On Halloween, hundreds of Texans rallied to Roll Beyond Coal in Austin, Dallas, Beaumont, Corpus Christi, and Alpine, to advocate for clean power and green jobs and ask the EPA to stop the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) from permitting 12 new proposed coal plants in the state.
"The Austin Sierra Club, the Sierra Student Coalition, and our environmental partners had an incredible Roll Beyond Coal rally," says Lone Star Chapter organizer Donna Hoffman. "We petitioned the EPA to do the right thing and help Austin quit coal by 2020."
Oregon Testifies for Clean Energy in the Northwest
We've got a great report about a clean energy hearing in from Cesia Kearns, Regional Representative for the Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign in Oregon.
In mid-October was a hearing in Portland for the Northwest Power and Conservation Council's (NWPCC) plan on the council's draft energy plan for the Northwest. Kearns said it was a fantastic event where more than 150 folks turned out to give quality testimony and "a message that rang loud and clear – it’s time to kick coal out of the Northwest, and the NWPCC is best positioned right now to take that leap."
Kearns said people gathered early prior to the hearing for pizza, t-shirts, and a briefing to learn more about the council, what is want out of the NWPCC's plan, and how the hearing would work.
"The crowd was incredibly well informed and committed to sharing their stories about why they support a coal-free Northwest," said Kearns. "We received several comments from NWPCC staff, a representative of Seattle City Power and Light, and from colleagues with other organizations about how well the event was organized, how enthusiastic and yet respectful the crowd was, and what a powerful night it had turned out to be."
This past weekend our Colorado chapter took part in a successful event in Boulder that promoted moving beyond coal as part of a community-wide 350 event.
Photo by Doug Grinbergs
Colorado Sierra Club Beyond Coal staffer Roger Singer said approximately 300 people came together for a bike ride and a noontime downtown rally. The bike ride went from downtown Boulder out to the old, dirty Valmont coal plant, where more than 200 activists chanted out various rally cheers calling for an end to coal and a move to renewable energy.
Photo by Nathaniel Janowitz
"While everyone stayed off of Xcel property, of course, they were within spitting distance of the plant and were a visible, sustainable energy mass juxtaposed against the dirty coal plant," said Singer. "We kept the yellow Beyond Coal t-shirts from our Coal Free Campus Campaign from Colorado University - Boulder visible throughout the day."
Photo by Doug Grinbergs
After the bike ride, Singer said everyone met back in front of City Hall for a rally where speakers motivated folks to take action, not only for that single day but as part of the ongoing coal campaign work.
Photo by Doug Grinbergs
"Most of the people at the rally signed our petition and other action postcards," added Singer. "Notable speakers at the rally included Congressman Jared Polis, renowned National Renewable Energy Laboratory climate change scientist Chuck Kutscher, and lead partners from the faith, student, labor and health communities - a diverse and well rounded group!"
That's SSC Chair Illonka Zlatar, above, speaking with Titus about the group's upcoming International Day of Climate Action event on the UNLV campus. Titus is a former political science professor at UNLV.
"She's been a leader in the environmental movement," Zlatar says. "I thanked her for everything she's done and told her about the SSC and our October 22 event on campus. She was really positive about our agenda." Below, SSC members with Titus at the meet-and-greet.
This year's International Day of Climate Action is centered on the theme of 350, a worldwide campaign to reduce CO2 in the atmosphere to 350 parts per million, the level scientists consider safe limit for humanity. The current CO2 level is 387 parts per million.
At UNLV, SSC is teaming up with other student organizations to host the 12-hour event. "We'll have booths, tables, great food and music, cultural performances, an eco-friendly fashion show, a sustainability-themed art show, and an Earthstyles Lounge where people can learn about lifestyle choices that ease the weight of our footprint on the planet," Zlatar says.
A solar-powered trailer and panels from UNLV's solar energy program will help power film screenings and live performances. Starting this year, the university is offering a minor in solar energy.
"One of the big goals of our event," says Zlatar, "is to collect signatures demanding strong climate action from our elected officials-not only within our borders, but also at the United Nations' Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen this December. Then the next day, Friday October 23rd, we'll rally at City Hall, deliver the signatures to our elected leaders, and literally make our voices heard!"
A photo of all assembled at City Hall will be taken at 1:00pm and uploaded to the International Day of Climate Action website.
Born on a U.S. Air Force base near Madrid, Spain, to a Spanish mother and an American father, Dean Wilson moved to the United States with his family in 1983. A quarter century later, he has perhaps done more than any other individual to save southern Louisiana's coastal cypress forests.
