Let's Party for a Change

On July 17th, the Sierra Club's Lightbulbs to Leadership campaign culminated with more than 1000 people attending over 300 house parties nationwide. The campaign's message is that in order to solve global climate change, we need to change more than just light bulbs -- we need to change direction. We need strong, serious, and fast action to get the job done. House parties were open to the public, each with a host and attendees listening in on a national conference call featuring Green For All President Van Jones, Washington State Governor Christine Gregoire, and Sierra Club Executive Director Carl Pope. Attendees then wrote letters to their governors to encourage green job development through the transition to a clean energy economy.

Throughout the nation people gathered at their local house party. Jenny Coyle, Sierra Club Website Producer and host of a San Francisco house party commented on the varied nature of the parties, "In Denver it was a festive outdoor affair. In Atlanta and Palo Alto, they were quieter gatherings of half a dozen people in a small living room. In Austin, folks packed the city council chambers, while up the road in Dallas they mingled in a café."

The House parties in Colorado, for example, were a huge success. In Denver, the gathering turned into a block party that closed the street and had live music (above). The 100 plus people in attendance continued to discuss the issues late into the evening. "The success of these parties just proves to me that people are interested in hearing about solutions to high gas prices and the continued addiction to oil evidenced in the Bush administration," said Roger Singer, Colorado's regional representative who attended the Denver block party.

City Councilman Chris Nevitt spoke at the Denver house party about local green jobs and highlighted the accomplishments of the Sierra Club and its role in the Blue-Green Alliance. Many attendees also signed a petition to protest The Bureau of Land Management's plan for Oil and Gas drilling into the wild Roan Plateau. The Enos Mills Group of the Sierra Club expects a large surge in volunteering and leadership following this successful gathering.

Besides Denver, there were around ten other house parties throughout Colorado. In Arvada, host Thomas Acampora entertained his 18 guests by showing them his personal energy costs savings from his Photovoltaic installation and resulting net metering payback. He and his guests, just like Robin Hoek and her party guests in Broomfield and other attendees elsewhere, sent their letters to Governor Ritter supporting green jobs. All in all, it was a fitting culmination to a successful campaign with a critical message.

"People want to get out and talk with their friends and neighbors about what changes in leadership need to occur this year to move us towards a new energy economy," said Singer. "These house parties gave them that opportunity, mixed in with a little social fun too. We ate, we laughed, we talked and we came away with plans before the night was through. This was a great way to spend a summer evening."

"Surely all God's people, however serious or savage, great or small, like to play." -John Muir

Carpooling Across America

What if you could instantly create a new form of transportation that greatly reduced resource consumption? That was the idealistic question that led 24-year-old entrepreneurs and Sierra Club members John Zimmer and Logan Green (above) to found Zimride, a social ride-sharing service designed to make ground transportation vastly more efficient.

"The concept is simple," Green says. "Our parents had yearbooks; we have Facebook. Zimride leverages the trust inherent to online social networks to push carpooling to become a mainstream form of transportation."

Using the Facebook platform, riders and drivers can view one another's profiles before deciding to share a ride. Launched a year ago, Zimride now has 300,000 users in its carpool community and has built systems for universities and corporations; ultimately they hope to offer systems to entire municipalities. In June, musician Jack Johnson, who is incorporating a "greening" theme into his summer tour, partnered with Zimride via a carpool link on his website so fans can save gas and money by carpooling to concerts.

On July 16, Zimmer embarked on a Carpool Across America road trip from New York to San Francisco (above) to raise awareness about community-oriented travel options in times of rising gas prices and concerns about global warming. Carpool Across America ties together the themes of energy conservation, the power of social networks, and environmentally conscious business solutions.

"We'll be rotating passengers and blogging about the trip the whole way," Zimmer says, "and we'll also be interviewing young eco-entrepreneurs en route who are making a difference with creative business, art, and non-profit business solutions."

The journey will be documented by filmmaker Trevor White and covered by green consultant and eco-writer Margaret Teich. Below, Zimmer's girlfriend Christina Garcia Rivas is pictured at the start of the trip.

Read more about Zimride and follow the Carpool Across America.

Detroit Decision Makes Way for Greener Garbage

Detroit-area Sierra Club activists cheered on June 30 when Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick announced that the city will not purchase the country's largest waste incinerator, formally known as the Detroit Resource Recovery Facility, and will instead expand city recycling programs and send trash to a landfill.

