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The Sunrise Movement is a movement of young people organizing to demand immediate action from the United States Congress to address the climate change crisis. The movement made national headlines a week after the 2018 midterm elections when 150 young people, including 51 who were arrested, sat in on House Speaker of the 116th Congress Nancy Pelosi‘s office to demand wider ranging action on climate change and the implementation of a “Green New Deal,”^[1] a conceptual stimulus plan that would be designed to overhaul the power grid of the U.S. from a largely fossil-fuel reliant infrastructure to a renewable energy infrastructure, along with creating millions of jobs in the renewable energy sector for low income communities. During the sit-in, representative-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a leading figure in the Sunrise Movement, called for the creation of a special committee within the House of Representatives to develop a plan for a Green New Deal bill .^[2]

The movement was co-founded by Evan Weber^{[citation needed]} and Varshini Prakash.^[1]

The Sunrise Movement is a multi-faceted political vehicle designed as a means for young people to get involved in fighting climate change in the political sphere.^[3]Their primary strategy is to build a base of young volunteers to work in a number of ways to influence congress. During the 2018 midterms, they worked to oust candidates funded by the fossil fuel industry and elect proponents of renewable energy. They also pressure Congress to act on climate change through demonstrations and congressional representative office visits. They are demanding that representatives support Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez‘s call for a Green New Deal select committee and reject money from the fossil fuel industry.