Mary Anne Peine
1621 W Cumberland Avenue
Box 134A
Knoxville, Tennessee 37916
U.S.A.
Universities continue to be at the forefront of activism around the world. Passionate students often mobilize to fight for causes they believe in intensely. Earth Day, which is often recognized as the birth of the large-scale environmental movement, was originally a university based movement. SEAC (the Student Environmental Action Coalition) is an international network that links over 2,000 high schools and universities across the United States alone. SEAC's increasing success in mobilizing thousands of studnets around national and regional issues is indicative of the importance of networking as environmental awareness increases.
Women are a significant and crucial asset to university activism. Environmental issues are often linked to women's issues since both problems involve an essential absence of respect and understanding. Increased rates of cancer and damage to reproductive cycles are problems faced by all women as a direct result of ecological degradation. If environmental problems are to be solved, the strong voice of young women who are directly affected by these problems must be heard. Women activists around the world should take advantage of the networking strategy practiced by such organizations as SEAC. Young women who recognize the need for environmental change today are the future of the environmental movement.
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