The Climate Can’t Wait. March with Us 4/29

Just a few weeks ago, the new head of the Environmental Protection Agency said carbon emissions don’t cause climate change — contradicting NASA and 97 percent of the world’s scientists. This is not normal.
The Trump administration has made it clear that it will do whatever it takes to dismantle climate protections and bury our voices.
But they do not realize this: We are seeds of the most dedicated and strongest kind. Since day one of Trump’s presidency, the most beautiful and resilient shows of resistance have continued to sprout up and grow across America. Mark my words: our resistance has just begun.
Join CCAN and our allies at the March for Climate, Jobs, and Justice (People’s Climate March) in Washington, D.C. on April 29th. On the hundredth day of Trump’s presidency, we’ll continue to spread our roots of resistance as we come together across issues to march on our nation’s capital. 
In 2014, nearly half a million of us took to the streets of New York City in the most powerful climate march of our time.1 We helped propel the Paris Climate Accord forward and organized for many other local climate victories across the country.
Every victory we’ve worked for is under attack with this new administration — even victories that make clear economic sense, like energy efficiency programs and the rule to capture excess methane from drilling on public lands. It’s now up to all of us to show that we’re not going away.
When we take to the streets on April 29th, we’ll send the White House and Congress the clear message that we’re not backing down. We’ll continue to fight for our climate, our communities, and our shared future.
We’ll march not just to resist — but to rise above and defeat the threats that Trump continues to unravel. The sound of our feet clicking together will echo our powerful show of unity, and then we’ll bring our unmatched fervor and dedication back to our local communities.

We’ll march to show the Trump administration: We will never stop fighting.

The People’s Climate March will not end in the streets. We’ll carry the drumbeat forward, as we march into our representative’s offices to demand action on climate. As we march into meetings before our local board of supervisors to insist on protection from fossil fuel companies. As we march into our communities to inspire others and ignite the passion that will continue to drive our movement forward.
The threat of Trump’s administration is too big for any of us to take on alone.
That’s why you should join us on April 29 at the March for Climate, Jobs, and Justice.  Sign up HERE to wear down your marching shoes a bit further and stand with us.
I hope to see you there.
 

  1. “Climate Change March to Descend on Washington in April.” January 2017. Inside Climate News.

The Battle at Standing Rock, and Lessons for Virginia

Guest post by Gray Michael Parsons
I have been an environmentalist all my life…..it is “in my blood.”  
But growing up in the 50s & 60s in Coastal North Carolina, the more popular term was “conservationist”.  It was a much safer label than proclaiming one’s traditional obligation to protect Mother Earth as an American “Indian.”  
As a child and adolescent, my grasp of concepts such as conservation and ecosystem were deferred in favor of more simple ones such as baseball, football, the Beatles and Temptations.  But my maternal grands (who raised me) taught me to revere all life forms and the elements necessary to support life…..Sun, land, water, air, etc.  All I had to do was watch.  Their walk was their talk.  
So it was that same Traditional Indigenous value system that compelled me to travel to the Standing Rock tribal reservation in ND in the late summer and mid Fall of  2016 as a volunteer water protector.
The contemporary significance of Standing Rock (SR) was initially how the Dakota Access Pipeline threatened access to the only clean water source available to the tribe. As Natives, we saw unprecedented tribal unity happening, with the reemergence of treaty rights as a viable pathway to stop or at least divert the pathway of Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL).  SR then became more than a place and a people; it grew into a model of courage, sustainable civil disobedience, and resistance to corporate power at its apex. The movement was prayerful, peaceful and powerful.  
And although an unarmed demonstration, it was met with dramatic overkill in terms of numbers and armament with respect to law enforcement. They used multiple helicopters, military Humvees, water cannons, diverse and powerful disabling sprays such as mace and pepper, rubber bullets, tear gas grenades, disabling sound and even displayed a missile launcher! Police violence and brutality in this region brings to mind that in the deep South during the peak Civil Rights movement era.  
And yet, the resolve of the people was unmovable. Why? For many reasons, but perhaps paramount among them was the fact that their backs were against the wall. It was and remains a matter of sustaining life and habitability on a sacred land.  And as the movement grew, the water protectors became more diverse with respect to all aspects of humanity: age, gender, sexuality, race, religion, culture, country of citizenship, and more.

