My name is Sydney Jordan. I grew up in a working-class community along the shores of the Mississippi River near East Moline, Illinois. I'm the daughter of public employees. My mom is an educator and former teachers union president. My dad is a biologist for the Army Corps of Engineers (and a proud homebrewer!). Since my first visit to the University of Minnesota, I’ve always felt at home in Northeast. It’s why I chose to build my life here.

At my core, I am an organizer. I was a union organizer with the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers (MFT), where I fought for educators, parents, schools, and students. I saw firsthand the devastating consequences of underfunded public schools in our neighborhoods, and I came face-to-face with the reality that nothing works well in the school system if students aren’t served by their community.

All families need safe homes and all children need a good night’s sleep. They need access to healthy, nutritious food in their neighborhoods. They need safe transportation to and from school and work. That’s why I sat on the Minneapolis Works Coalition—fighting for higher wages and earned sick leave for all Minneapolis workers.

I’ve been an organizer my entire life. I have been embedded in the Minnesota organizing community since I was a student leader with the Minnesota Public Interest Research Group (MPIRG) while a student at the University of Minnesota. When the Republican-controlled legislature was considering suppressive Voter ID laws, as a student, I testified before the GOP-chaired committees on how the rules would prevent me and tens of thousands of other Minnesotans from voting—from students to seniors to renters to active duty military personnel and many more.

When the Republicans eventually put the Voter ID and the anti-marriage equality amendments on the statewide ballot in 2012, I led MPIRG’s fight against the amendments at the University of Minnesota and helped more than 10,000 young people register to vote. I personally knocked on thousands of doors across our state that year.

I learned from the experience that state government has enormous influence on our lives; but a community united around a common purpose is even more powerful.

Today, I work as the State Director of Save the Boundary Waters—an advocacy group dedicated to protecting the Boundary Waters from pollution from sulfide-ore copper mining. Minnesota is the place I love because of its natural beauty and proximity to wilderness. We must permanently protect the Boundary Waters and other special places in our state.

The threat of climate change looms over us. Addressing it must be a top priority. If we fail to act our beloved Boundary Waters could become grassland, and the symbols of our state—wolves, moose, and loons—could disappear along with the red and white pines.

Northeast and Como have long led the state in elevating sustainable practices, but we must go further and demand corporate polluters and heavy carbon emitters to follow our lead. We must move beyond coal to a clean energy future.

I love Northeast and Como. I bike on our streets, eat at our restaurants, and support our businesses and artists. I care about everyone in our community and I love being part of this community. That’s why I’m running to represent our neighborhoods—to represent you—in the state legislature.