the scale that is required to address climate change is very hard. And you you all speaking to have the right that you have for a future and insisting on your right to participate in this conversation, I just applaud you and encourage you even when you, you know, are frustrated and upset. You know, remember, we we have a democracy, and you have to keep engaging. You have to keep engaging. So thank you so much for coming today, and I I would love to support you continuing to gay engage in any way possible. So thanks, mister Chittenden.

[Speaker 0]: Do we have other questions for our guests? Yeah.

[Rep. Christopher Morrow (Member)]: Curious if you guys, focused on Vermont, or do you tap into, like, national organizations working on climate change?

[Speaker 0]: I think so far, we've just been focused on state policies.

[Rep. Christopher Morrow (Member)]: Yeah. That's good. Do

[Speaker 0]: you have any suggestions of national organizations that we've heard from?

[Rep. Christopher Morrow (Member)]: Well, you know, there's a couple that were started here in Vermont. Think my staff and into, like you're familiar with Bill McKibbens were? Yeah. So if you start there, there's there's lots of lots of different good ones.

[Julia Wolfe (Student, Harwood Union HS)]: Yeah. Can speak to it

[Miranda Cagey (Adult Advisor, Youth Lobby)]: a little bit in terms of because one of my roles is to help youth lobby, once they decide what they want to work on, find good partner organizations who are doing the work so that way they can decide what they want to help leverage. And so part of that is figuring out who good partners are for youth, which is a yeah. In an open way that they can that their voices can be heard. So yeah. So three fifty is part of the the act on climate folks who are good partners in support youth lobby when they're doing climate work. Yeah. The intersees. Yeah. But sort of so there's so there is that tie in. Yeah. Depending on what the lobby wants to do.

[Speaker 0]: And we also I mean, this is still very Vermont centered, but Julia and I ran a youth lobby table for the no kings event a few months ago. So we're definitely from our own little corner here kind of trying to reach out for nationals.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Tell your parents to join third act Vermont. Yeah.

[Speaker 0]: I think their parents are still too young.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: I know. You know what? You know what's really funny? As I was doing that math, I thought No. Actually, not. No. Yes. Your parents are still too young. Oh, well.

[Rep. Dara Torre (Clerk)]: Yeah. Ruttari. I just part of why I love doing this work now is because when I was your age, there was greenhouse gas, you know, global warming. It was no one, but yet it was not something we talked about ever in high school. Like, it just wasn't on the radar at at all, and it took a long time for me to to really become educated about the scale of the crisis and become active. And it's it's kind of a regret that it took that long. And and so, I mean, I feel terrible that you are having to experience it at your age and and and ask that question, why did it take me so long? And and so much of it was about, you know, distraction and disinformation. And I think you guys are fighting that hard. You you have good access to information now, and you have good tools. You're also articulate. Mhmm. And you I know I see I see you in action at Harvard in terms of how you learn and talk about difficult things, your facilitation skills, your ability to present, you know, on any topic, it's impressive. And I feel like if any generation is empowered and skilled up for the fight, it's yours. And I am very grateful for the school system that has created a lot of opportunity and to your parents and your communities that you've been nurtured in because it's, you know, it's really clear where we are now, and it's really clear that the climate crisis is gonna be a democracy crisis. We are living at heart. And we were gonna do our best in this room and welcome you here and look forward to being partners. Thank you.

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: What have you guys each done in your personal lives to move the clean energy transition forward? I

[Speaker 0]: would say in my life, I grow a garden. I only buy second hand. I turn the lights That's all a lot. Pretty similar to Harmony. I have a twenty plus year old car, so definitely not doing great on that front right now. But definitely buying secondhand, we have a garden, spending a lot of time outside, driving around. Well, a lot of these things have mostly been because of my dad because he's very interested in all of this too. But we have solar and drive electric cars and compost. Yeah, my whole family's very much about cutting off legs too. And yeah, I definitely, I don't buy very many. I mostly thrift when I can. And I'm vegetarian, mostly for the environment. I don't like to eat when I eat it, but I decided I felt better, happier, and being vegetarian. Yeah.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: It's great.

[Julia Wolfe (Student, Harwood Union HS)]: My family, we compost. We have a garden. I personally make a point to, you know, shop sustainably, especially, like, good clothing and, like, fast fashion, as well as making a point to not use AI. Oh. Because it can be so detrimental, especially when you use it every day. So I've been trying to do that as well.

[Miranda Cagey (Adult Advisor, Youth Lobby)]: Right on. Yeah.

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: That's all great. And I mean, there's a lot you can do. Vegetarian's great. I'm with you. Although I do have to say, the other week when I got a breakfast sandwich at the Bagel Bakery and the kids screwed up and put bacon on it, it was the best day of the week. You know, Burlington Electric believed my home in Burlington was the first historic structure to get to zero emissions, and we only had electric cars for a while. So there's things big and small, you know, composting and all all of that all that stuff's created. Having your own car, better than buying a new one every three years in terms of the total carbon footprint. There's that. These are difficult times, and you guys, you're all living it, right? Like, the stress of being young at a time when our democracy is under attack from every direction and our global climate is in trouble. It's gonna take a lot of courage. Gonna take a lot of courage. And, you know, one of the sad lessons of this administration is how fragile democracy is, right, that two hundred years buys you nothing. One guy can screw it up in three months, but that also means an equally small number of people can fix it. It only takes a few 100 people in positions of power to protect an entire democracy, so there's hope there, and I will

[Speaker 0]: share

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: to try to help counter the despair that is so easy to feel these days, I will share one of the things that keeps me hopeful. I had this great idea. I heard the Sahara Desert has gone back and forth between being forested and desert every five thousand years, so I had this great idea. I called up McKibben and I'm like, Dude, let's reforest the Sahara. It's gonna be awesome. We'll put nuclear fusion plants along the North Code, we'll desalinate water from the Mediterranean, we'll irrigate it, we'll grow this forest, it'll absorb all this carbon, it'll be awesome.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Such a short form bill.

