Come to Our Year-End Meeting to Discuss Our 2024 Policy Agenda

Come join us in-person for our November "Year-End" Membership Meeting on Saturday, November 18 from 10 am - 1 pm at New Heights Charter School at 1818 Amsterdam Avenue (between 150th and 151st Streets).

This will be our final membership meeting of the year. In addition to a festive holiday celebration, we will be unveiling our 2024 Policy Agenda, so come and learn about what legislation we will be working to advance next year, share your feedback, and learn how you can get involved. Also, we will have a special presentation on sanitation from our Membership Planning Committee. And you will have an opportunity to learn more about - and get a guided tour of - our new online resource for helping Manhattan residents, organizations, and small businesses learn about low- and no-cost renewable energy upgrades, which improve indoor air quality and reduce utility costs, as well as how to find clean energy jobs.

Global Win: Mercury to be Phased Out of Cosmetics by 2025

Dr. Micaela Martinez sends good news from the Minamata Convention on Mercury, hosted by the United Nations, where she helped successfully advocate for the adoption of a treaty that will phase-out mercury from cosmetics by 2025. As you may recall, we successfully banned mercury – a dangerous neurotoxin found in many skin lighteners – from cosmetics in New York State, but this global ban will help reduce the prevalence of cosmetics containing mercury that still find their way onto our store shelves from overseas. 

Raising Opposition to Congressional Attacks on Environmental Justice

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill on November 3 that is intended to undermine efforts to resolve the climate crisis and advance environmental justice, including a 40-percent cut to the Environmental Protection Agency’s budget. We have joined a coalition of more than 60 other organizations opposing this bill and urging lawmakers and voters to take notice of this brazen attempt to increase the environmental burden on our communities while rolling back the Biden administration's historic investments in environmental justice.

Fully-Funded Second Avenue Subway Paves Way for East Harlem Masterplan

Peggy Shepard attended a ceremony celebrating the $3.4-billion grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Federal Transit Administration for Phase II of the Second Avenue Subway, making the project fully-funded. She took the opportunity to speak with DOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg about the project, which we have been working to leverage as a catalyst for the environmental, economic, and cultural revitalization of the community. We are now working with agencies and officials to develop a masterplan – based on our East 125th Street Community Visioning Action Plan and the work we have done in the community since then – that will address many of the neighborhood’s long-standing challenges.

Take Action: Tell Your NYC Council Member to Pass the Community Land Act

Help us pass the Community Land Act! This bill is urgently needed to address our city's housing crisis, build community wealth, and advance racial and neighborhood equity. Please take a minute to send a prewritten letter (which you can customize, if you prefer) to your council member urging them to pass this act by the end of the year.

Take Action: Gas Utilities Are Harming Your Finances - and Your Health!

Did you know that utilities are building unnecessary gas pipelines and forcing you to pay for them? As if that weren't bad enough, studies show that air pollution from buildings burning gas leads to nearly 2,000 premature deaths each year in New York State.

One way to put an end to this is by passing the NY HEAT Act, which will lower skyrocketing utility bills, saving low- and moderate-income families $75/month. It would force the utilities to stop making you pay for their unnecessary pipelines. And it will help reduce air pollution, and make it easier for New York to reach its emissions reduction targets.

Follow this link to send New York State Governor Kathy Hochul an email asking her to lead the transition to clean energy and put the NY HEAT Act in her 2024 Executive Budget!

Peggy Shepard to Talk with Obama Foundation Scholars

Peggy will speak with some of the incoming Obama Scholars at Columbia University about her work and experience as an environmental justice advocate on Monday, November 13. The Obama Foundation Scholars program gives rising leaders from around the world an opportunity to take their community work to the next level through an immersive curriculum that brings together academic, skills-based, and hands-on learning.

Sonal Jessel on Energy Justice Panel
 

Learn About WE ACT En Español with Uptown Elected Officials

WE ACT is increasing our organizing in the Spanish-speaking communities in Northern Manhattan. Join our bilingual organizing team and New York State Assembly Member Manny De Los Santos, City Council Member Carmen de la Rosa, and U.S. Representative Adriano Espaillat for a bilingual community presentation geared toward Spanish speakers on WE ACT, our work, and how you can get involved. Tuesday, November 14, at 6 pm at 504 West 158th Street.

Join the Next Healthy Homes Working Group

Join the next Healthy Homes Working Group Meeting to provide your input on how to protect community members from lead exposure in their homes on Tuesday, November 14, at 6 pm. They will be joined by a representative from the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

• Carbon Capture and Storage: Manuel Salgado was featured in DeSmog’s article debunking the myth of community involvement in carbon capture and storage projects. He shared insight on the importance of community engagement and explained how project developers are clearly ignoring community concerns.
• Out of Gas, In with Justice: New York City Mayor Eric Adams endorsed NYCHA's effort to replace gas stoves with induction stoves, crediting our Out of Gas, In with Justice pilot study. This transition will be a big boost for the health of residents. Our study, which was conducted in NYCHA homes, found a significant reduction in harmful air pollution when transitioning from gas to induction stoves.
• Climate Justice Opinions Across the US: The Yale Program on Climate Change Communication recently shared some insight on who supports climate justice, citing an April 2023 report, Climate Change in the American Mind, that Manuel Salgado and Annika Larson contributed to.

Park Avenue Viaduct Reconstruction Survey

For those of you impacted by the Park Avenue Viaduct reconstruction project in East Harlem, the MTA is looking for your feedback. Take this brief online survey to let them know what you think.

Learn About Clean Energy Upgrades and Give Us Your Feedback

The Manhattan Clean Energy Hub has officially launched and is ready to assist Manhattan residents with affordable or no-cost energy upgrades, accessing energy incentives, transitioning to solar, green jobs training, and more. Visit the Hub to learn more about how you can help make Manhattan more sustainable, equitable, and green.

And please take a few minutes to share your thoughts about clean energy. Take our survey to help us learn more about how we can better connect New York residents to clean energy upgrades and green jobs - and be entered to win $100!

Learn About the Hudson River Cleanup

Join Scenic Hudson, Hudson Riverkeeper, and Hudson River Sloop Clearwater for a virtual update and briefing about the Hudson River PCBs Superfund Project on Tuesday, November 14 at 5:30 pm. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plans to release its draft third Five Year Review of the Hudson River PCBs Superfund Site for public comment this winter. Through these reviews, required under the federal Superfund law, EPA reports on the status of the cleanup and issues a determination as to whether the selected cleanup remedy is working as intended and is protective of human health and the environment.

Take the Uptown Chats Podcast Survey

Have you listened to Uptown Chats yet? Uptown Chats is WE ACT's podcast on all things environmental justice in Northern Manhattan. Follow Uptown Chats on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, or stream directly from Castos. Have an idea for future episodes? Let us know by taking the Uptown Chats survey to help plan next year’s episodes!