Sustainable and Just Future weaves community and activism at UCI

The Sustainable and Just Future at UCI (SJF-UCI) club formed in fall 2023 and has already planted roots on campus with a tight-knit community. They recently opened the SJF Repair Center’s doors in the ANTrepreneur Center on Jan. 16. 

The club brought the student-created idea of a clothing repair center to life after it was proposed at the Sustainable and Just Summit last spring. Cyclical clothing events are a staple for the UCI club: they’ve hosted clothing swaps, swap meets and various upcycling and hemming workshops.

SJF-UCI also educates students on how to get involved in campus and city-wide environmental activism. SJF-UCI Co-Vice President and fourth-year environmental science and policy student Brennan Kraus points to education and perspective as the guiding principles of the club. 

“Moving forward, there is action that we can take, and that’s why a big initiative of our club is not like, ‘We’re saving the world,’ but we’re taking steps in the right direction and showing people that sustainability is not contained in a box,” Kraus told New University. “The best way that people can kind of work to mitigate things in their own life is remembering that even the smallest things really do make a difference.”

The club is the first chapter of the nonprofit organization Sustainable and Just Future. The idea was created at UC Berkeley in 2018 by student Sage Lenier, who worked to organize student-led lectures on the topic. The course quickly grew and garnered national recognition, allowing it to become a nonprofit organization in 2023 and granting eligibility for universities to create local chapters. 

The UCI chapter follows in the footsteps of its founding organization. Today, the SJF-UCI members employ principles similar to those of their parent organization to continue the climate conversation. 

“We really did make this club a little over a year ago and we’ve come so far,” Kraus said. “And that’s really with the majority of that work being done by a literal handful of people, not many at all. I feel like the thing that people don’t often realize is that when you think of organizations, it’s all these complications and intricacies and hierarchies. And it’s not true. If you have a small group of passionate, like-minded individuals, you really can work to make meaningful change.”

Educational initiatives take place via student lectures and guest speaker events. Anteaters can submit lecture pitches to the club, allowing for student-to-student discussions. Kraus and SJF-UCI President Andi Hayes hosted the first student lecture about Oceania environmental sustainability last October. 

The club also hosts tours of UCI facilities, like the Water Electrolysis Facility, and off-campus locations like California State University, Long Beach’s Shark Lab. These immersive, hands-on events are meant to show students how different disciplines and studies can make an environmental impact. 

“There’s always more that you can learn,” Kraus said. “And the best way to do it is learning hands-on and going and talking to people. So that’s what we’ve been trying to do — less on us trying to teach you guys, when the reality is that we’re learning from all of these events as well. That’s why we try to do a wide range of events that kind of gives all students the opportunity to learn different things.”

Rather than scheduling weekly meetings and requesting mandatory member attendance, SJF-UCI leans towards hosting events. Kraus said that this is in part to keep people from looking at the club and its initiatives as a chore. By organizing events around campus, word about SJF-UCI can spread more effectively than it would if it were contained within a closed group. 

“We’re not an organization that’s trying to force anybody to be involved,” Kraus said. “We want this to be something that’s beneficial to you as much as it is for us.”

SJF-UCI recently collaborated with the Ski and Snowboard Club at UCI — the “largest sports and recreational organization on campus,” according to their website. The club, with over 800 members, teamed up with SJF-UCI to host a winter-clothing swap meet at Aldrich Park on Jan. 14. 

In the winter 2025 quarter thus far, SJF-UCI has hosted at least one event per week, with no plans of slowing down. On Feb. 4, the club will host a UCI Hydrogen-Blending Roundtable to discuss a recent hydrogen blending project for UCI’s Anteater Recreation Center to offer a chance for transparency regarding the project. Members of UCI’s Clean Energy Institute, SoCal Gas and the California Public Utilities Commission will be in attendance to discuss the upcoming project. 

Students interested in keeping up with SJF-UCI can follow their Instagram and/or RSVP for events on UCI Campus Groups

Cassandra Nava is a Features Staff Writer. She can be reached at cassan2@uci.edu.

Edited by Alyssa Villagonzalo and Logan Heine.

- Advertisement -

Read More New U