emPOWER is Brown University’s student environmental umbrella organization. Our eight member groups meet once a week to “change the campus climate” by promoting environmental sustainability in a variety of ways.
emPOWER is based on the idea that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts; that is, by joining all of the environmental initiatives on campus under one umbrella, sharing resources, knowledge, and a meeting time and place, we can accomplish more as a community.
Therefore, emPOWER is all about community: different member groups support and encourage each other, sharing ideas and resources; our Social Chairs plan monthly social events for our members; we encourage leadership among our younger members; and we keep thorough archives of our groups, events, and history to ensure our longevity as an organization.
All emPOWER member groups meet on Sundays from 8-9 or 9-10 p.m. on the 3rd floor of Wilson Hall.
Structure
emPOWER is run by a Steering Committee, which meets separately, at meetings open to any emPOWER member. The Steering Committee is composed of an Executive Director, Communications Director, 2 Financial Chairs, 2 Social Chairs, and one Member Group Representative from every member group. One of each of the Social Chair and Financial Chair positions are reserved specifically for underclassmen (although members of any class year may run for any position). Elections are held in early April for the coming academic year, which allows for a full month of transition time.
History
emPOWER was originally formed as a campaign with a specific goal: to get Brown University’s administration to commit to carbon reduction and renewable energy goals. This dovetailed with the work that BEAN, the Brown Environmental Action Network, was undertaking as well, and the two groups eventually became one, as emPOWER. When, in early 2008, the university announced a commitment to a 42% reduction in carbon emissions below 2007 levels by 2020, the leaders of emPOWER decided to expand the organization’s role into a hub for student environmental projects.
emPOWER has always strived to meet the needs of the current situation on campus and globally, which means that member groups and initiatives evolve considerably in short periods of time. In Fall 2008, emPOWER’s committees included PowerVote, dedicated to getting young voters to make energy and environmental policy a priority in the 2008 elections; an endowment committee, focused on pushing the university to invest its endowment in sustainable initiatives; the Brown Progress Initiative, devoted to sustainable and environmentally friendly technology development; and a group working on raising awareness about climate change on campus.
In Fall 2009, emPOWER formed a Steering Committee to give it more structure and guidance. New initiatives such as Beyond the Bottle, Beyond the Bag, and Campus Climate (now BCAF) began to take off, and the Rhode Island Student Climate Coalition became active once again. In Fall 2010, the Steering Committee model was revised and expanded. CCURB and Campus Climate merged to form BCAF, and SCRAP, the student composting group, hit the ground running. In the Spring of 2011, as emPOWER grew, EcoReps and the Sustainable Food Initiative elected to incorporate as member groups of emPOWER. Also in the spring, the PowerShift Planning Committee decided to meet as a temporary member group during emPOWER’s meeting time, and Bikes @ Brown elected to join the emPOWER umbrella as well.
We hope you’ll join our community and help continue emPOWER’s legacy of changing the campus climate!
