NC lawmaker: Build Back Better will help environmental justice issues and the planet
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November 9, 2021
DURHAM, N.C. — North Carolina lawmakers say President Joe Biden’s recently announced Build Back Better Act will help ensure generations of residents are not forced to grapple with extreme weather, drought and other consequences of climate change.
Sen. Natalie Murdock, D-Durham, is one of hundreds of lawmakers across the U.S. who signed a letter calling for climate solutions that overlap with those in Biden’s Build Back Better Act.
Murdock said North Carolina communities at most risk from climate change are also those that have been systemically neglected. She pointed out the state stands to gain from $555 billion in the Build Back Better Act allotted to address climate change and increase use of clean energy. “We’re coming off of four years where we did not have a federal partner,” Murdock asserted. “So that’s all the more reason that we have to act quickly. We have to make up for the time we lost.”
OR elected official and other lawmakers advocate for Build Back Better at COP26
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November 4, 2021
PORTLAND, Ore. — As leaders from around the world meet in Glasgow, the United States’ plan to tackle climate change is coming into focus.
The Build Back Better Act in Congress would invest about $550 billion to cut the country’s carbon emissions.
Rep. Paul Evans, D-Monmouth, who is co-chair of the Elected Officials to Protect America Leadership Council, an organization made up largely of veterans, spoke while traveling to Glasgow for the United Nations Climate Change Conference, where he said there will be plenty of big speeches.
He added that the conference also brings together leaders who are taking climate action with smaller steps. “The real value is, you get people in the room who are fighting the same fight,” Evans explained. “They get to feed off the energy, and they get to recognize that, yeah, this is a huge, huge project, but it’s just like my training instructor in the Air Force said, ‘You eat an elephant one bite at a time.’”
NH and Maine elected officials stress urgency to pass Build Back Better
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November 5, 2021
CONCORD, N.H. — New Hampshire officials are among those heading to the annual international climate summit, and they are urging the U.S. to make good on its commitments.
Groups want Congress to pass federal climate legislation and for President Joe Biden to declare a national climate emergency.
Rep. Timothy Horrigan, D-Strafford, said at the state level, efforts to combat climate change have hit walls in New Hampshire. He hopes the state will accept any available federal funds and start taking the necessary steps. “It doesn’t matter how high the Dow Jones Industrial Average is if the planet is dying or not habitable for us human beings,” Horrigan asserted. “I’m afraid we’re nearing that point.”
The Biden administration’s Build Back Better framework includes more than $500 billion in investments to curb climate change. Groups say the investments are urgent, but more still will be needed to address the existential threat.
Alex Cornell du Houx, former state representative and president of Elected Officials to Protect America, said during his time in Afghanistan, he witnessed first-hand the impact water and other resources can have during times of conflict. “Conflicts across the world are due to climate and water-security issues,” Cornell du Houx explained. “What’s happening, unfortunately, is it’s becoming a threat multiplier, that the U.S. is very insulated in many ways against, but it’s also coming to the U.S. in much more grave manners.”
NV elected officials champion Build Back Better Plan
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November 5, 2021
CARSON CITY, Nev. — As Congress prepares to vote, Nevada leaders are calling on lawmakers to pass the Build Back Better Act, which contains $555 billion to fight climate change.
The bill would supercharge efforts to transition to clean energy, expand electric-vehicle charging networks and “green” our infrastructure.
Asm. Howard Watts, D-Las Vegas, a member of Elected Officials to Protect America (EOPA), said extreme heat and drought have the Silver State at code red.
“Lake Mead is at historic lows,” Watts observed. “The first shortage ever has been declared on the Colorado River. This summer, folks in northern Nevada couldn’t breathe for two months because of wildfire smoke.”
Build Back Better’s tax credits will benefit WV families say elected officials
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November 9, 2021
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Experts say the consumer rebates outlined in President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better Act will help families save money as they shift to clean energy and electrification.
Perry Bryant, co-founder of the West Virginia Climate Alliance, explained the rebates, along with tax credits, will save the average family hundreds of dollars per year in energy costs.
“In particular there are tax credits for solar and wind and batteries, and also electrical vehicles,” Bryant outlined.