They were us!  Indigen-US!  Not just “Indigenous”

Fast forward: The Black Snake known as DAPL is only one of an entire network of pipelines intended to transport fossil fuels extracted via fracking. These pipelines have spread like a for-profit cancer across our land, in everyone’s backyard, including your own. They contain poisonous chemicals that are patented and unavailable to be identified in  hospital ERs. The contents are going directly to the seas or major river ports for sale outside our country.  It’s about profit, not domestic security.
In West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina, a similar pipeline, the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, threatens to desecrate documented historically sacred Native lands……and the water source for many of you in the event of a spill.  
Our backs are against the wall. It’s time to act now!
Here’s how: Organize locally and connect statewide and regionally.  Call and write your government reps, start and support petitions.  Run for local office.  Divest from banks that are invested in the Dakota Access Pipeline and other fossil fuel projects.  Attend info meetings and refute the distortions and lies of many in the extractive industries.  The media is rarely our ally in this battle, so be your own media by writing LTEs, blog posts, and op-eds. Engage everyone you know!
In the Renape dialect of Algonquin and of some of my Coastal NC Ancestors, “Pasa Qwer Wuhn”, We Stand, We Fight. ” Ke-Ke Yu Nupi”, Water Is Life!  Join groups such as the Coalition of Woodland Nations or Indigen-US on Facebook.  Ke-Na, Nya:weh, Miigweech, thank you.  
 

Gray Michael Parsons

Author’s Bio:  Gray Michael Parsons is of Machapunga Tuscarora and Hatterask Native American ancestry and was born and raised in “Little” Washington, NC in 1949.  He is the author of “Hope On Hatterask” and drums and dances at native powwows and festivals in the East.  He was a Water Protector in opposition to the DAPL near the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Reservation in early September and late October 2016.  He is a graduate of East Carolina University with a degree in Parks, Outdoor Recreation, and Conservation and attended graduate studies at Johns Hopkins, Morgan State and University of Maryland, Baltimore County.  He resides in the Baltimore metro area and works in the Organic & Natural Foods industry.
 
Image at top from Victoria Pickering with a Creative Commons license
 

Arrests in Annapolis

Today, 13 faith leaders and western Maryland residents were arrested.
They were arrested because there is a threat looming over all our communities, as the moratorium on fracking in Maryland is set to expire this October.
They were arrested because we are at a crucial moment in Maryland history, as the Maryland House of Delegates passed a bill to ban fracking and the Maryland Senate looks to do the same.
They were arrested because this is the moment we need to stand up and send a clear message: Maryland needs a statewide fracking ban NOW.
It was immeasurably inspiring. Our activists were handcuffed, loaded into police vans, and sent to jail, where they spent hours and hours before being released. (At the time of this writing, more than 7 hours after the arrests, they haven’t been released yet).
Right now, we need to carry on the work of our friends by sending our message to the Maryland Senate. Here’s most important thing you can do right now: Call Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. Tell him to support a fracking ban.
Here’s what to say: “My name is ____ and I live in ____. I support those arrested this morning protesting fracking. Please support only a total ban on fracking in Maryland, and bring the fracking ban bill up for a vote in the Senate.”
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Now, here are some highlights from today’s events.
The morning started with inspiring speeches from our faith leaders. Including this one, from Unitarian Universalist Reverend Terence Ellen, who connected fracking to global warming and extolled the virtue of fighting for a fracking ban:
 

 
Then, activists moved across the street to stand on the steps of the State House, all the while chanting songs and cheers about standing strong in the fight against fracking:
 

 
Finally, as Maryland legislators began filing into the State House, it was time for the arrests. The people willing to get arrested moved to the right of the steps, to block the entrance of the statehouse. Dozens of others who joined for the action stood across the street in solidarity and support.
Food & Water Watch documented the arrests:
 
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Thirteen were arrested in total. After the arrestees were taken away, the rest of the activists continued to rally and cheer for a fracking ban.
Here’s the winner for best costume (come on, you didn’t realize there was a costume contest? There’s always a costume contest).

