The Indelible Mark of Debbie Lee Cohen: A Tribute to a Relentless Activist

When we teach about climate change, educators like myself not only aim to impart knowledge but also to evoke an emotional response that inspires tangible action. We strive to foster actions that tackle the environmental emergencies threatening our world. In this pursuit, role models are indispensable. Five years ago, on April 18, 2018, I had the privilege of interviewing Debbie Lee Cohen, Executive Director and founder of Cafeteria Culture (CafCu), as part of my dissertation research at Teachers College. While reviewing the confidentiality agreements mandated by the Internal Review Board, Debbie Lee objected, asserting, 'I actually think it’s important to share people’s interviews and quotes. That’s how we make change.' Sadly, Debbie Lee passed away last week, leaving behind a profound legacy as a formidable force in environmental activism. This blog post is dedicated to her memory, featuring previously unpublished quotes from that poignant interview—echoes of a voice that still inspires us to fight for a better future.

Debbie Lee's journey as an environmental activist began with a transformative experience involving her children. She recounted this pivotal moment with vivid detail, highlighting how a simple family outing became the catalyst for her activism:

"So, 2009, you have to remember where we were. People weren’t talking that much about climate change. I took my kids, they were young then, and their friends to the first climate change exhibit in New York. I think it was the first climate change exhibit at the Museum of Natural History in 2009, and the kids kind of ran through the exhibit and then three-quarters of the way through, my youngest daughter then, who was seven, stopped mesmerized at this diorama and it was a polar bear, like a stuffed life-sized polar bear standing atop a pile of trash and in the pile of trash was a Styrofoam tray, a school lunch tray. And she said to me, she turned around, I mean she was like mesmerized, like that, and then she turned around and said, “Mom, I’m not eating school lunch anymore to save the polar bears.” And I was like, what is she talking about? I didn’t really get it. But that comment shifted my life in a way that I would never have expected. And I started to do research about the Styrofoam trays in New York City schools. I had no idea that at that time we were using and throwing away eight hundred sixty thousand Styrofoam trays per day in New York City, some were going to incinerators; the ones in Manhattan were all going to an incinerator. In the other boroughs, they were going to landfills. And also about the health implications of serving hot food on Styrofoam trays. So, I became manic and I started making calls, I called Bill DeBlasio, who was then a City Council member who had introduced the only piece of legislation about banning polystyrene and had worked on it with parents in his district in Brooklyn. And what I found out was that it was an issue mostly in schools with resources, and there were pockets that had taken action and had worked with school food. It was like thirty-some schools that were self-funding the extra cost of alternative plates or trays, but that there were, you know, seventeen hundred other schools that weren’t a part of that at least. And so, I thought, well, isn’t this weird that nobody’s turned this into a city-wide movement?"

Central to Debbie Lee's mission was her dedication to involving urban, low-income communities in the environmental movement, particularly children of color. She shared a success story that illustrates the impact of this inclusive approach on policy changes: 

"We are interested in how we can bridge education to what policy needs to be passed, to bills that have been introduced. I feel like our students played a big role—and this isn’t policy in city council, but this was policy in Department of Ed— in getting Styrofoam out of schools and that policy change. And we look at that and we say that students have such a powerful voice".

Debbie Lee's approach to environmental activism was unique in that it seamlessly integrated art, data, and policy advocacy. She passionately described one of her proudest achievements—empowering students to actively participate in policy discussions:

"But one of the best videos for you to look at, we have a video on our YouTube channel called “Kids Exercise Democracy” and it’s a short video about fifth graders who testified at City Hall on waste water treatment. And they got the whole audience and everybody applauded for them when they were done because they weren’t just saying “We need to do this, we need to do that.” They brought in their data. They said, “This is what we found on the streets of our neighborhood, and this is why this is a problem.” And they used their own local data that New York City does not have. So what we’re teaching actually is how to use data to inform policy."

She was deeply committed to the concept of climate literacy, particularly in the context of schools in NYC disproportionally affected by natural disasters. She emphasized the necessity of educating young people about climate change, especially those who have experienced its impacts firsthand. Here, she articulates her vision for a more comprehensive educational approach to climate issues:"

"We are also very interested in how we could mandate. Most states that have passed this mandate have called it environmental literacy, but we really would like to frame it as climate literacy. And we feel there’s a huge, huge gap, and we work in a lot of schools—a lot of our schools, our partner schools right now are schools that were seriously impacted by Sandy, and so in particular those kids have a right to that education and they’re not really getting it. I mean, they’re getting it now as part of their program and we’re integrating that into our program, but that’s not always what we’re funded for directly. But we see that the other things that we’re working on are certainly related to as stressors of climate crises and we can’t separate them and they’re connected. But they deserve more. That’s what I think, and certainly all the kids in New York City as a coastal city deserve to have this education".

Debbie Lee's work was not only about achieving policy changes, but also about inspiring and motivating others. She was deeply moved during an unexpected encounter on a beach cleanup day, which underscored the emotional resonance of her work:

"And one day I was out on the beach with Atsuko; we were scouting for a littler cleanup and a teacher came with her students from the school that’s somewhere in southern Brooklyn. And we got into the car and we were going to leave, and this was out at Jamaica Bay, and I said to Atsuko: “I gotta just go back out and find out where she’s from. Let’s just go interview her.” So we went and she was there, and she was really beautiful and smiling. You know, everybody, they get out to the beach and they’re so happy and I go like, how amazing is this to get this teacher who’s like, you know, let’s get a great interview. And then she finds out who we are and she says, “Oh, you’re not going to believe this, but I showed your videos, the videos that your students made, to my students before we came out here today. And my students were so inspired to see students who look like them doing this kind of project.” And I cried. Like I just cried. I felt like this is why we’re doing this. This is exactly. Like there’s enough documentaries out there of white kids, white suburban kids, white kids with resources and privileges. There are very few kids of color who are shown, portrayed actively, and, you know, and urban kids actively making change in the environmental movement."

Understanding the power of collaboration, Debbie Lee emphasized the importance of partnerships in amplifying the impact of environmental advocacy. In her own words, she explained why working together is essential for driving substantial change:

"We partner with a lot of nonprofits. It is a lot of work and partnerships are a lot of work and I know organizations who really say we don’t have time. We don’t have funding or the time, but I find that that’s the only way we’re truly—this is the quote: The only way that we will truly advance and make change is through these partnerships. If you’re working on your own in a silo, yes, you’ll make some change, but sharing your resources with others around you and sharing what needs to be changed and working on it together is really how we’re going to drive change forward."

As we reflect on the impactful journey of Debbie Lee Cohen, her words and actions continue to inspire a new generation of environmental activists. Debbie’s unwavering commitment to education, community involvement, and collaborative change serves as a beacon for all of us striving to make a difference in our own corners of the world. Her legacy is not just in the policies she helped change or the movements she sparked—it is also in the lives she touched and the minds she inspired to think differently about their role in our ecosystem.

Debbie may no longer be with us, but her vision for a cleaner, greener, and more inclusive world remains a guiding light. Thank you, Debbie Lee, for showing us the power of passion and perseverance. Your legacy will continue to inspire, guide, and motivate us all.