Lawmakers across the U.S., including Del. Rodney Pyles, D-Monongalia, have signed a letter calling for climate solutions that overlap with those in the Build Back Better Act.
IL leaders urge BBB major climate investments, during COP26
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November 5, 2021
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — As talks continue in Scotland at the annual international climate summit, Illinoisans are among those urging the U.S. to follow up on its commitments.
Groups want Congress to pass federal climate legislation and for President Joe Biden to declare a national climate emergency.
Rep. Stephanie Kifowit, D-Aurora, Marine Veteran noted Gov. J.B. Pritzker and a delegation from the state is in Glasgow now, to highlight the urgency of acting boldly on climate change, especially for an agricultural state such as Illinois.
“We certainly need a national blueprint for climate change,” Kifowit asserted. “It’s affecting us in Illinois with regards to the farmers and the growing season, and so we’re feeling it here in the Midwest and in other states.”
NY advocate and 400 elected officials issue call for action at Glasgow COP26
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November 5, 2021
GLASGOW, Scotland — A contingent of current and former elected officials from New York and across the country is in Glasgow, Scotland, this week and next, pressing for immediate action to combat climate change.
Dominic Frongillo, executive director and co-founder of the group Elected Officials to Protect America and a former council member and deputy supervisor in Caroline, New York, said he is at the conference to underscore the importance of the moment, and noted the predicted rise in average global temperature. “We are on track for a 2.7-degree Celsius world, which is catastrophic,” Frongillo asserted. “If we don’t act now, then we will miss this opportunity to have a safe, prosperous future for all.”
NM Rep. Sariñana speaks at COP26 on need for BBB and climate action for children’s future
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November 5, 2021
SANTA FE, N.M. — The acceleration of global warming from fossil-fuel production, along with drought and wildfires, have been top-of-mind for New Mexico residents attending this week’s climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland.
Rep. Debbie Sariñana, D-Albuquerque, who is attending the summit, said mitigating the emission of greenhouse-gas methane from fossil-fuel development is key, but added the state’s record heat contributing to water shortages has emphasized the climate crisis is getting worse. “In New Mexico, I think, we’re doing a lot,” Sariñana acknowledge. “We’re doing a lot of things in the right direction, especially with energy. But whenever we have these huge things that shut down our cities or states because of water or drought we have to look at it as real and something we have to work for”
Sariñana believes President Joe Biden should declare a national emergency on climate change and wants Congressional leaders to support his Build Back Better agenda to cut carbon pollution. She added New Mexico has a unique challenge in addressing global warming because state revenues are heavily dependent on the fossil-fuel industry.
Infrastructure deal with BBB important for climate crisis in Virginia says local elected official
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November 8, 2021
ASHBURN, Va. – Some Virginia lawmakers are applauding Friday’s passage of President Joe Biden’s infrastructure plan, claiming it’s a critical step forward to support clean energy in the state.
Mike Turner is district supervisor for Ashburn in Northern Virginia, and a member of Elected Officials to Protect America Leadership Council. He said the $1.2 trillion package is especially important after Republican Glenn Youngkin won last week’s governor’s race.
He said he thinks a Republican governor could set back the state’s legislative gains over the past decade on tackling climate change.
“It’s entirely feasible that we could have the Virginia Clean Economy Act repealed,” said Turner, “that we could pull out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. So local politics and statewide politics are going to have a huge effect on our clean-energy initiatives going forward.”
EOPA elected officials join world leaders in Glasgow, demand U.S. climate action
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November 4, 2021
AUGUSTA, Maine — As talks continue at the annual international climate summit, Mainers are among those urging the U.S. to follow up on its commitments.
Groups want Congress to pass federal climate legislation and for President Joe Biden to declare a national climate emergency.
Alex Cornell du Houx, former state representative, president of Elected Officials to Protect America and a veteran, said during his time in Afghanistan, he witnessed firsthand the impact water and other resources can have during times of conflict. “Conflicts across the world are due to climate and water-security issues,” Cornell du Houx observed. “And what’s happening, unfortunately, is it’s becoming a threat multiplier, that the U.S. is very insulated in many ways against, but it’s also coming to the U.S. in much more grave manners.”