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All of this was to send a clear message. We will not back down. We will not give up. We will keep up the fight until the Maryland General Assembly places a statewide fracking BAN and protects our public health, our water and our climate.
Now, time to keep on fighting.

The Tale of the Loud Neighbor: An Argument for a Tax on Carbon

The following is a blog post written by CCAN volunteer Andrew Crane-Droesch. In this satirical piece, he illustrates the benefits of a tax on carbon by telling the story of loud, obnoxious neighbor that needs to turn the volume way down. Take a look!
This is a blog post about carbon taxes. But before I go there, let me tell you a story about a guy named Ernie.
Ernie lives in a small condo in a big city. He has many neighbors, and the walls of his unit are thin. Ernie can hear the muffled voices of his neighbors in the hallway when he comes home from work.
When Ernie is home, his likes to listen to music. His favorite bands include Gorgoroth and Vanilla Ice. Ernie has a powerful stereo. He likes to listen to his favorite songs with the volume turned all the way up. He doesn’t like headphones because they aren’t comfortable.  And they make it difficult to copy Armi ja Danny’s sweet moves.
Ernie’s neighbors don’t like this. They have politely asked Ernie to turn down his music. Ernie resists, saying that his music makes him happy. He argues that sometimes his neighbors are loud too, and he doesn’t like their music either. He argues that this is a free country, dammit, and he can do what he wants.
So the neighbors start playing their own music louder to counteract the NKOTB marathon coming out of Ernie’s apartment. Nobody can sleep. People are starting to lose their hearing. The cats have all run away. What can be done?
 
Externalities
Ernie’s loud music is an example of an externality. An externality is the cost born by others of anything done for oneself. Ernie experiences pleasure listening to Color Me Badd really loudly on his stereo. But his fun comes at a cost to everyone around him. His neighbors don’t get any pleasure from his music, but they’re the ones losing sleep. And they can’t get the Electric Slide out of their heads.
Does this sound familiar? Externalities are an annoying part of everyday life. One person’s cool motorcycle is someone else’s interrupted conversation. Someone’s relaxing cigarette break is another person’s asthma attack. That sinking feeling that you get when you realize that you’ve stepped in dog doo? An externality.
How can we deal with externalities? It is usually a good idea to start simple. Ernie’s neighbors can try harder to talk to him. Regulations governing motorcycle mufflers, designated smoking areas, and dog waste can be adopted.
 
Pigovian Taxes
But some situations call for a Pigovian tax. Named after the British economist Arthur Pigou, a Pigovian tax increases the price of a public nuisance until the costs (to society) equal the benefits (to individuals). When a nuisance is more costly, less of it is produced.
Back to Ernie. The neighbors could decide to get together and implement a Pigovian tax in the form of a volume fee. Everyone in the building gets a sound monitor just inside of their front door. Any time the music goes above some volume, a surcharge is levied on the person making the noise. So if Ernie wants to really get down to the Archies, he’ll have to pay a little extra.
Pigovian taxes have a bunch of nice features.
First: they change behavior. Ernie will probably turn his music down if the price is high enough.
Second: they spur technological innovation. Ernie might decide that it is finally worthwhile to invest in soundproofing insulation, or get some Bluetooth headphones.
Third: they are flexible. Ernie can decide whether he wants to lower the volume, invest in insulation/headphones, or just pay the fee sometimes.
Finally: they raise revenue. The neighbors can spend the money on soundproofing, fix the leaky roof, or just divide up the money and put it into their pockets.*
 