Wilson had long dreamed of living in the Amazon, and in 1984, the year after he arrived in the States, he decided to go for it. In order to acclimatize, he moved from Illinois to the Atchafalaya Basin in southern Louisiana.
He's still there.
For four months Wilson lived in his tent, living off the fish, raccoon, and other small animals he could catch by hand, hook, arrow, or spear. "I fell in love with Louisiana's swamps," he says. "I never did make it to Brazil."
Eventually he became a commercial fisherman and hunter, and he saw first-hand that centuries-old cypress forests in the Atchafalaya—the country's largest swamp—were being illegally clearcut to make garden mulch for sale at garden stores and retail giants like Walmart, Lowes, and Home Depot.
"It was being a commercial fisherman that led to my activism," Wilson says. "For years I conducted my own investigation, often in camouflage, sneaking around and documenting the illegal logging operations. I tailed the loggers by foot, car, and boat, taking pictures of the lumber yards and the clear-cutting."
There is a myth that Americans of color don’t care about the environment. There is a myth that we’re not interested in hiking, camping, and adventuring. Don’t believe it!
We care so much that when conference co-founders Audrey and Frank Peterman presented an opportunity to convene and address the issue of diversity and the environment, hundreds of us showed up ready to learn, share ideas, and take action.
Frank and Audrey Peterman, co-founders of the Breaking the Color Barrier conference. Photo courtesy of Dorothy Littlejohn, used with permission.
Speakers and panelists discussed the challenges and progress we’ve made so far in bringing more people of color into outdoor careers and recreation. On the final day of the conference we broke into committees to work on the issues of youth, systemic change, technology and media, policy implementation, resource directories, and stewardship of stories.
Carolyn Finney (left) gathers participants' input on partnership and funding opportunities.
It was truly encouraging to meet and chat with trailblazers of color hailing from all over the nation. There were park rangers, bloggers, environmental consultants, students, reporters, educators, and community organizers, just to name a few. And each of us represented communities and organizations that care deeply about diversity and the environment.
Yes we care!
The diverse and attentive crowd at the Breaking the Color Barrier conference.Photo courtesy of Dorothy Littlejohn, used with permission.
The Sierra Club cares too. I was excited to meet seven Sierra Club staff members and volunteers who are working to bringing diversity, youth, and “green” together.
Representing the Sierra Club! Bill Vanderberg, Dorothy Littlejohn, Pearl West, Vernard Williams, Juan Martinez, Debbie Chong, Seandra Rawls, Melody Anderson, and Rita Harris.
Sierra Student Coalition mobilizes and trains young environmental leaders, while our environmental justice organizers work with local communities to fight for clean air, water, and neighborhoods for everyone.
Read about Americans of all ages and backgrounds exploring America's national parks on the Sierra Club’s Youth and Diversity Stories page.
Debbie Chong is the 2009 Communications and Online Organizing Apprentice at the Sierra Club headquarters in San Francisco. In her free time she enjoys hiking, biking, and exploring the Bay Area's diverse cultures and neighborhoods.
Activists Push Clean Energy on National Day of Action
Photo courtesy of Topeka Capital-Journal
The last week of September, Sierra Club activists from coast to coast participated in a National Day of Action to voice their support for clean energy. At rallies, public hearings, press conferences, town hall meetings, brown bag lunches, and coal tours, citizens drove home the message that the country is ready to move beyond coal and invest in clean energy.
Above, Kansas Chapter activists held a press conference in Lawrence, calling on Topeka-based Westar Energy to install more effective pollution controls and improve compliance with the Clean Air Act. Sierra Club representative Stephanie Cole is pictured speaking at the event.
As part of the Day of Action, the Club's Campuses Beyond Coal campaign held photo petition events on a dozen college campuses. At the University of Colorado, below, students heard Club organizer Roger Singer talk about ways to phase out coal-based energy from Xcel Energy and the Valmont coal plant in Boulder, then collected more than 240 photo petitions to help make it happen.
In Washington and Oregon, hundreds rallied and testified at public hearings held by the Northwest Power and Conservation Council on its draft plan for energy use in the region over the next 20 years. Below, ralliers in Eugene, Oregon.
In Louisiana, activists rallied outside Entergy's headquarters in New Orleans, below, to demand serious investment in renewable technology and energy efficiency. The theme of the rally was "Christmas in September," and Santa had a bag of coal addressed to Entergy's CEO. "We received support not only from people on the street, but surprisingly, from those working in Entergy Tower," says Sierra Club organizer Jordan Macha.