"Now it's time to shout!" says Rhonda Anderson (below at left), director of the Sierra Club's Detroit Environmental Justice Program. "This announcement by the mayor is a major development and almost a sure indication that the incinerator will close." The battle over the future of the Detroit incinerator, which began operating in 1989, is seen by many industry people as a key to the future of incineration in the United States.

"It's time to retire this dinosaur of a technology that has polluted our city and planet for far too long," Anderson said at a citizen rally in front of the incinerator on June 18. "We are gathering today to say that incineration is a major liability in the context of climate change."

The Sierra Club is part of a coalition of environmental and community groups that worked with the city council's Environmental Justice Task Force to craft a "New Business Model for Garbage." The model includes goals for a future waste system that incorporates monetary incentives for recyclers, green collar jobs, and business and economic development linked to the reuse and sale of recovered materials.

Carol Izant (at right, above), chair of the Sierra Club's Southeast Michigan Group, has been a longtime leader in galvanizing citizen opposition to the incinerator through her involvement with the grassroots group Evergreen Alliance. She is also quick to credit the key roles played by fellow group activists Anna Holden and Ed McArdle (above center).

"Anna hung tough on this issue and cultivated the stakeholders needed to build a broad-based coalition of community activists, environmental experts, and sympathetic elected officials," Izant says. "And Ed's efforts over the years have resulted in the toppling of one incinerator after another."

Holden in turn praises Margaret Weber of Rosedale Recycles, a volunteer neighborhood recycling organization. Weber is coordinator of the New Business Model for Solid Waste coalition and former director of the Ecology Center, highly reputed for its work on incinerators.

The Detroit incinerator was sold to private investors in 1991, but the city, through the fees it pays to burn trash, continues to shoulder the enormous cost of running the facility. By comparison, the city of Ann Arbor, which has the most active recycling program in Michigan, pays $18.75 per ton to landfill its garbage, while Detroit pays $172 a ton to burn its trash and dispose of the ashes. Adding insult to injury, less than half of the trash incinerated at the facility comes from Detroit residents.

Read reporter Curt Guyette's series on the incinerator, The Big Burn, in the Detroit Metro Times.

Incinerator photo by Gyre.

Cool T-Shirt Leads to Green Day In Kentucky

This spring, Kentucky school teacher and Sierra Club volunteer Su-hwa "Winny" Lin organized a "Go Green Day" (above) at Tamarack Elementary School in Owensboro, where she teaches third grade. "It all started when I wore my Sierra Club "Be Cool, Go Green" t-shirt to school," says Lin (below left, in front row). "My assistant principal saw it and said, 'That's cool—where can I get one?'"

Lin had gotten her shirt from Sierra Club organizer and fellow Owensboro resident Aloma Dew, who'd printed them up in connection with her work with the Club's Cool Cities campaign. Armed with a fresh batch, Lin "sold" 20 shirts in one day to fellow faculty and school custodians for a $5 donation, with all proceeds going to the Sierra Club.

"Everybody loved the design, with Owensboro identified in the context of the western hemisphere," she says. "Now nearly the entire school staff has bought the shirt for themselves, their class, or their own kids. And best of all, they bought into the idea of 'Go Green, Tamarack.'"

With Dew's help, Lin organized a daylong program of videos, talks, and demonstrations from community volunteers on a wide range of environmental topics, including a presentation by beekeeper and local Sierra Club member Carol Mark and a talk about bicycling by Pennyrile Group Outings Chair Donnie Mayton. The City of Owensboro brought its new hybrid car, and students held a parade featuring costumes and floats they'd made out of recycled materials.

 

"Go Green, Tamarack" was accompanied by a weeklong focus on the environment at the school. Third graders interviewed custodians about how much trash the school generated; fourth graders planted a cherry tree and flower beds after studying plants; and fifth graders came up with a Top 10 List of ways to go green at Tamarack.

The event ended up promoting environmental awareness not just at the school, but in the broader community as well. "The local newspaper put us on the front page," Lin says. "I think we've started a "Go Green" movement in Owensboro!"

