In the News – 2009

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Elliott School Alumna to Represent U.S. at Major U.N. Conference on Climate Change

Valida Prentice (B.A. '08) and 26 other youth leaders from across the country will travel to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Copenhagen, Denmark, this December to advocate for a strong agreement to curb climate change. The group, part of the SustainUS Agents of Change program, is also working to urge the U.S. Senate to pass strong domestic clean energy legislation. Prentice, who studied international affairs at GW, completed a policy recommendation to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change organizers as her senior honors thesis. She is currently pursuing a master's degree in environmental policy at the Free University of Berlin, an Elliott School partner school, with the support of the German government's DAAD Scholarship.

"It is ultimately my generation who will be dealing with the decisions — or indecisions — that our leaders make in Copenhagen, so it is important that youth voices be heard," said Prentice. "I am really excited for this incredible opportunity to actively participate in international policy-making."

The SustainUS Agents of Change program is designed to facilitate youth involvement in international policymaking and to advocate for a sustainable future.