Those of us in the environmental and youth-education fields are already familiar with nature deficit disorder and Leave No Child Inside initiatives. Now I'd like to add another entry to the list: Leave No Family Inside.
George, Shanda, and their five children were special guests at the conference, and Shanda shared with us about the impact of the experience on her life.
Shanda never imagined that she'd ever step foot in the Florida Everglades, let alone camp there, and had shuddered at the thought of seeing snakes and alligators up close and personal.
Her perspective changed when she woke up at 4 a.m., ventured outside her tent, and listened to the "loud quiet" of the owls and insects. Out in nature, away from the busyness of city life, "I felt a sense of peace and rejuvenation," she remembered.
Shanda and her family bonded as they paddled canoes, bicycled around the park, and trekked through the wetlands under the stars.
That weekend in Everglades National Park, a mere 20-minute drive away from their house, brought the Roberts closer as a family and to the natural world. "I'd do it again in a heartbeat," said Shanda.
Imagine if every American family had the opportunity to visit and enjoy our national, state, and county parks. It's a big challenge, but with a supportive Department of the Interior and community programs such as Teach Me to Camp, we can make it happen!
I personally can attest to the benefits of taking your family into the outdoors. My parents, who immigrated from Hong Kong as young children, grew up in urban settings. Their idea of a "hike" was a walk on a paved sidewalk in a manicured city park.
Last December my sisters and I convinced our parents to take an afternoon excursion to a nature reserve in our hometown, Santa Barbara, California. I had read about the preserve in a tour guide about Santa Barbara and was surprised that monarch butterflies wintered in a eucalyptus grove not far from where we lived!
As we meandered through a butterfly wonderland and trekked through the chaparral to a lovely beach, it was a breath of fresh air (literally and figuratively) to spend time together away from the distractions of the computer, TV, and phone.
Even if it's just a stroll through the neighborhood park with Mom, an outdoor experience with your family members can make a world of difference.
Debbie Chong is the 2009 Communications and Online Organizing Apprentice at the Sierra Club headquarters in San Francisco. In her free time she enjoys hiking, biking, and exploring the Bay Area's diverse cultures and neighborhoods.
The first evening featured many great speakers, but perhaps the message that stood out most for me was that of Queen Quet, head of state for the Gullah/Geechee Nation, which extends from Jacksonville, North Carolina southward to Jacksonville, Florida.
After enthralling the crowd with a song and dance performance, Queen Quet used the analogy of a turtle to illustrate the need to take action to protect the natural world.
“The Gullah/Geechee word for 'turtle' sounds like the English word 'coulda' [could have]. When we don’t visit and protect natural places we ‘coulda’ gone to, these places disappear and become a shell of their former selves,” she explained.
“When we pave over the land, we lose the pulse of the earth, but [natural disasters like] earthquakes can break through and let us regain our spirit and connection to the earth. When we move out of our shells, we return to a world of color, sounds, and culture."
“So we shouldn’t talk about what we ‘coulda’ done,” Queen Quet concluded. “We should be talking about how ‘we will’ and ‘we did.’”
She’s right. Talking about what we “coulda” done is a good mental exercise but is fruitless unless we act to make a difference now and for the future.
Want to make a difference in your community? Get active with your local Sierra Club chapter or volunteer with Inner City Outings, a Sierra Club program that provides opportunities for youth of all backgrounds to connect with the natural environment.
Stay tuned -- more posts from the conference are coming soon!
Debbie Chong is the 2009 Communications and Online Organizing Apprentice at the Sierra Club headquarters in San Francisco. In her free time she enjoys hiking, biking, and exploring the Bay Area’s diverse cultures and neighborhoods.
Clean Energy Jobs Bill Kicks Off Fall Global Warming Debate in Congress
Clean energy activists, veterans, and business leaders rallied at the U.S. Capitol on September 30 in support of the new climate bill introduced by Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA) to cut carbon pollution in the U.S. and stimulate the economy by creating millions of jobs in the renewable energy sector.
Pictured below at the rally are Sierra Club staffers Jessica Hodge, Lala Shamirzaian, Audrey Newton, Megan Greenwood, and Justin Guay.
The Kerry-Boxer bill, officially called the Clean Energy Jobs & America Power Act, would create clean energy jobs, reduce pollution, and protect American security by enhancing domestic energy production and combating global climate change. Kerry and Boxer were joined by nine Senate supporters at the rally, which kicks off the autumn global warming debate in Congress.
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