Ara Vickers is CCL’s Greater Pacific Northwest Climate Advocacy Fellow this year! She is a senior at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon.

In one word: resilient!

Ara was drawn to the climate movement out of necessity, recognizing both that we have not yet done enough to address climate change and that hope still remains to learn from our mistakes. Scheduled to graduate in December, Ara is studying political science at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon, but originally hails from North Carolina. Her experience on both sides of the country, and working with a member of Congress, has convinced her that democracy works and that a group of thoughtful, engaged people holds revolutionary power. Ara has also worked with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Buffalo Nations Grassland Alliance (BNGA), as well as her campus sustainability organization.

She’s hoping to deepen her engagement with community organizations through her time as a Climate Advocacy Fellow for the Greater Pacific Northwest Region. She will be recruiting campus leaders and student volunteers, helping with regional outreach, and supporting the regional conference. She is currently supporting an effort to develop resources for intergenerational conversations about climate change. Ara is most excited to contribute to building a diverse community of loud voices within her region. She hopes that her time as a Fellow will help her to be an effective change-maker and to learn the leadership and educational skillset necessary to do so.

When she isn’t busy effecting change in her community, she loves to walk, dance, paint, swim, watch video essays, and bake. She is also a foster mom with the Oregon Humane Society, where she frequently fosters very rambunctious kittens.

Ara “envisions a future in which we as a species create climate resilient landscapes through funding our environments.” Her work as a fellow is a critical step to cultivating the next generation of climate leaders who will bring this vision to fruition.