Carbon fees
What does carbon pollution have in common with Ernie’s Tom Jones marathon? The benefits go to the few and the costs are charged to the many.
Unless we do something, here in DC we’ll get worse heat waves, stronger storm surges, and, in a few centuries, sea-level rise that will turn Capitol Hill into an island and the national mall into a swamp. Globally, food production will plummet, species will go extinct, storms will get worse, some countries will cease to exist, and others will be sources of climate refugees. If we let these things happen, it won’t be because anyone wants them. It will because people want to burn fossil fuels, and aren’t bothered by the fact that others – including their children – will bear the consequences.
Scientists and economists on the left and right agree that a tax is probably our best policy option for fighting climate change. The idea is simple: if it costs money to burn carbon, (1) you’ll burn less of it, and (2) you’ll figure out other ways to accomplish your goal without burning carbon.
So, businesses in DC might decide to stop air conditioning the sidewalk during summer if their electricity bills go up. Builders and homeowners can demand better insulation and more efficient appliances. Individuals and businesses can switch to renewable electricity providers, and those providers will get more customers because their energy will be cheaper in relative terms.**
What do we do with all of the carbon tax money we collect? Different people have different ideas. CCAN is pushing for a rebate system, in which the money would go directly to DC residents. This would help fight inequality here in the district – rich people usually pollute more (and thus will pay more), but everyone will get the same check. This proposal is actually very similar to the approach advocated by Bernie Sanders in his recent presidential bid.  And it is nearly identical to a recent proposal by a group of republican elder statesmen.
Ultimately, the choice of how we respond to a carbon fee is up to each of us. Nobody is going to tell you how to live your life or run your business.  But we’re going to be asked to pay the cost of the messes we make. And if we all have to do this, hopefully, there will be a smaller mess.
 
Andrew Crane-Droesch has a PhD from UC Berkeley’s Energy and Resources Group, and works as an economist for the federal government.  He has written this blog post in his capacity as a private citizen.  His views expressed here are his own, and do not reflect those of the federal government (obviously).  He actually *likes* Gorgoroth.
 
*If the money just goes back to the residents — including Ernie — why would Ernie’s behavior be affected?  Because he is taxed according to his own noise, but he is paid according to the average noise of everyone in the building.  So if he makes more noise than average, he’ll lose money.  Likewise, good neighbors would stand to benefit.
 
**This is because the price of dirty electricity will go up while the price of carbon-free electricity stays the same.  However, if enough people sign up for renewable energy through the energy choice program, the cost of carbon-free electricity may actually go up in the short term.  This is basic supply and demand.  But the market will adjust over the longer term.  Seeing all of the demand, more renewable energy producers will enter the market, and the competition will drive prices down.  And as there is more renewable energy production, economies of scale will begin to emerge.  For example, there will be more companies around that specialize in servicing wind turbines.  That will lower the cost of wind turbine service, lower the cost of generation, and ultimately lower the absolute cost of renewable energy compared to what it was at the start.
 

Activists who laugh together, stay together. Join us Thursday for climate comedy in DC!