Oregon Counties to Fight Global Warming Regionally

   

A national first was achieved on April 10 when two adjoining counties passed resolutions in tandem to sign the Cool Counties Climate Stabilization Initiative, part of the Sierra Club's Cool Cities program. Clackamas and Multnomah Counties, which include most of Greater Portland, became Oregon's first Cool Counties when they jointly signed a declaration to combat global warming and create new jobs in the green economy.

The two counties, home to just under 30 percent of Oregon's population, announced their declarations at a joint press conference to highlight the importance of regional coordination in creating climate action plans. There are now 30 Cool Counties nationwide, in addition to nearly 1,000 Cool Cities.

 

Clackamas County Chair Lynn Peterson and Multnomah County Commissioner Jeff Cogen, pictured at top flanking Sierra Club organizer Christine Caurant, spoke about efforts already underway, like constructing LEED-certified buildings and investing in renewable energy to power county operations, and urged other counties to sign on and make Oregon the nation's first Cool State. Above, Cogan adds Multnomah County to the list. Below, Peterson speaks with reporters. At bottom, Oregon Sierra Club staffers Emily Bartha, Nat Parker, and Ivan Maluski record the event for posterity.

"It's leaders at the local level who are taking decisive action on global warming," says Caurant. "Getting Cool Counties passed in these two counties was a result of efforts by impassioned Sustainability Managers and willingness by new commissioners Cogen and Peterson to move their counties forward. We've still got one more county (Washington) in the Portland metro area that isn't yet ready to sign on, so we'll be working in the coming months to help residents there flex their Cool County grassroots muscles."

Read about what you can do to make yours a Cool County.

Cool Cities Campaign Picks Up Steam in Colorado

   

In March, the Sierra Club's Cool Cities team hosted a training at REI's new community center in Boulder, Colorado. Forty-three volunteers from as far away as Pueblo, Grand Junction, and Laramie, Wyoming, spent the day learning how to make their hometown a Cool City, how to implement a climate action plan, and how to build alliances with like-minded communities. Below, Cool Cities coordinator Colleen Sarna talks about how volunteers can get involved locally.

Former Boulder mayor Mark Ruzzin, now regional director for ICLEI (Local Governments for Sustainability), spoke about his experience implementing the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement in Boulder and how ICLEI and the Sierra Club can work together. Upcoming Cool City, Cool County, and Cool State opportunities were discussed, with examples provided by volunteer leaders Jenny Kedward and Bob Millette. Late in the day, participants broke into four geographical groups to formulate action plans for grassroots organizing and recruitment, contacting mayors and county officials, and building alliances.

"This training will really help activate new volunteers and team leaders in both our Cool Cities and Partnerships programs," says Colorado Sierra Club organizer Roger Singer, below, who co-moderated the event with fellow staffer Katie Ryder.

 

Turning Down the Temperature in Tupelo

Travis Hunsicker of Tupelo, Mississippi—that's right, Elvis's birthplace—an avid hiker who last year walked Peru's Inca Trail to Machu Pichu (above), says it was an article in an adventure travel magazine article that jump-started his environmental activism. "It was a special on what people can do locally to help out with the environment," he told Voice of America this month. "I guess it's kind of a thing where if you enjoy the outdoors, you also want to give back."

The way he decided to act was through the Sierra Club's Cool Cities program, to get cities and towns to adopt smart energy solutions to reduce their global warming emissions. The first step was to get Tupelo Mayor Ed Neeley to sign the U.S. Mayors' Climate Protection Agreement. Neely was receptive, and said he would recommend that the City Council approve the move.

Hunsicker now plans to form a local board to determine what actions the city and individuals can take. "A lot of people have thought about doing something but never took those steps. I want to give them the opportunity to say, 'Yeah, let's help out.'"

The main pushback he has gotten from civic and industry leaders is the up-front cost of switching to energy-efficient technologies. Hunsicker points to a survey of Tupelo's municipal buildings which shows that the city's annual energy bill dropped by half after implementing green changes. "If we can do it here in Tupelo," he says, "what could be done around the state? That's my ultimate goal—to have a positive influence on other cities to do the same thing."

