Hailing from the Northeast, Sof (she/they) has called Washington home for the last five years. They are an experienced and capable environmental educator and organizer, with a background in fossil fuel divestment campaigns and passion for building community and youth power towards liberation and a world beyond extraction. Sof is an organizing coach at Youth Climate Finance Alliance working with young people on developing anti-imperialist climate campaigning and key political education and organizing fundamental skills. Sof trains in public narrative organizing with re:power both nationally and in Washington state, where she also supports the base building efforts and volunteer leadership team at 350 Seattle. They are a member of the Seattle Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). When they’re not geeking out about movement history and strategy, they work as a ski instructor and rock climbing guide! They are excited to bring a background in technical outdoor guiding and expedition work to movement spaces building and imagining expansive new futures. They also love a good hot sauce, dog-watching in the park, crafting, quality puns, and reading their kindle on transit.
Let’s dive into her story:
Tell us about the work you do and why it matters.
I hold multiple hats. I support base-building for young people engaged in intergenerational climate organizing nationally through my role at Youth Climate Finance Alliance. I support the build-out of their Ignition Front chapter programming, offering coaching, training, and operations support, and working with college-aged young people and multiracial youth to build anti-imperialist climate campaigns in their communities. I also support the volunteer leadership team at 350 Seattle, a Seattle-based climate org fighting to advance local climate solutions, a just transition, and a livable future in Washington State. Finally, I am a re:power trainer for our Grassroots Organizing track, offering coaching and training on grassroots organizing fundamentals. This work matters because no matter where your focus lies: immigration justice, climate justice, housing, youth development, mastering the fundamentals encourages people to transform their passion into sustained action which is the heartbeat of power-building.
What’s a win that lives with you?
Recently, I was inspired by young organizers in Corpus Christi, who led a massive campaign against a desalination plant and won. And this win was in large part because of how they framed their campaign, emphasizing that this is a manufactured water crisis caused by industry, compromising residents’ access to clean water. This strategy built significant pressure through multiple channels, including public testimony, media outlets, and local officials. And they used this as an opportunity to base build beyond the win, with Corpus Christi DSA now holding the fastest-growing membership of any DSA chapter nationally. This win lives with me because, in many climate victories, we see them ultimately get rolled back and the grassroots coalitions dissolve. What organizers in Corpus Christi modeled for us was the importance of keeping people accountable to those wins and engaging with the community to build durable people power ready for the next fight ahead.
How did your re:power training reshape your leadership?
This is such a fun question for me now that I train for re:power, but I see my experience at YCFA as a testament to the re:power framework. At my previous organization, we hired re:power to lead a training program for the young people in our network. Witnessing how re:power staff engaged with the curriculum, the high level of expertise trainers operated at, and how it was integrated long after the training ended, I knew this was unlike any other training. And when we launched YCFA, we used a lot of that initial support – shared language and training materials especially – to establish ourselves, securing fiscal sponsorship, rebuilding our programs, and setting up our base-building program. I credit re:power for giving me concrete organizing skills and tools; above all, the real gift was the deep relational bonds forged through the training, which carried over into our next adventure.
This line of work requires a lot of heart and hustle. How do you find joy and recharge?
For me, embodied movement is a big part. Getting off the screen to process when big things are happening in my work and in the world. I find a lot of joy in dance and being in nature. Lately, I’ve done everything from partner classes to ecstatic dance. Currently, I’m in an adult beginner ballet class, which has been really fun and quite hard. I find so much power and joy in snapping back into my body, pushing my limits, and seeing what my body can accomplish, whether it is ballet, skiing, or climbing. Endorphins help too!
