Ilona Duverge, a housing justice activist from New York City, experienced housing insecurity as a college student and is now a movement leader for systemic and electoral change. Low-income and public housing, especially in formerly redlined areas, can be inadequate in the winter due to lack of insulation and sufficient heating but dangerous in the summer given suffocating heat. This is exacerbated by the issue of climate change. Duverge has worked at the intersection of these issues, first volunteering with local campaigns and later becoming the deputy organizing director for U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s campaign. She is also the founder of Movement School, which trains working class activists on how they can run for office, as well as a housing and legal fellow who helps tenants of public housing learn their rights. Duverge’s advocacy for the NYC Housing Authority to upgrade their housing with climate action and clean energy in mind inspired Ocasio-Cortez to introduce the Green New Deal for Housing, which would invest in sustainable housing upgrades and create green jobs. Duverge’s vision of the climate-economy link has sparked powerful action against poverty and environmental racism. Photo Credit: Ilona Duverge