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: I'm like, as good as this. I was all excited, and he writes back, it's like, it's not quite that simple, and he explains to me that the fact that the Sahara is now sand, the winds bring a lot of it up into the air and filter the sunlight hitting the Atlantic and keep the Atlantic cooler, so if you reforest it, the Atlantic gets quite a bit warmer, and the East Coast Of The US gets hammered with monster storms. Like, dang, unintended consequences everywhere you look. But there is, and I apologize to my colleagues who are tired of hearing me get all I'm excited about talking.

[Miranda Cagey (Adult Advisor, Youth Lobby)]: That was pretty consistent.

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: But fair.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: I feel my own. I don't know. I feel young. Yeah.

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: Now there's there's a lot of progress on new 100% clean and safe nuclear technology, nuclear fusion. There's a plant being built right now that brings with it the promise of clean, non carbon, no radioactive waste, affordable energy. And if that happens in the next five years, it will make a meaningful difference in our chances of getting the planet into a more stable climate position that will not that will avoid the misery that will come from continued climate instability.

[Speaker 0]: I'm wondering if it's if the waste isn't radioactive, does that mean if it does accidentally spill it'll be okay for the environment and the surrounding people?

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: Yes, the technology, fusion technology, just you know, the current nuclear reactors take big unstable atoms of uranium and split them in two that release a lot of energy, and you have two slightly smaller unstable atoms which are radioactive waste. Fusion takes two hydrogen atoms and sticks them together, which counterintuitively also produces a great deal of energy, and the only byproduct is helium, which you can actually then burn for more energy, and all that produces is water, so it's clean all the way through. There's no chance of a meltdown or any of that stuff, and it's very complicated technically. You need very high temperature and very high pressure, and they've been working on it for like seventy years, but as I said, the first commercial fusion plant is under construction in Everett, Washington right now. They're building a plant to supply Microsoft with like 50 megs of power, and if it works I hate to rely on a tech fix. It would be nice if humans could just behave properly, but I'm afraid many millennia of human history have proven you cannot count on humans to behave properly, so a tech fix is infinitely better than that fix.

[Speaker 0]: You. Guys, saw another here. Was there another I was going to ask the same thing as Harmony about the nuclear non radioactive waste.

[Rep. Dara Torre (Clerk)]: Yeah. I have a question for you guys. Do you have peer support networks in your schools?

[Speaker 0]: Can you define that, please?

[Rep. Dara Torre (Clerk)]: Where you kind of have you know, it's like because of the level of stress and and things like that, it's an opportunity to help be there for people more informally. And I just I thought I read something recently

[Speaker 0]: that maybe you should know. Doesn't sound familiar at home? Not sure.

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: It's a good idea. It's good to have people where when you're just feeling completely crushed by the world where you can go and say, hey, I just need to sit in the room with you and you need to hold my hand while I cry for five minutes. It is good to have those release valves. It's important for all of our health.

[Rep. Dara Torre (Clerk)]: It's mental health, day, so and in the lobby. But I I when you walk by the table out there, if you haven't checked it out, they have these short little mental health cards just in case you ever do come upon someone who's having a crisis like the jail's license.

[Speaker 0]: I got it.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Alright. Do we have more questions?

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: Unsurprisingly, I have more to say.

[Speaker 0]: I do. Wow. Yeah. One of the things do we

[Miranda Cagey (Adult Advisor, Youth Lobby)]: have a lot of folks come in with climate anxiety, and that's why you what you blobbing does. Yeah. Take that anxiety and turns it back. Vision action. Antidote. Yeah. And so, you know, so that's, like, what our main topic is. So, there is

[Rep. Dara Torre (Clerk)]: something. Yeah. There's power there for sure.

[Speaker 0]: Do we have any more questions for the leaders of today?

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: Can I say one more short thing? Is

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: it a question from kids or just a comment?

[Rep. Bram Kleppner (Member)]: I just want to comment on something that James said. Yes. Which is you said, we're not here to disturb. I would say if someone is sleepwalking towards a cliff, it is your duty to disturb

[Miranda Cagey (Adult Advisor, Youth Lobby)]: them. 1000% in a democracy if that's what you think is happening. So peacefully. Great.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Super. Does anybody else have any questions for our students? I am really glad you're here. It's always great to see you. I look forward to this day every year. Are you gonna come to floor today, or do you have to take off? I just

[Speaker 0]: think we're planning to do it. Yeah. Not today.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Okay. Well, please stay in touch. Thanks again. Did you submit your I didn't see your testimony ahead of time. Did you did you email it, or could you email it? We'll post it.

[Miranda Cagey (Adult Advisor, Youth Lobby)]: It

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: should be the committee assistant should have it. It's already It's already up? That's great. Okay. Well, thanks so much for being here, everybody, and we are back at two. Right? Yes. We are back at two. So we can go offline. And thanks again for all your work and for being here at the State House.