Friend,

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is one of the last truly wild, intact ecosystems left on Earth. It is a place of breathtaking landscapes, thriving wildlife, and deep cultural significance to the Gwich'in people who have cared for and relied on this land since time immemorial. 

It is a place that grounds us, whether we've visited in person or simply been inspired by its beauty and stories. But in 2017, Congress passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and a provision buried deep within the bill opened the refuge to oil and gas development for the first time.

In response, Sierra Club helped lead one of the largest grassroots mobilization efforts to defeat Big Oil's attempt to carve up the refuge with drilling rigs and pipelines.

Today, the threat of oil and gas extraction in the Arctic Refuge is back, and we're taking the fight directly to the oil industry. 

Hear from Sierra Club's National Oil and Gas Campaign Manager Mike Scott about the story of this precious place -- not just of the threat, but of the powerful movement that is rising up to protect it.

Back in 2017, thousands of Sierra Club supporters took action, raised their voices, and demanded that the nation's biggest financial institutions refuse to fund any drilling in the refuge. Together with Indigenous leaders, local partners, and a nationwide movement for climate justice, we successfully convinced the five largest US banks to commit not to back these destructive projects.

I would love for you to watch this video. I hope you can take a minute to marvel at the majestic landscapes, and feel connected to the movement that continues to protect the Arctic Refuge -- and to the people whose leadership makes this work possible.

Protecting the Arctic isn't about just one landscape. It's about protecting the wildlife that depends on its unbroken habitat, the cultural survival of the Gwich'in Nation, and the shared responsibility that we have to defend the places that cannot speak for themselves.

Thank you for being part of this movement.

In Solidarity,

Mike Scott
National Oil and Gas Campaign Manager
Sierra Club