Clear skies, blooming trees, warm breezes; spring has sprung in Washington DC — 22 days too early. If you’re like me, this warm weather is making you freak out about global warming.
Which is why LAUGHTER has never been more important. Seriously, hear me out. With Donald Trump’s presidency, we environmentally minded citizens have never needed to stick together more. So why not enjoy some laughs, and help advance climate action along the way?
That’s why our friends at Grassroots Comedy DC are hosting a stand-up comedy benefit for climate action this Thursday!
Come join us at the Super Spectacular Comedy Showcase For The Climate, 7:30pm on Thursday, March 2nd, at The Bier Baron Tavern (1523 22nd St NW, D.C.). Invite everyone you know!
The evening’s headliner is award-winning stand-up comedian Robert Mac. He’s been a finalist on Billy Crystal’s Mr. Saturday Night Contest, the San Francisco International Comedy Competition and the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon Talent Search. He’s also appeared on Montreal’s Just For Laughs, Gilda’s LaughFest and took the grand prize at Comedy Central’s Laugh Riots. There will be plenty of other hilarious comics as well; and, you will get a chance to connect with like-minded climate allies from our region.
By coming out for laughs, you will also be helping the climate movement here in DC. All proceeds will go to CCAN’s campaign  to put a price on carbon in DC, with the country’s first progressive and equitable carbon fee and rebate policy.
We know that putting a price on carbon is one of the most straightforward and cost-effective ways to fight climate change. By making fossil fuel polluters pay for the real and damaging costs of their emissions, we can unleash the clean energy solutions we need, and make DC families better off in the process.
The coalition to put a price on carbon in DC is starting to take off. Our diverse, multi-sector, city-wide coalition is now more than 20 organizations strong, and we have begun positive conversations with City Council members and key agency leads. Read more about that here.
So help CCAN work to give clean energy a chance to compete and keep the dirty stuff where it belongs: underground.
Join the climate movement in DC, and come to the Super Spectacular Comedy Showcase For The Climate, 7:30pm on Thursday, March 2nd, at The Bier Baron Tavern (1523 22nd St NW, D.C.). RSVP on Facebook, or buy tickets directly here.
Hope to see you there!

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Why I'm Marching To Ban Fracking In Maryland

Guest post from Elisabeth Hoffman of HoCo Climate Change
When I march Thursday for a fracking ban, I’ll be calling on Maryland to heed the warning of the canary that is Pennsylvania. And West Virginia, Colorado, Oklahoma and the others.
No state has gotten fracking right, because fracking can’t be made safe or even safe enough.
Everywhere this industry goes, residents rise up to defend their homes and farms, their children and pets, and their forests and towns from the noise and lighting, the truck traffic and ruined roads, the polluted air and water, and even earthquakes. No regulations are sufficient to corral the fracking industry.
Other states let industry experiment on their communities. From studies in fracked areas, we know that fracking is linked to increases in asthma attacks; preterm births and high-risk pregnancies; anxiety, fatigue, migraines and sinus ailments; and hospitalizations for heart and neurological problems. New research finds a link between fracking and a form of childhood leukemia. Thanks to documents from a freedom of information request, we are also learning that Pennsylvania officials suppressed thousands of residents’ complaints about water contamination and other problems. We know too that much damage remains hidden in legal settlements: Industry pays up only after residents take a vow of silence about what happened.  
Along with the fracking come the pipelines and compressor stations and export factories that bring yet more destruction to towns, fields and forests; spikes of toxic pollution, and threats from explosions. Communities must fight not only industry but the rubber-stamping Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which has cozy ties to industry and refuses to take into account the cumulative damage from these fracked-gas projects. In Pennsylvania, for example, residents are rebelling against the 350-mile Mariner East pipeline that will take fracked gas from the Marcellus Shale to export for Scotland to make plastics, of all things; the 124-mile Constitution pipeline that slashed through a sugar maple forest, before it was denied key approvals; and the nearly 200-mile-long Atlantic Sunrise pipeline, slated to cut through preserved farmland and communities in Lancaster and four other counties. Lancaster-area opponents have built The Stand, a wooden watchtower in the path of construction that will be the base for peaceful resistance should Williams Corp. show up.
My county, Howard, is one of only four in Maryland with no shale gas underground. Yet even here, fracking is elbowing its way in. Williams plans to expand and modernize a half-century-old compressor station to connect with that contentious Atlantic Sunrise project. And so we are joined quite literally to our friends fighting this pipeline. Maryland, too, must make a stand. We can’t let the fracking industry invade our state.
Of course, along with the fracking and the infrastructure comes the climate-disrupting methane, which is on the rise in fracked Pennsylvania. Fracked gas is no bridge fuel for our climate emergency.
Fracking and building pipelines is like installing more phone landlines – but with the added dangers. We need to be done with these antiquated fossil fuels, not doubling down on them.
What’s clear is that cheap fracked gas (and oil) is an oxymoron from industry’s playbook of alternate facts. Industry won’t pay for the lifetime of medical bills. Or clean up the air, soil and water. Or compensate for carved-up forests or climate chaos. Or monitor the toxic water it leaves underground.  Or cover the losses to the tourism industry and property values. These costs and much more remain off the industry’s books, instead showing up in our community and household balance sheets.
Even the prospect of fracking is discouraging investment in Western Maryland’s tourism businesses. Industry is fighting this ban too hard – with ads and in the state legislature – for us to be persuaded (as some have claimed) that it has little interest in Maryland. Perhaps industry just doesn’t want to be told what to do.
Yet that’s exactly what we must do. Maryland is where we say no to the whole fracking package. Instead, we’ll invest in renewables and efficiency. As a friend in fracked Pennsylvania says: “Good neighbors don’t ask you to put yourself in harm’s way so they can turn a profit. Good neighbors don’t engage in practices that may have long-term consequences for the health and welfare of the community. Good neighbors are neighborly. They don’t knowingly pollute the air, soil and water. They don’t ruin roads and disturb tranquility. Good neighbors are invested in the community, less interested in extracting wealth than building lasting bonds. Good neighbors leave a place better for having been there.”
Join me this Thursday in marching to ban fracking in Maryland.
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VIDEO: To ban fracking once and for all, we need YOU to march on Annapolis

