Wednesday, meeting location

UWL Student Union - room 2310 at 10:45 to 11:15 am. Meet with Rep. Ron Kind about Green New Deal on Wednesday, Feb. 20.

Pay to park in the ramp or take the #4 bus.

Meet with Rep. Ron Kind about the Green New Deal

We've just learned that 

Rep. Ron Kind will meet with local advocates of the Green New Deal on Wednesday morning, February 20, between 10:45 and 11:15 a.m. on the UWL campus 

(exact location will be posted here as soon as it's available).

If you are not able to attend in person, you may print and sign (and circulate) the petition

then email crsierraclub@gmail.com for pick up and delivery.

If you need to educate yourself about the scope, purpose, and priorities of the GND, read about it at Sunrise Movement, Sierra Club, 350.org, Union of Concerned Scientists, and many others. New co-sponsors are signing on every day. As of now, there are 84 co-sponsors in the House (not Ron Kind yet) and 11 in the Senate.

Here are a few good articles about it: 
From The Intercept: The Battle Lines Have Been Drawn on the Green New Deal (by Naomi Klein)
 
A poll conducted late last year by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication found that 81% of voters favor the GND including 59% of Republicans (see The Green New Deal has Strong Bipartisan Support)

The Sierra Club strongly supports the Green New Deal as an ambitious first step toward addressing the climate crisis while updating our failing infrastructure, creating good green energy jobs, and moving forward with justice and equity.

Green New Deal, Plastics, and a public CAFO hearing

Sen. Majority leader Mitch McConnell has announced he will call a vote on Green New Deal legislation soon. The legislation calls for swift and meaningful action to address the crisis of global warming based on the required actions listed in the October 2018 report issued by the  International Panel on Climate Change. Despite its wide and deep popularity among the American people, it has been dismissed as too expensive by the fossil fuel industry, their media, and their legislators (those legislators who have received millions from the industry like Sen. McConnell and Democratic Senator Joe Manchin.)

The Sunrise Movement and partner organizations are requesting tlGND supporters spend the next two weeks calling, emailing, and visiting their Senators of both parties to show support for GND legislation. Read more at bit.ly/senatesprint and
https://www.sierraclub.org/press-releases/2019/02/mitch-mcconnell-playing-games-americans-livelihoods

***

On Friday, Feb 22 at 1 pm individuals interested in working to reduce the use of plastics in the La Crosse area are invited to an informal meeting at 1 pm at Cabin Coffer, 401 Jay Street. With a new governor and new priorities, there may be an opportunity to change policies to make it easier to take meaningful local action. For more info, email cvmaren@mwt.net.

***

A public informational hearing on the reissue of a CAFO license to Babcock Geneticsvwill he held on Thursday, March 14 at 10 am at the Town of Holland Town Hall. This CAFO is at the center of water quality concerns in La Crosse County.

Ready for 100 and the Green New Deal

This Ready for 100 Wednesday, let's talk about the Green New Deal resolution introduced in Congress last week. It includes a provision to meet "100 percent of the power demand in the United States through clean, renewable, and zero-emission energy sources." The text of the resolution can be found here - if you like what you see, contact your representatives and ask them to support the Green New Deal! To learn more, check out these Sierra Club resources.

La Crosse County Residents:

We've created an online petition asking the La Crosse City Council and County Board to set a goal of getting 100% of the community's energy from renewable sources by 2050: 
https://addup.sierraclub.org/campaigns/clean-renewable-energy-for-la-crosse

Please sign and share with your friends!

Why are we pushing for 100% clean, renewable energy?
Wisconsin will not be immune to the impacts of climate change, but we can be part of the solution! Climate scientists agree that we must limit global temperature increases to 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid the most destructive and dangerous effects of climate change. This will require net zero carbon emissions by 2050, which means ditching fossil fuels and transitioning to clean, renewable energy. It's time for the City of La Crosse and La Crosse County to join 100+ cities and 10 counties across the country in their commitments to 100% renewable energy!

Ready for 100 Wednesday!

Did you know that $14.4 billion leaves the Wisconsin economy annually to pay for energy, mostly for fossil fuels? If we used 100% renewable energy produced in-state instead, this money would stay in Wisconsin's economy, and over 100,000 jobs would be created right here! The details are laid out in this new report from the Center on Wisconsin Strategy (COWS).

Opportunities for involvement

The Mississippi Valley Conservancy is seeking a Stewardship Coordinator and has several spring and summer internships available. Click through for details.

2019 Summer Land Management Internship
2019 Prescribed Fire Internship
2019 Digital Marketing Internship
2019 Graphic Design Internship
2019 Nonprofit Fundraising Internship
2019 GIS Specialist Internship

A new opportunity has been developed to create a community-built A to Z online sustainability resource for La Crosse County. Volunteers may sign up to update a page, create a campaign, research sustainability resources, collate materials for lesson plans and more. You chose what you love and want to share with others. This is an ongoing project - no deadlines, no pressure! Check out the project outline for details.

The Crawford Stewardship Project offers both episodic and recurring volunteer positions. Our volunteers are willing to go above and beyond to help our community learn about, understand and value our land, water and air and the threats to our ecosystems and natural resources. With ever more threats to our natural resources, our region needs us more than ever. Click through to learn more.