Youth climate leaders to push local solutions at Bath library

Patten Free Library will host a Bath Climate Conversations event on Wednesday, Jan. 14, that spotlights how young people are driving community-scale climate solutions. The program, set for 5:30 p.m. in the library Community Room and available on Zoom, brings Maine youth organizers into conversation with residents and civic leaders in Sagadahoc County.

Leia Lowery, cofounder and director of The Climate Initiative, and Jackson Chadwick, advocacy director of Maine Youth for Climate Justice, will discuss how students are starting climate-action projects and creating space for intergenerational decision making. The library’s annual series aims to move beyond abstract discussion and encourage practical local responses that residents can shape and support.

Lowery framed the stakes plainly: “[Young people] have a long-term stake in the outcomes of what happens; most of us that are older are not going to be around for the real long-term issues,” she said. She added a policy-focused warning about fiscal and ethical responsibility: “We can’t basically run up a bill and make another generation pay.” Those comments underscore how the conversation ties climate strategy to economic fairness, civic participation, and public health.

Organizers will explore both the nuts-and-bolts of youth-led projects and the social dimensions of climate work. Lowery noted that communities in southern Maine face mounting climate anxiety alongside what she called a loneliness epidemic; the Bath Climate Conversations are intended to rebuild community connections while elevating youth voices. For local health providers, educators and civic groups, that link between mental health and climate engagement signals a need to integrate social supports into planning for resilience.

Maine Youth for Climate Justice, formed in 2019 and open to people under 30, now connects a coalition of more than 400 young Mainers statewide. The group has used outreach tools such as a podcast launched two years ago to dispel misinformation about wind turbines and to boost civic literacy around energy topics. Conversations like the one at Patten Free Library are part of a broader push to ensure policy discussions include people who will live longest with the consequences.

This lecture is the second installment in the library’s series. Future events include a talk with science journalist Peter Brannen on Feb. 11, and a student-led session featuring participants from several universities on March 11.

The takeaway? If you care about resilient towns, public health and fair policy in Sagadahoc, show up, listen to young people and help turn local ideas into local action. Our two cents? Bring a young neighbor, ask what they need to lead, and support projects that build connection as well as climate resilience.