Global Warming is an issue that proves to be difficult to solve. Some believe it to be a myth, but statistics and the Earth’s evolving condition prove otherwise. There is not much one man can do on his own, but when united, a difference can be made. Senior Sam Schirvar is one of the youngest members of the environmentalist group The Alliance to Re-industrialize for a Sustainable Economy, commonly referred to as  ARISE, and is certainly doing his part.

Schirvar is very involved in the environmental and economic work that he is a part of, which results in a lack of time for other things.

Schirvar said, “I don’t have a lot of time for hobbies.”  However, he is able to find time for student council and speech and debate, which he enjoys very much. Schirvar said that any down time he finds for himself is usually dedicated to Netflix, and as of recently the latest season of ‘The Office’.

His favorite classes include computer science and AP environmental science. He hopes to have a job in urban planning and design when he is older. He said he, “would like to have a career that’s more than just activism because then maybe that sort of career would lend some credibility to my activism.”

Schirvar has a positive outlook on his work. He said, “I think there are a lot of people that say they want to make a difference in the world, but they don’t realize that they can start doing that sort of thing right now. I guess I’m not much different in what inspires me. I want to make change, create something that is important and help others. The fact that I’m actually doing it shows people that they can do the work you want to do right now to some extent.”

Schirvar said the two people that inspire him the most are Bill Mckibben, who leads the environmental movement right now, and Murray Bookchin, who is an environmental anarchist.

ARISE is a group that is based out of St. Paul that identifies issues and implements solutions to resolve them. ARISE is increasingly being accepted by the city of St. Paul and is gaining more influence.  More and more city planners are attempting to implement ARISE’s five design components into their work.

The first of the five components is Green Manufacturing. This ensures a vast quantity of family sustainable jobs be available through clean energy production and mass transit projects. Schirvar said, they are “trying to build more than just condos and coffee shops” because those don’t supply a lot of jobs.

Second is Clean Energy, which is the use of environmentally friendly energy, harnessing powers such as wind power and hydroelectricity. ARISE focuses on “being green in their process as well as their product,” according to Schirvar.

Third is Green Building, the designing of buildings and neighborhoods so that they are efficient. Schirvar said, they are trying to make these homes available to “high income housing and low income housing.”

Fourth is Mass Transit because, as Sam said, “Driving costs time and money.”

Finally, they focus on re-localizing, which goes full circle back to producing work and the act of giving those jobs to local residents.

Schirvar does a lot of outreach work for ARISE in the summer, but when he has more on his plate during the school year he finds other areas to work. He is currently designing the website ARISEMN.org which should be open for viewing in the near future. Sam Schirvar is a great person with great values, goals and accomplishments.