SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — San Bernardino Mayor Helen Tran told more than 500 middle-school students on Nov. 12 that the clean-energy future will be shaped by their ideas, their creativity, and their willingness to imagine solutions for problems their city knows well. Her message opened the 3rd Annual Future Green Leaders Summit, which took over the historic Enterprise Building downtown and marked the first time the event was held in San Bernardino.
“The future of clean energy lies in these students and our next generation of thinkers, creators, and problem solvers,” Tran said, standing before rows of students from San Bernardino City Unified and Rialto Unified schools. “You are not just learning about the future, you are shaping it,” she added.
Unlike traditional career fairs, the summit didn’t rely on rows of information tables or static demonstrations. Instead, the venue was filled with educators, along with a group of performers dressed as energy superheroes — characters representing solar power, clean transportation, conservation, and environmental science. These costumed guides led students through interactive lessons on sustainability, climate solutions and the rapidly expanding clean-energy workforce.
As the mayor walked through the building, she stopped to watch students participate in role-playing activities, renewable-energy games, and high-energy performances designed to break down complex science into something approachable and memorable. Among the most popular attractions was Global Inheritance’s “Energy Battle Royale,” a music-driven performance powered by solar equipment and featuring characters such as “Wind” and “Solar” rapping about clean-energy concepts. Students crowded around the performers, taking photos, asking questions and calling out answers during interactive segments. AY Young also served as the morning emcee, closed the show with a major performance, and led workshops using music and storytelling to show students how their own passions can fuel meaningful impact.
Climate communicator Kristy Drutman, known as BrownGirl Green, led another hands-on demonstration where students explored how storytelling connects to environmental activism. Other presenters used a variety of interactive challenges to show how jobs in both the public and private sectors are transitioning toward sustainability and how young people might one day join those fields. This was also noted by Los Angeles County’s Internal Services Department’s Quintin Haynes, Chief Deputy Director of the department, which administered the event, during the opening ceremony.
Media lead Julie Du Brow said more than 500 students arrived “right on time,” calling the turnout one of the strongest since the summit began in 2023. She said the decision to hold the event in San Bernardino was deliberate, noting that participating schools serve predominantly low-income students who often have limited exposure to career events centered on science or clean technology. Teachers echoed that point, saying many of their students had never attended a science-focused gathering outside the classroom.
Tran’s presence underscored the city’s stake in the clean-energy transition. San Bernardino sits at the center of two of the county’s largest employment sectors — transportation and trade — both preparing for major shifts as California moves toward lower emissions and renewable-energy infrastructure. For a city where many neighborhoods experience high pollution burdens and environmental inequality, the mayor said the students in the room must be part of the transition, not bystanders to it.
Throughout the program, the costumed educators reinforced messaging that aligned closely with Tran’s remarks: every student, regardless of background, should see a place for themselves in the future of sustainability. Francisco Parra Camacho, who supports workforce education and training for SoCalREN, said that students are essential to solving environmental challenges. “We want every student here to see themselves as part of the solution,” he said.
By the time the event concluded at 2 p.m., students left the Enterprise Building carrying small learning materials, cell phone photos of costumed performers, and, according to teachers, a stronger understanding of the career paths opening across California. Since 2023, the summit has reached more than 2,100 students statewide, but organizers said the San Bernardino turnout made this year’s gathering especially significant.
As she exited the building, Tran said she hoped the students would leave believing that their lived experiences (growing up in neighborhoods affected by air quality, climate impacts, and economic inequity) give them a unique voice in clean-energy conversations. For the students who watched her speak, the message was simple: to shape the future, they must first be invited into it. And on Nov. 12, that invitation came directly from their mayor.
