Roots and Shoots’ most recent project, involvement with an organization called iMatter, caught the eye of St. Louis Park Magazine, according to junior Emily Doss.

“They interviewed us about the iMatter project and how it will affect St. Louis Park, and our views towards the environment,” Doss said.

iMatter is a national organization working on the improvement of the environmental status of the cities around the country, according to executive director Larry Kraft.

According to Kraft, iMatter started a new campaign called iMatter Now that works with youth to improve the environmental status of their city.

“The campaign is for youth to advocate on their own behalf, to stand up and speak up about climate change,” Kraft said. “We’re in pilot phase with this campaign so we’ve got it rolling out in maybe about ten or so cities in the country.”

Kraft said he is on the editorial board for the St. Louis Park Magazine, and he helped Roots and Shoots get an interview to talk about their latest projects.

“They asked the editorial board for ideas and I told them about iMatter Now and what was going on with Roots and Shoots,” Kraft said. “They were really interested.”

Junior Emily Doss, along with juniors Jayne Stevenson and Owen Geier, were interviewed Dec. 8.

Doss said the interview for St. Louis Park Magazine presented challenges, but she handled herself well.

“It was intimidating at first. I was worried I wouldn’t have the best answers to her questions but it turned out well in the end,” Doss said.

The project involves many undertakings, such as creating a report card to present before the city and writing a petition to advocate for climate change starting with youth, according to Kraft.

“The first part is to create a report card on the city and the basis of the report card is if the city is doing their part to work on climate change,” Kraft said. “The campaign does lay out some challenges, like getting signatures for the petition, and it’s some pretty powerful stuff.”

Doss said she feels enthusiastic about the project because of the impact on the community.

“I’m excited for this project,” Doss said. “I think it’s a great thing that Park students are getting involved in and spreading to the community. It will bring awareness.”

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