Katie Monacella is a social activist. As a champion of climate justice, she feels that climate change affects all of our lives, but it has a particularly adverse impact on the health and economy of underprivileged populations.

As a member of Madison’s Environmental Club, Katie participated in several marches in Washington, DC. Her work for climate justice began in 2018 when she joined the Sunrise Movement, which describes itself as “a youth movement to stop climate change and create millions of good jobs in the process.” The organization is national, but members are encouraged to organize regional hubs to work for change at a local level.

Katie organized a Sunrise Movement hub and led fellow students in community activism. In December 2019, she coordinated a climate strike where students missed school to express the importance of the climate crisis. They joined together in a rally at the Vienna Town Green, which included young speakers from a variety of environmental protection groups.

Members of the Sunrise Movement also asked the Fairfax County Public Schools to establish a Green New Deal, outlining changes the school system could make to become more environmentally sustainable. They proposed more energy-efficient windows, solar panels, and electric school buses. Katie was honored by the Fairfax Board of Supervisors for her efforts.

In February 2020 Katie carried a banner which said “We deserve a future” as she stood with other members of the Sunrise Movement on the main steps of the US Capitol Building. She says she was one of nearly 20 peaceful protestors arrested and taken to a police station in Anacostia. They were all released without being charged with anything.

Katie is also an active participant in the Black Lives Matter movement. She helped lead several webinar training sessions on racism and police brutality. Although the webinars were officially called the “Defund the Police Crash Course”, she explains that they did not advocate abolishing the police.  Instead, they recommended reallocating money to finance various specialized emergency response programs, such as mental health services.

Katie plans to join the nearest hub of the Sunrise Movement when she attends college. She would like to major in political science or journalism with the goal of becoming even more involved in the press and media-related aspect of her social and political activism.