CA leaders at COP26 press for quick action on climate change
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November 5, 2021
OAKLAND, Calif. — A contingent of climate leaders from California is pushing for substantive change at the climate change conference in Glasgow, Scotland, this week.
They are pressing for a focus on equity, where wealthier countries contribute technology, know-how and financing to spread sustainable practices across the globe.
Andy Katz, director of the East Bay Municipal Utility District, is one of nine members of the group Elected Officials to Protect America attending the conference. “The United States in Glasgow can fund the Green Climate Fund,” Katz explained. “Where the United States has not made up for past inaction by the Trump administration, it needs to be able to help developing countries skip the dirty phase of development.”
Local elected official says climate change threatens WI daily life
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November 5, 2021
WESTON, Wis. — In Washington, D.C. and on the other side of the globe, key talks continue surrounding climate-change solutions, and at the local level, frustration is mounting that Wisconsin communities will have to adapt to a new way of life if concrete action is not taken.
The United Nations Climate Change Conference continues in Scotland, while in Congress, the latest version of the Build Back Better plan is being sorted out. The group Elected Officials to Protect America (EOPA), which includes members from Wisconsin, does not just want goals laid out.
Nathan Fiene, Weston village trustee, said across the region, weather seasons are not as predictable as they used to be, which he believes threatens outdoor recreation. “I think that by tackling climate change and actually putting some teeth into a plan, global leaders will be able to not just literally save the planet but also to preserve — not just Wisconsin but — a Midwestern way of life,” Fiene explained.
Other EOPA members argued drought and floods linked to climate change will cause economic hardship, while creating lasting health effects in marginalized communities.
AS COP26 continues, US elected officials push for BBB domestic action
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ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — As leaders from around the world meet in Glasgow, the United States’ plan to tackle climate change is coming into focus.
The Build Back Better Act in Congress would invest about $550 billion to cut the country’s carbon emissions.
The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) is taking place in Glasgow, Scotland, through Friday.
Caren Fitzpatrick, a commissioner in Atlantic County, hopes countries can come up with plans at COP26 to tackle the issue together. “It’s a small world, and if Europe is doing it and Canada’s doing it but the United States is not doing it, it’s not going to work for anybody,” Fitzpatrick asserted.
While world leaders meet in Glasgow, US climate plan could help GA
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ATLANTA — As leaders from around the world meet in Glasgow, the United States’ plan to tackle climate change is coming into focus.
The Build Back Better Act in Congress would invest about $550 billion to cut the country’s carbon emissions.
The United Nations Climate Change Conference is taking place in Glasgow, Scotland, through next Friday.
Ted Terry, DeKalb County Commissioner, said for Georgia to mitigate the effects of a changing climate, investments such as the Build Back Better Act are crucial. “In order for us to meet the challenge to address what is being discussed right now in Glasgow, we need the support of the federal government to make it happen,” Terry asserted. “Otherwise, we’re just not going to be able to raise as much money to put those investments in place to help people.”
MD leaders at World Climate Summit push for action with BBB back home
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November 5, 2021
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Maryland lawmakers are traveling to the annual international climate conference in Glasgow, and they’re pushing the U.S. to take immediate action to reach national climate goals.
Del. Patrick Young, Jr., D-Baltimore County, a member of Elected Officials to Protect America, is heading overseas to attend the talks. He is especially concerned because Maryland is experiencing more extreme weather and flooding from climate change.
He thinks the 2020s are a critical time to take action to reach goals set for the future, and passage of the Build Back Better Plan, which Congress is debating, is key to cutting planet-warming emissions. “The Build Back Better Plan and the pieces that specifically address climate change are going to provide us that pathway,” Young explained. “So that when we think of 2020 in the future, that this is the decade that we came together internationally to reach our goals because of the threat that it is to all of us and not just to a few of us.”
Elected officials who are veterans hope climate summit spurs action, results
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November 5, 2021
PARK CITY, Utah — As talks continue at the annual international climate summit, Utahns are among those urging the U.S. to follow up on its commitments. They want Congress to pass federal climate legislation and President Joe Biden to declare a national climate emergency.
