Lennox Yearwood, Jr., a.k.a. the “Hip Hop Rev,” is a minister and passionate eco-activist. In 2004, Rev. Yearwood founded the Hip Hop Caucus (HHC), a national non-profit that promotes political activism for young voters, human rights, and social and political equality. HHC has organized many successful voter mobilization campaigns, such as Respect My Vote! and One Vote Day. Those campaigns aim to increase voting behavior among young people of color through education, registration and pledge drives, and Get Out the Vote rallies.

Rev. Yearwood was born in Louisiana, and his environmental activism increased in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. According to Yearwood, Hurricane Katrina made him realize the devastation that the world can suffer due to the impacts of climate change. Since 2005, the Hip Hop Caucus has organized a variety of sustainable education campaigns, including Green 2 Live, Gulf Coast Renewal, and a national Clean Energy Bus Tour. HHC has also helped organize over 100 community service projects in cities across the U.S.

Rev. Yearwood is also a member of the Climate Mobilization’s advisory board. In 2015, he called for the declaration of “a U.S. goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2025.”