On March 2nd, concerned citizens, business owners, health professionals, and activists from across the state will gather for the “March on Annapolis to Ban Fracking” in Maryland. This comes at a crucial time as the current moratorium on fracking is set to expire in October. Without a ban, oil and l gas companies will be free to move in, threatening the health, economy, and environment of communities all across the state.
Watch these citizens explain why they plan to march in Annapolis:

“You want to get things done properly you have to engage your government.”

Fracking has been linked to dangerous health impacts, and has been proven to contaminate water hundreds of times in neighboring Pennsylvania. Fracking also brings us one step closer to climate disaster through the burning and leakage of the powerful greenhouse gas methane. “It’s going to impact the entire state, because watersheds and air move beyond boundaries,” said one citizen.
So, what are we, the active citizens, to do? Every one of us can make our voice heard by rallying and marching in Annapolis on March 2nd.
Hope to see you there!

"Put a Price on It DC" is taking off!

Did you know that 96% of D.C. residents voted for a pro-climate administration last November? A sea of support for climate action encircles the industry-sponsored deniers in the White House and Congress. Now these residents are taking the movement to City Council to pass the #1 climate policy: a price on carbon, right here in the nation’s Capitol. So take heart and read on, fellow climateers. The “Put a Price on It DC” campaign to win a local carbon fee and rebate is hitting its stride.
 

IPL event
DC residents have turned out for community meetings across the city to learn more about carbon pricing

Strong City-Wide Coalition 
Our diverse, multi-sector, city-wide coalition is now more than 20 organizations strong, and we have begun positive conversations with City Council members and key agency leads. Member groups signed on to the coalition’s framework principles and policy approach include: Americans for Transit, Black Millennials for Flint, Interfaith Power & Light (DC MD NoVA), Citizens’ Climate Lobby DC Chapter, DC Catholic Conference, DC Divest, DC Environmental Network, DC Fiscal Policy Institute, Moms Clean Air Force, ONE DC, Organic Consumers Association, SEIU 32BJ, Sierra Club, U.S. Climate Plan, Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless, and Working Families Party.
 
