Twelve thousand people came together last weekend in the Washington Convention Center of Washington, D.C. for the Power Shift 2009 conference.

The event, which took place from Friday, Feb. 27, to Monday, March 2, aimed to “successfully fight for clean energy solutions” such as solar, hydroelectric, geothermal and wind energy, as well as for “the creation of a new green economy.”

Conference-goers made a point, however, to differentiate between true energy alternatives and options like clean coal and ethanol, which do not hold up as well in the scientific community.

Among those attending were 18 Binghamton University students.

“I thought a lot of the workshops were very interesting, and things that we can bring back to BU to implement here,” said Caitlyn Edmundson, a junior economics and math major and treasurer of the BU chapter of the Student Environmental Awareness Club (SEAC).

The conference was hosted by the Energy Action Coalition, a network of non-profit organizations and their member supporters, which aims to educate and empower youth to make change in regards to climate and clean energy policies. Energy Action Coalition is responsible for the Campus Climate Challenge, of which a chapter exists at BU.

During the course of the four-day conference, students and advocates chose from between around 200 options of panels, seminars and workshops to attend. These ranged from addressing leadership and campaign development to empowering youth through special high-school-based workshops, to nonviolent direct-action strategies, questions of faith and its role in eco-activism, and discussions of local food systems.

The conference gave out prizes to the top-attending universities, including optimal seats for the evening addresses and performances.

“The more people you bring you bring with you, who experience what you experience, the more you can bring the momentum of the conference back to campus and make some real changes,” said Mary Davis, president of SEAC.

Davis’ efforts ended up bringing more than half of the total participants from Binghamton University.

The keynote address was opened by Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson, the first African American to hold the position. She spoke about the importance of funds appropriated to the EPA so that it could adequately carry out its duties, and praised President Obama for the $10.5 billion budget he proposed the day before. The EPA is entering its 40th year and, with proper funding, Jackson told the audience, the “EPA is back on the job.”

Evenings were filled with other high-profile speakers such as Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, who spoke of the importance of everyone doing their part to stop climate change.

“Our nation doesn’t end at our borders; we are one planet and one people,” Salazar said.

He also announced, to a very enthusiastic audience, the plan of the Department of the Interior to create “thousands of jobs in sustainable energy, and resource management, restoration and protection,” to be opened within the next few weeks.

One of his other current projects is focusing on creating the “best 21st century youth conservation corps the world has ever seen.”

“It was unbelievable for me to stand last night behind the stage with Administrator Jackson and Secretary Salazar and to realize for the first time in my life as an activist that I had partners and allies inside government to work beside us,” said Jesse Tolkan, the Power Shift 2009 organizer. “They literally said we need your help to make this happen; we need your 12,000 leaders.”

Some of the lesser hyped, but equally powerful speeches came from names like Van Jones, whose organization Green for All is focusing on the creation and expansion of green-collar jobs, and Majora Carter, whose work includes the revitalization of communities in the South Bronx, also made an impassioned speech.

The conference culminated on March 2 on Capitol Hill, where participants met with their Congressional Representatives to express their support of legislation increasing the viability and use of clean energy alternatives. Although faced with freezing temperatures and less than ideal weather conditions, approximately 2,500 activists toughed it out and proceeded to the Capitol’s coal-fired power plant to form a blockade as an act of civil disobedience.

The 99-year-old plant has been publicly criticized by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and NASA climatologist Dr. James Hansen for emitting almost a third of the Capitol’s green house gasses. After nearly four hours, the blockade broke up. No arrests were made.