GUEST FEATURE
Change Maker An Interview With Angelou Ezeilo Interview By: Shirley Braunlich I’m celebrating my newest Shero - Angelou Ezeilo!
The environmental advocate and author of a new book will be speaking in Lawrence on February 20, 2020. Everyone concerned about diversity in our community will want to learn from this experienced mind. 12
As the Founder and CEO of Greening Youth Foundation, she is creating career pathways for diverse youth into environmental stewardship work. Her new book is entitled Engage, Connect, Protect: Empowering Diverse Youth as Environmental Leaders. linked here. Angelou took time to answer some of my questions below, and I’m looking forward to learning much more during her visit!
SB: Now that you have been doing this great work with Greening Youth Foundation for more than 13 years, and you began by teaching young children about the environment, are there successful adults now in environmental careers who you influenced as children? AE: What a great question! The answer is YES! One young lady in particular that comes to mind is Kelly Costello. She was the president of our environmental
club, Eco Force at Brookwood Elementary in Gwinnett County, GA, and this was about 13 years ago. Ms. Costello is now a junior in college and is leading many environmental initiatives at University of Georgia as an environmental studies major. I have no doubt that Kelly will continue to be a change leader in the environmental sector. There are many more. However, another young lady that stands out came to us a member of our Urban Youth Corps. Although her immediate surroundings were very challenging, she adamantly told me that she would oneday own her own company, like me. I am so proud to share that this young lady is now the owner of a painting company that she runs with two other entrepreneurs - 3 Girls and a Paintbrush. So proud! SB: Who do you admire? AE: My all-time favorite Shero is Dr. Wangari Maathai. She is the first African woman to receive a Nobel Peace Prize for her work in sustainable agriculture in Kenya. The Greenbelt Movement is now led by her daughter, Muta Mathai. I also admire my parents Helen and Walter Chiles. Sounds cliché and cheesy, but it’s true! They have been married for 61 years and continue to love and support themselves and their grown children. They’ve owned many businesses over the past few decades, while instilling in their children the importance of community, love, and integrity. To know them is to love them. SB: In your book, you shared an experience with someone yelling at you. It felt like a racist attack against you and a companion, and you needed to travel back home to feel safe. Would you share some of your strategies to ensure the safety of the young people you send to remote or less diverse areas?
