Some of the values that my parents have instilled on me and my brother are appreciation for our natural resources, not taking water and air for granted. They taught us to care for the planet and to care for others. When I was in seventh grade, I was assigned to Passion Project. I wanted to find out more about polar bears. As soon as I started researching, I learned that climate change is affecting their hunting patterns, food resources, how they raise families, and what the future looks like for them. They are facing a lot of devastating predictions. Climate change is changing their life right now. Just like polar bears are having to adjust to the way that they do things because of the effects of climate change, our society is also having to change the way that we do things. Climate change is real and is having a real impact now. This has been McKenzie River. It starts a snowpack in the mountains and flows down the watershed to Eugene where it's the source of all of our water. I love this because it's fresh and it's clean and it's clear and I can drink it and use it and fool in it. I love water. It makes me instantly feel alive. All my senses are awakened and I just feel like I can go anywhere and I feel like I'm really at the center of nature. Oregon is known to a lot of people as a very wet state and it's true that we do get a lot of precipitation. However, we're not getting the correct type of precipitation. We're seeing a lot more floods during the winter seasons and then we don't have enough snowpack. This is our summertime water runoff. I love forests because they give me a place where I can breathe deeply and think clearly and really connect with myself. This is Fall Creek. I was born here and I was named after this place. It's where I go for fun. It's where I go to connect with the greater world around me. Trees are essential to our life because they store carbon and they emit oxygen for us to breathe. Olga forests are especially important because they are capable of sequestering massive amounts of carbon dioxide. Climate change is affecting Oregon because we're seeing droughts, we are seeing warmer temperatures and also we're seeing more fires. Fires are a national part of life cycle. They stimulate regrowth from the forest ecosystem. However, with climate change, we're seeing higher frequency and more intense fires and that's actually not beneficial to forest at all. It's destructive. They're not used to this. This is an example of a forest that was lost to fire. This loss is sad to me because it's a beautiful natural resource that will never be the same. Everything that is water is connected from the dew in the morning to Kelsey Creek to the ocean. And so I feel like this is just part of my home and a part of me. I'm also very concerned about oceans and coastlines. They're a very important part of Oregon and Oregon's diversity and they're also in danger. My family has been coming to YAHATS for years and now we can actually see the impacts of climate change. Our carbon emissions are also causing an ocean acidification which is threatening to shellfish and all sea life because it changes the chemical balances of the ocean and the shellfish don't have enough calcium in their shells. We probably won't be able to eat the same things and rely on the same food sources. A erosion is being seen throughout this entire coastline and a lot of people who live on coastal towns are going to have to move inland. This is the road that the town is going to have to rebuild because the erosion is coming to the very edge. In fact, the fence that you can see over there is overhanging. It's not some myth, it's not far away, it's in our own backyard literally. Climate change is very dangerous to the future and I don't know when the breaking point will be that we've gone too far. My friends know that standing up for my beliefs myself and for this earth is extremely important to me and it's something that I am very passionate about and they understand that that really is who I am but I'm also a silly, goofy, funny teenager who loves to play and have fun and hang out with friends. Just like I can trust my parents to give me a voice and to listen to me and keep my needs in mind. I trust my government to do the same, not only for me but also for my peers and my friends and family and all the wildlife because that is essential as far as future progress and future life. Trust means assuring that my children can grow up safely and happily and know the magic that I know of this place. I'm Kelsey Cascadia Rose, Juliana. I'm 16 years old and from Eugene, Oregon and I'm an artist, a thinker, enthusiast and I'm me.