Glenn Wright, chair of the Summit County Council and a Vietnam War veteran, is one of dozens of local elected officials concerned for both the immediate effects and the long-term consequences of climate change. “I consider climate change an existential threat to the world,” Wright asserted. “But it’s really even more important to our environment here in the Summit County area.”
The Biden administration’s Build Back Better framework includes more than $500 billion in investments to curb climate change. Groups say the investments are urgent, but more will be needed to address the global consequences.
Wright is deeply concerned about the geopolitical issues caused by a warming planet, but said it also causes environmental problems in southwestern Utah. “We have a really significant number of trees in the forest that are dying from beetle kill and are now emitting both carbon dioxide and methane and their deterioration,” Wright pointed out. “They need to be removed, so we can get some new growth in there and revitalize.”
Alex Cornell du Houx, former state representative and president of Elected Officials to Protect America and a veteran, said during his time in Afghanistan, he witnessed first-hand the impact that water and other resources can have during times of conflict.
HI state Rep. joins world leaders in Glasgow to demand bold climate action
November 5, 2021
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NORTH KONA, Hawaii — Hawaii officials are among those heading to the annual international climate summit, and they are urging the U.S. to make good on its commitments.
Groups want Congress to pass federal climate legislation and for President Joe Biden to declare a national climate emergency.
Rep. Nicole Lowen, D-North Kona, is headed to Glasgow to join the talks, and she said it is important the U.S. rebuild trust with other nations, especially after the former Trump administration’s dismissal of global climate-change mitigation efforts.
Lowen acknowledged some states are making progress, but emphasized it is a whole-country effort. “As the largest per capita emitter of climate emissions, the U.S. taking action is essential,” Lowen asserted. “While in Hawaii, we’re happy to be doing our part, clearly, we’re a small state, and we really need the rest of the country to come along.”
PA officials press for action on climate change with Build Back Better Act
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November 4, 2021
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Local leaders from Pennsylvania and across the country are pressing for decisive action in the fight against climate change, worldwide and at home.
The group, Elected Officials to Protect America (EOPA), urged world leaders gathered in Glasgow, Scotland, to see climate change as a national security issue.
Dr. Joel Hicks, member of the Carlisle City Council, professor of Energy and Public Policy at George Mason University, a Veteran and an EOPA member, said world leaders need to recognize drought and floods linked to climate change will cause economic hardship, which will spur migrations and make countries more vulnerable to manipulation by state and non-state-sponsored terrorism. “Climate is going to be the main source of instability as we move forward,” Hicks asserted. “With instability, there’s an increased opportunity for nefarious forces to really take advantage of people’s desperation.”
Californians in Glasgow for COP26 climate summit
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November 3, 2021
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — This week, a contingent of local government officials from California and across the U.S. is headed to the United Nations Conference on Climate Change in Glasgow, Scotland.
The group is focused on sharing what American cities and counties are doing to reduce greenhouse gasses and learn best practices from around the world.
Pam O’Connor, former mayor of Santa Monica and current vice-chair of the group Local Governments for Sustainability, said she is glad the U.S. is re-engaging on climate change, after former President Donald Trump pulled the nation out of the Paris Agreement in 2019.
“The United States is back,” O’Connor asserted. “States have plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from 50 to 52% by 2030. We want to be a partner with our federal government in achieving that goal.”
New Land Trust model will support BIPOC-led farming in Central VA
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November 26, 2021
RICHMOND, Va. — In central Virginia, permanent access to land is one of the biggest barriers to farming. A new land-trust model aims to secure both rural farmlands for affordable housing and agricultural practice for new farmers, while also acquiring land in urban centers to foster economic growth.
With support from the nonprofit Agrarian Trust and the Maggie Walker Community Land Trust in Richmond, the Central Virginia Agrarian Commons will focus on redistributing access to land to communities of color who’ve been historically denied land-owning opportunities.
Duron Chavis, board member of the Central Virginia Agrarian Commons and an activist from Richmond, said the model can begin to address racial inequity in the state. “Who has the decision-making power over land?” Chavis asked. “Black and brown people are usually on the wrong side of that disparity. For an organization to step in and say, ‘Hey, we’re going to raise money to ensure that communities that have been historically marginalized are able to activate strategies for self-determination on land’ is very important.”
