| Campus Organizer: Aimee Diaz, [email protected] |
NJPIRG Office: 104 Bayard St. Suite 102, New Brunswick, NJ, 08901
Current Campaigns:
New Voters Project
We’ll be continuing our work mobilizing young people to vote as our lead campaign for Fall 2021. New Voters Project is a grassroots initiative to Get Out The Vote on campus, but also to institutionalize voting among students. New Jersey had the highest youth voter turnout in the country in the 2020 election but there is still work to be done! We know that it is essential to continue to work to build a culture of civic engagement on campus for all elections, especially local elections which have more of a direct impact on students’ lives. And there is a lot Rutgers should do to make voting easier. From RAs having voter registration forms at your first floor meeting to busing students to the polls, there’s so much Rutgers can do to make voting easier!
Whole Foods Break Free From Plastics
Plastic is quite literally choking our ocean, with a garbage truck worth of trash entering our oceans every minute, where it injures and kills birds and marine animals like sea turtles. In order to turn the tide on packaging pollution, we need corporations to do their part to eliminate single use plastics. Whole Foods has led on plastics in the past when they became the first U.S. grocer to eliminate plastic bags at checkout. But they’ve started to lag behind competitors and recently got an F for failing to have a comprehensive strategy on reducing their plastic footprint. We want Whole Foods to put the planet over plastic and eliminate single-use plastic packaging items from their stores.
100% Renewable Energy
Burning oil, gas, and coal has polluted our air, water, and land for decades – and now it’s changing the climate even faster than scientists feared it would. We know we can have healthier communities and a livable future for generations to come. But to get there, we must transform the way we produce and consume energy. That’s why we’re calling for a commitment to 100 percent renewable power and expanding access to clean energy for all. It’s a big, bold goal – and it’s a goal that’s 100 percent possible. We’re working to get Rutgers to commit to 100% renewable energy by 2030. We’re continuing to build support from faculty and students to send a clear message that the Scarlet Knight community is 100% committed to 100% renewables.
Make Textbooks Affordable
Open & Affordable Textbooks: college is expensive, and the skyrocketing costs of textbooks aren’t helping. NJPIRG Students helped launch the Open & Affordable Textbooks (OAT) Project at Rutgers, and continues to work for more affordable educational materials by educating professors on OER books and mobilizing against the rise of expensive access codes and other new initiatives running up costs for students.
Student Leadership:
Tehreem Uzma // Chapter Chair // Class of 2022
Tehreem is a rising senior studying Political Science and Human Resources Management. She got her start as a 2020 summer intern with NJPIRG students working on the New Voters Project campaign. Tehreem quickly took on more leadership in the fall as the NVP outreach coordinator, building relationships and working with other student organizations on campus. During the spring 2021 semester, Tehreem was elected as Vice Chapter Chair and also coordinated our 100% renewable energy campaign. In addition to being New Brunswick chapter chair, Tehreem is the NJPIRG statewide board Chair.
Shruti Sharma // Chapter Vice Chair // Class of 2023
Shruti is a rising junior majoring in Political Science with a minor in Economics. She also got her start as a 2020 summer intern with NJPIRG students working on the New Voters Project campaign. She took on more leadership in the fall coordinating the National Voter Registration Day Trivia Night event and Vote Early Day phone-a-thon. Shruti coordinated our super successful spring 2021 recruitment drive and has also been a top leader on the 100% renewable energy campaign. Shruti will also be the NJPIRG statewide board Secretary and is coordinating the Whole Foods Plastics campaign.
Abigail Leugn // Chapter Secretary // Class of 2024
Abigail is a rising sophomore majoring in Finance. She got her start with NJPIRG as an intern on the 100% renewable energy campaign this semester. She helped coordinate the Greek vs Athletics competition to collect petition signatures for 100% renewable energy and various events during Youth Earth Week.
Adewonuola Adefowoju // Public Relations Chair
Adewonuola is a rising sophomore majoring in English with a minor in Business Administration. She got involved with NJPIRG as an intern on the Hunger and Homelessness campaign this semester. She has helped organize numerous events over the course of the spring 2021 semester for the Hunger and Homelessness, 100% Renewable Energy, and New Voters Project campaigns. Adewonuola will be coordinating the Hunger and Homelessness campaign during the fall of 2021.
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