Introducing the Georgia Climate Digest Video Series: Get to Know Host Eriqah Vincent

Chapters

00:00 Welcome to the Georgia Climate Digest Video Series 

00:21 Meet Eriqah Vincent 

01:57 How the 2009 Power Shift Convergence Changed Her Life 

06:04 What Surprises Eriqah Most About Georgia’s Climate Progress 

09:01 Why Multi-Generational Spaces Give Eriqah Hope 

12:45 What Eriqah Is Looking Forward to in This Series

With the new Georgia Climate Digest video series, Drawdown Georgia is shining a light on the many Georgians working to bring climate solutions home. Exciting and inspiring work to scale climate solutions is happening all across our state, and this series is your opportunity to get to know the people making it happen.

This week, we’re excited to introduce the host of the series, climate and environmental justice advocate Eriqah Vincent. With over fifteen years in environmental, climate, and social justice nonprofit work, Eriqah first became involved with Drawdown Georgia as an advisor on the Climate Solutions & Equity Grant program. She previously managed the Just Energy Portfolio at Partnership for Southern Equity and served as Co-Executive Director of Power Shift Network.

In this launch interview, Lisa Lilienthal of the Drawdown Georgia team sits down with Eriqah to talk about what inspired her to devote her career to climate and environmental justice, and what gives her hope as we strive to solve for climate change.

What Inspired Eriqah’s Path Into Climate Work?

Eriqah’s path wasn’t planned from the start. A required Comparative Women’s Studies course at Spelman College, guided by professors Dr. M. Bahati Kuumba and Dr. Beverly Guy-Sheftall at the college’s Women’s Research and Resource Center, sparked something new. But it was a 2009 trip to the Power Shift Convergence in Washington, D.C., a gathering of roughly 10,000 young climate activists in the snow, that Eriqah calls the event that changed her life.

Why Georgia’s Climate Progress Surprises Eriqah

As a self-described “Northerner to the bottom of her heart,” Eriqah pushes back on the idea that the South lags behind on climate progress. She points instead to the creative, resourceful ways Georgians have found to drive positive change, even within a more conservative political landscape.

What Gives Eriqah Hope

Eriqah finds hope in the growing number of multi-generational spaces within the climate movement, where younger organizers and longtime movement elders learn from and mentor each other with mutual respect for both innovation and history.

Whether you’re new to Georgia’s climate movement or have been part of it for decades, this conversation offers a warm introduction to the voice guiding this new series.

What You’ll Learn

• How a college course and a single youth climate convergence shaped Eriqah’s career path.
• Why Eriqah believes the South’s climate progress is often underestimated.
• Why multi-generational collaboration is central to what gives Eriqah hope.
• What Eriqah is most looking forward to as she travels the state for this interview series.

Continue reading in our companion blog to learn more about Eriqah and what lies ahead for the Georgia Climate Digest video interview series.

Download the Interview Transcript

Prefer to read the conversation instead? Download the complete PDF transcript of this interview with Eriqah Vincent to learn more about the host of the Georgia Climate Digest video series.