Are you in this for the Long Haul? Take the Organizing Pledge.
Who We Are:
We are building a movement to dismantle the power of the fossil fuel industry, halt climate crisis, and fuel a just transition to a more equitable and sustainable economy that extends beyond the boundaries of the college campus. The crises we face demand that we win campaigns for divestment on campus, and continue to build power long term. While our targets expect our movement to lose momentum as student organizers graduate, through the Long Haul Initiative (LHI), we're proving them wrong.
The Long Haul Initiative is a program of the Divestment Student Network dedicated to cultivating collective commitment to long haul organizing throughout our network, and enabling the ongoing engagement of our leaders after they leave school. We recognize that organizing after college is not a conventional, or easy decision to make. We are developing a variety of projects to break down the barriers restricting folks from organizing post-college, supporting leaders to develop the skills to continue movement work, leveraging alumni power to strengthen student campaigns, and building bridges to off-campus climate justice work.
Rather than diminishing in power as student organizers graduate, our movement is growing exponentially stronger as student leaders become movement organizers for the long-haul.
Want to join the LHI? Fill out the form below or contact us at [email protected].
Check out our Principles for more insight into what we believe and how we organize.
Current Projects:
1) Solidarity Housing
Resourcing our work is one of the greatest challenges of organizing. Solidarity Housing is connecting DSN organizers with movement supporters who can offer free or low-cost housing to break down some of the financial barriers our organizers experience post-college. We are developing networks of potential hosts across the country and brainstorming possibilities for other forms of low-cost movement housing. Contact Lina Blount at [email protected] to join the Solidarity Housing team.
2) Campus Campaign Support
As the movement for fossil fuel divestment grows across the country, more and more campaigns need support developing organizing skills and building effective strategy. The Long Haul Initiative is working with leaders in the DSN Regional Networks, 350.org and Responsible Endowments Coalition staff to support alumni to become coaches for campus campaigns and connect them to campaigns in need of support. If you are an alum who's interested in doing campaign coaching, contact Michaela at [email protected].
How To Get Involved:
We invite all post-college folks and current students who have been involved in student divestment organizing to join the LHI. Fill out the form below to stay in the loop through our email list! Please contact us with any questions at [email protected].