APRIL MEMBERSHIP MEETING: Assembly District 68 Candidates Forum
Come to our April Membership Meeting on Saturday, April 13 and meet the candidates running for New York State Assembly District 68, which covers East Harlem, a few pockets of Central Harlem, and all of Randall's Island. The meeting will begin at 10:00 AM at the New Heights Academy Charter School, which is located at 1818 Amsterdam Avenue (look for the signs between 150th and 151st Streets). Join us and be an informed voter! RSVP Here
New York City Environmental Justice Report
As chair of the New York City Environmental Justice Advisory Board, Peggy Shepard will be speaking in Queens this afternoon – Friday, April 5 – at the New York City Mayor’s Office of Climate & Environmental Justice’s release of its first-ever Environmental Justice NYC (EJNYC) Report and Mapping Tool. You can learn more about this report by listening to this episode of our Uptown Chats podcast!
UPTOWN CHATS: Celebrating Cecil Corbin-Mark
On Monday, April 8, we will release a new episode of our Uptown Chats podcast, in which Jaron and Lonnie talk with Peggy Shepard about Cecil Corbin-Mark, our former Deputy Director and Director of Policy Initiatives who passed away on October 15, 2020 at the age of 51. The interview also recalls some of WE ACT’s earliest campaigns, and what it was like to get this organization off the ground. Tune in here on April 8. And be sure to join us on Saturday, April 20 for the Cecil Corbin-Mark Street Naming Ceremony.
Peggy Shepard and Tishman Environment and Design Center Director Ana Baptista will be discussing cumulative impacts at Resources for the Future’s Interconnected Injustices: Understanding Cumulative Impacts, a virtual panel discussion from 12:00-1:00 PM on Wednesday, April 10 that will examine how interconnected injustices can impact communities and the importance of incorporating cumulative impacts into environmental policymaking. RSVP Here
Understanding New Efficiency: New York
Many low-income New Yorkers do not qualify for the State’s existing energy efficiency programs, making it harder for them to reduce energy use and lower their utility bills. One way we hope to change that is with New Efficiency: New York (NENY), a $5-billion proceeding within the Public Service Commission (PSC) that sets a goal and strategies for building developers, commercial and institutional building owners, industrial facilities, and residential households to pursue improvements that reduce energy consumption across the State. Come learn more about NENY at New Yorkers for Clean Power’s teach-in, New Efficiency: New York – From Proceeding to Practice, on Wednesday, April 10 from 12:00-1:00 PM. Eric Walker will be one of the presenters! RSVP Here
Climate Reality Project's New York City Leadership Conference
Peggy Shepard will be speaking about “false solutions” on two back-to-back panels beginning at 1:30 PM on Saturday, April 13 during the Climate Reality Project’s Leadership Conference at the Javits Center on April 12-14. The conference is free and open to all, and will provide an opportunity to learn how to become more active in the fight to address the climate crisis. Learn more here.
Celebrate Earth Day by Lobbying for Environmental Justice Legislation
Join WE ACT and our colleagues for an Earth Day Lobby Day as we head to Albany on Tuesday, April 16 to advocate for a variety of environmental justice legislation, including the Enhanced Public Participation Plan (S.2510A/A.6584A), the Beauty Justice Bill (S.4265/A.6969), and the Lead Paint Right to Know Act. We will be taking a bus up to Albany and scheduling meetings with key state legislators to explain to them why this environmental justice legislation is critical for the health of our communities. For those who sign-up to attend, we will have a Zoom prep meeting on April 15 from 6:00-7:00 PM to explain the details of the bills, provide tips on talking to legislators, and answer any questions you may have. In the meantime, feel free to watch this brief video showing what you can expect on one of our Albany trips. If you join us, we will meet at WE ACT’s office (on the Second Floor of 1854 Amsterdam Avenue, which is at the corner of 152nd Street) at 6:00 AM on April 16. We will have bagels and coffee before boarding the bus to Albany for the day, returning to our office around 6:00 PM. RSVP Here
NYAM's How to Blow Up a Pipeline Film Screening & Discussion
Briana Carbajal will participate in a discussion on climate activism following the New York Academy of Medicine’s (1216 Fifth Avenue, at the corner of East 103rd Street) screening of the feature film How to Blow Up a Pipeline on Thursday, April 18 from 6:00-8:30 PM. RSVP Here
East Harlem Earth Day Conference
WE ACT will be participating in Community Board 11’s annual East Harlem Earth Day Conference at the Museum of the City of New York from 11:00 AM-3:00 PM on Friday, April 19 at 1220 Fifth Avenue (between East 103rd & 104th Streets).