Leadership from the Grassroots
With strong backing from the city’s leading organizations, our organizing team has launched a robust public engagement campaign to educate and involve community members in the policy process. To lead this effort we have welcomed Jeremiah Lowery, a lifelong local environmental justice activist born and raised in Ward 8. Jeremiah and Rachel Martin–our fantastic intern and corporate accountability advocate–are spearheading three exciting outreach projects for the campaign:
 
ANC1B Presentation
The “Put a Price On It DC” initiative discussed at a recent Advisory Neighborhood Commission meeting

 1. ANC, Civic/Citizen Associations, and Coalitions:  Via email, phone, and paper mail, we have personally reached out to all 40 elected Advisory Neighborhood Commissions (ANCs) and 60 Civic and Citizen Associations. In just the last two weeks, our team has presented to ANCs in Wards 1, 2, 3 and 5; have upcoming presentations in Wards 4, 6, 7, and 8; and initiated even deeper outreach to Wards 7 and 8 through community-based health organizations like the Health Alliance Network. The Asthma Coalition and the Fair Budget Coalition have also hosted us for campaign presentations and responded favorably to the concept. One-on-one meetings to introduce the campaign, solicit feedback, and invite participation are ongoing with stakeholders across the city.
 
2. Tenants’ Rights Groups: We have sent formal paper mail invitations to personally invite all tenants’ rights advocates to two informational public meetings in February, and more than 30 advocates have RSVP’d. We are looking forward to rich conversations about the intersections of environmental, social, and economic justice in the District. For example, access to housing is a major issue in DC, and the carbon rebate has great potential to help residents stay in their homes.
 
3. Small Business Outreach: Jeremiah, Rachel, and a crew of our “rockstar” volunteers are leading a twice-weekly Ward-by-Ward canvass to earn the support of local businesses. We have created a fact sheet to ensure business owners know of the city’s many renewable energy and energy efficiency programs available to avoid costly pollution.
 
Presentation to STEM students at McKinley Tech
DC high school students at a carbon pricing forum

Process: Getting it Right
We are grateful for the skillful facilitation of Justin Wright and Lesley Spencer of Active Neutrals, who dedicated extensive pro-bono support to the campaign in late 2016 and have now been contracted to lead our policy development process. Their communications, structure, and procedural expertise is ensuring a uniquely transparent, inclusive, and expedient collaboration amongst existing and prospective coalition members. Four three-hour-long policy design meetings are scheduled with nearly a dozen coalition members between now and early April, which we expect will result in bill language ready for introduction to the Council. Contact Camila with any questions about the detailed process structure.
 
A Boost from Hollywood
The November release of the “Priceless” episode of the latest Years of Living Dangerously series built buzz about carbon pricing in DC. The episode features young #PutAPriceOnIt advocates (like yours truly) in a quest for economic climate justice, from Texas to British Columbia. In November, the faith and social justice magazine Sojourners and Interfaith Power and Light (IPL) co-hosted a Priceless screening to publicly introduce the DC campaign. CCAN also joined the local CCL chapter and Greendrinks DC to co-host a standing room only Years episode screening at El Tio last year, recently followed by a packed screening and conversation at Potter’s House hosted by IPL’s Catherine Goggins. Energy for local climate leadership has grown tremendously since the election and we are experiencing exponential growth in volunteer interest.
 
Asthma Coalition
Carbon pricing presentation to the DC Asthma Coalition

Macroeconomic Study in the Works
CCAN’s policy director James McGarry is overseeing a macroeconomic study on the DC carbon fee that will become a primary education and lobbying tool for the campaign. We have contracted with the Center for Climate Strategies to lead this project. The Center is collecting input from a wide array of coalition partners and key stakeholders in the city, and will author a report summarizing data generated from original REMI modeling for a variety of policy scenarios.
Continue reading

Listen to our Emergency Climate Call with Bill McKibben on Regional Climate Action

On the evening of January 5, CCAN hosted an emergency climate conference call with 350.org’s Bill McKibben and more than 500 activists in our network. The call was extremely powerful, and if you didn’t get a chance, you can listen to a recording on this page or by clicking here.
Many thanks to Bill and everyone who made this inspiring emergency call possible!
But we don’t stop here.
There are so many ways to get involved in coming months — here’s a snapshot:

Listen to the call below. Or, download the mp3 by clicking this link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5_x6ikrqjjPeVNod1RieV9sZW8/view?usp=sharing
And please share widely!