About 15 sunflower-shaped signs were held above the heads of various Syracuse community members in a crowd of about 50 people in downtown Syracuse on Monday night.

The sunflower signs had phrases like “Honor the Earth,” “Clean Air” and “Green Jobs” painted on them.

The Syracuse community members were gathered in Perseverance Park located near the Chase building in downtown Syracuse to hold a vigil for world peace since Monday marked the first day of the United Nation Climate Talks in Paris. The crowd skewed older.

This event was one of about 2,300 that took place in 175 countries in the days following Thanksgiving to demonstrate support for world leaders making an agreement on climate change.

One community member held a rainbow flag with the word “pace” on it, which means “peace” in Italian. Those in attendance also held lit candles and a few had signs that read: “No climate justice, no peace! #COP21.”


Renee Vogelsang, organizing director at Frack Action, was one of the organizers of the vigil. She said during the event that one of the reasons they gathered in Perseverance Park was to be in a safe space where they can all reflect together and talk about the pressing issue of climate change.

Onondaga Nation Chief Jake Edwards was among one of the speakers and he first addressed the crowd in the Onondaga Language and then in English.

Edwards said the group’s collective hearts and minds were coming together for “Mother Earth.” He emphasized the importance of continuing to work toward a better future.

“We must keep our minds focused on peace,” Edwards said. “We’re here to look out for future generations of life.”

Andrew Maxwell, director of the Syracuse-Onondaga County Planning Agency, spoke next but was briefly interrupted by fire truck sirens. Once the noises passed, he commended the community members on the action that has already been taken toward a more eco-friendly world.

However, Maxwell said it is important to still think about what Syracuse community members can do locally and globally.

Colleen Kattau, a member of the Syracuse community, performed one of her own songs that she got inspiration for after thinking about the word “violence.” She said she found it interesting that the word “violence” also contains the words “nice” and “love.”

Yusuf Abdul-Qadir, chair of the Islamic Society of CNY New Community Center, talked about the relationship between climate change and violence around the world.

“Climate change is one of, if not the biggest threats to national security today,” Abdul-Qadir said. “… We have to keep pressure on our elected representatives. We have a moral obligation to do so.”