Cecil Corbin-Mark Street Naming Ceremony
Join us on Saturday, April 20 for a special ceremony unveiling Cecil Corbin-Mark Way. Thanks to the help of New York City Councilmember Shaun Abreu, Cecil will have a street named after him! We will gather on Saturday, April 20 at 11:00 AM for the ceremony at the corner of West 143rd Street and Convent Avenue. Get all the details, and RSVP for the outdoor ceremony as well as for the indoor reception afterwards.
Inwood Hill Park Earth Day Festival
WE ACT will also be attending the Friends of Inwood Hill Park’s Annual Earth Day Festival from 10:00 AM-5:00 PM on Saturday, April 20 in Inwood Hill Park (at the Seaman Avenue & Isham Street entrance). Learn more and RSVP here.
UPTOWN CHATS: Celebrating Parks & Green Spaces on Earth Day
In the second of our April episodes of Uptown Chats, Jaron and Lonnie talk with Stephanie Ashley Cabán, the Riverside Park Conservancy’s North Park Outreach Coordinator, about the importance of parks and other green spaces in environmental justice communities. Tune in here on Monday, April 22.
Earth Day at Harlem's Kennedy Center
Briana Carbajal will speak at the annual Earth Day program, Planet vs. Plastics, from 5:00-8:00 PM on Monday, April 22 at the Lt. Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Memorial Center, located at 34 West 134th Street, between Fifth Avenue & Malcolm X Boulevard. Learn more and RSVP here.
Nancy Weiser Ignatius Lecture on the Environment at American University
Peggy Shepard will be giving the annual Nancy Weiser Ignatius Lecture at American University’s School of International Service in Washington, DC at 6:30 PM on Tuesday, April 23. Learn more here.
Headlines & Footnotes: Environmental Justice in an Age of Planetary Crisis
Peggy Shepard will be speaking at Headlines and Footnotes: Environmental Justice in an Age of Planetary Crisis, a day-long summit hosted by Wake Forest University’s Environmental & Epistemic Justice Initiative on Wednesday, April 24 in Winston-Salem, NC. Learn more here.
Join Our Earth Day 5K Fun Run Fundraiser
Come celebrate Earth Day, help raise funds for WE ACT, and run or walk for a healthier, greener community at our annual Earth Day 5K fundraiser. We will be holding the fun run at Randall’s Island at 8:00 AM on Sunday, April 28. You can run or walk, and enter as an individual or as a team. Sign up today and get a free WE ACT membership! And if you can’t join us, please consider making a donation to support our work. Learn more here.
City & State New York wrote a story about an ad campaign created by the Better Buildings New York coalition, which WE ACT is a member of, to advocate for the NY HEAT Act. WE ACT member Mone Choy is featured in the ad, and Sonal Jessel is quoted in the article.
VIDEO REPLAY: How to Build a Sustainable Nonprofit Organization
On March 26, 2024, as part of our EPA Region 2 Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Center (TCTAC), the New Jersey Environmental Justice Alliance (NJEJA) hosted a candid conversation on leveraging federal funding to help build and sustain your nonprofit. Peggy Shepard and Alternatives for Community and Environment (ACE) Executive Director Dwaign Tyndal offered advice on leveraging federal funding to help build and sustain grassroots organizations. Both WE ACT and ACE have been awarded substantial federal grants, and they discussed the lessons they have learned about applying for and managing federal grants. Download the presentation here and watch the video replay here.
Mayor Adams Community Conversation
New York City Mayor Eric Adams has invited residents from Manhattanville, Morningside Heights, and Hamilton Heights to attend a community conversation from 6:00-8:30 PM on Monday, April 8 at the Manhattanville Community Center, which is located at 530 West 133rd Street. You must email [email protected] to RSVP if you want to attend. Also be sure to let them know if you need language interpretation services or special accommodations.