Sierra Club On Leading Edge of Green Wave in 2007

Photo by Svetaki

Early holiday cheer arrived on December 6 when the House of Representatives passed an historic energy bill that would establish a national renewable energy standard and increase the fuel efficiency of cars, trucks, and SUVs to 35 miles per gallon by 2020. Unfortunately, the following day the Senate failed to muster the 60 votes needed to avoid a filibuster, and ended up passing a watered-down version of the bill stripped of the renewable electricity standard and preserving some $12 billion in tax breaks for the oil industry. The House then passed this final version of the bill on December 18. Still, it's hard not to conclude the tide is turning, and federal lawmakers are finally starting to catch up with the desire of most Americans to move toward a more sustainable energy economy. The Sierra Club had lots to cheer on numerous fronts this year. Read a sampling of 2007 grassroots highlights and accomplishments.

Mile-High Activism Energizes Coloradans

   

On a sunny Saturday in late October, 50 Sierra Club volunteers turned out for two "urban hikes" to canvass door-to-door in the Denver and Boulder areas. That's Rocky Mountain Chapter volunteer Wende Reoch above in white shirt, getting briefed before the Denver event. Participants distributed free compact fluorescent (CFL) light bulbs to their neighbors, talked about the Club's 2% Solutions to Global Warming campaign, and collected petition signatures asking Governor Bill Ritter to adopt Clean Car Standards as a major plank in his upcoming Climate Plan, expected to be announced sometime in November.

Colorado Sierra Club organizer Roger Singer, below, oversaw the canvas in Denver, and colleague Katie Ryder ran the event in Longmont, a fast-growing suburb 10 miles northeast of Boulder. Approximately 730 CFL light bulbs were given out, and the majority of people who accepted the bulbs signed the Clean Car petition. Many people at the door also provided their e-mail information to sign up for Convio, an online service providing non-profits with efficient and effective ways to reach and mobilize their constituents.

Volunteers reported during post-canvass debriefing sessions that having the CFLs, below, to give away greatly increased their comfort level going door-to-foor.

To recruit volunteers, the Sierra Club's Boulder office sent out a postcard with a humorous slant to Denver- and Boulder-area members, and e-mailed them before and after the card was sent. The October canvassing events were also advertised on chapter and group Web sites and in newsletters, and members in the two target areas who had attended chapter meetings or signed up for other Club events in recent months received phone calls shortly before the canvass. Chapter energy committee members helped with direct phone contact efforts.

Leading up to the canvass, Singer, Ryder, and chapter volunteers organized several social, outings, and educational events, including a well-attended house party and BBQ, a picnic, a renewable energy presentation at a local church, and a hike to St. Mary's Glacier in nearby Arapahoe National Forest. "These activities definitely helped draw in a portion of our 50 volunteers," Singer says, "and they're great community-building activities."

 

The Club's outreach campaign(s) also got a nice boost when Singer was quoted in a Denver Post article on energy development alternatives in the state three days prior to the Denver and Longmont canvasses. Read more about smart energy solutions and what the Club is doing to combat global warming.

All photos by Jeannette Markham.

Raleigh Is Cool

In early September, Raleigh became the largest city in North Carolina to sign the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement to reduce global warming emissions locally. It also became the 23rd city in the state to be recognized by the Sierra Club as a Cool City for adopting green initiatives like using energy-efficient light bulbs in city buildings, adding more alternative-fuel vehicles to its civic fleet, and expanding the city's recycling program. The Cool Cities program recognizes local governments that commit to reducing carbon dioxide emissions 7 percent below 1990 levels within five years.

North Carolina Cool Cities Director Tom Jensen says more than 100 local Sierra Club members wrote to the City Council, urging them to sign the Agreement, and nearly that many attended a Sierra Club and Beer event the week before the Council vote to build support. "Raleigh has the potential with some of the initiatives it has undertaken to become the greenest city in the Southeast," Jensen says. Pictured above at a September 12 Sierra Club press conference across from City Hall to celebrate Raleigh's Cool status are Sierra Club Capital Group volunteer Marvin Woll, Councilman Thomas Crowder, Group Conservation Chair Tim Reed, Vice Chair Sharon Hazouri, Councilman Russ Stephenson, Environmental Advisory Board Chair Denny Murphy, and Mayor Charles Meeker. Jensen notes that Capital Group Chair Ellen Kinsinger, not pictured, was also key to the Club's campaign. Read more about Smart Energy Solutions the Sierra Club is promoting to help curb global warming.