Billy Parish
Encyclopedia
Billy Parish is an American author, activist, and environmentalist. In 2003, he dropped out of Yale University to help found the Energy Action Coalition
, which has since become the largest youth advocacy organization in the world working on climate change issues. Billy and the coalition have brought together 50 diverse organizations, raised nearly $10 million in four years, helped get over 600 colleges to commit to climate neutrality, trained and empowered tens of thousands of young people, and built a base of 340,000 young voters who elevated climate issues in the 2008 elections. In March, the Energy Action Coalition organized Power Shift '09, which brought over 12,000 young people to Washington D.C. for the largest climate-focused training, lobby day and non-violent civil disobedience action in U.S. history. 1Sky
states Parish is on the Board of Directors.
Billy grew up in New York City. He spent a semester of high school at The Mountain School
in Vermont, where he was turned on to working for the environment. In July 2005 he led a three day fast in front of the White House to draw attention to the 150,000 deaths caused each year by climate change.
Energy Action Coalition
The Energy Action Coalition is a North American non-profit organization made up of 50 partner organizations in the U.S. and Canada that runs campaigns to build the youth and student clean energy movement and advocate for tangible changes on local, state, national and international levels in North...
, which has since become the largest youth advocacy organization in the world working on climate change issues. Billy and the coalition have brought together 50 diverse organizations, raised nearly $10 million in four years, helped get over 600 colleges to commit to climate neutrality, trained and empowered tens of thousands of young people, and built a base of 340,000 young voters who elevated climate issues in the 2008 elections. In March, the Energy Action Coalition organized Power Shift '09, which brought over 12,000 young people to Washington D.C. for the largest climate-focused training, lobby day and non-violent civil disobedience action in U.S. history. 1Sky
1Sky
1Sky is a United States based campaign in support of federal action to stem global warming and promote renewable energy.1Sky was founded in the spring of 2007 when thirty climate campaigners were on a retreat in the Hudson Valley of New York state...
states Parish is on the Board of Directors.
Billy grew up in New York City. He spent a semester of high school at The Mountain School
The Mountain School
The Mountain School of Milton Academy is a selective independent semester program that provides academically motivated high school juniors from across the country the opportunity to live and work on an organic farm in rural Vermont. Located in Vershire, Vermont, The Mountain School was originally...
in Vermont, where he was turned on to working for the environment. In July 2005 he led a three day fast in front of the White House to draw attention to the 150,000 deaths caused each year by climate change.
Awards and honors
Parish's awards and honors include:- 2009 - Prime Movers fellow.
- 2008 - Utne Reader's "50 Visionaries Who Are Changing Your World"
- 2007 - Ashoka Fellow
- 2007 - Salon.com's "Sexiest Men Living"
- 2006 - Mother Jones "Student Activist of the Year"
- 2005 - Rolling Stone Magazine "Climate Hero"
- 2004 - Brower Youth Award