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TOMORROW: Discuss City Policies with Your Elected Officials at Our January Membership Meeting
Join us at 10:00 AM EST on Saturday, January 8 for our first Membership Meeting of the year! Our focus will be on New York City policies and improvements we'd like to see from the new leadership. We’ll begin the meeting with breakout groups to discuss various policies and recommendations from the community and then we’ll have our newly elected officials join us so that members and staff can ask them questions about how they will work to bring environmental justice to our city. Among the elected officials scheduled to attend are (pictured below) New York City Council Members Shaun Abreu, Diana Ayala, Carmen De La Rosa, and Kristin Richardson Jordan along with New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, and New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams. RSVP Here ([link removed])
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Gas Free NYC Signed Into Law
In case you missed it over the holidays, Gas Free NYC was signed into law by Mayor Bill Del Blasio. Peggy Shepard spoke at the press conference, introducing the former Mayor. Our Annie Carforo and Pamela Stewart-Martinez were also there.
Thanks to Gas Free NYC, which is now Local Law 54, new buildings in New York City will be constructed to use only electricity – no fossil fuels. This is a huge step forward in the transition away from fossil fuels. It will significantly reduce the city's greenhouse gas emissions and other air pollution, 71 percent of which are produced by buildings burning fossil fuels. And coupled with our ongoing push to develop more renewable energy to power these buildings, we are helping ensure that New York does its part to combat climate change.
Learn more about Gas Free NYC here ([link removed]) , and watch the video of the press conference here ([link removed]) .
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Peggy Shepard & Sonal Jessel Recognized Among New York's Top Energy & Environment Leaders
In case you missed it over the holidays, Peggy Shepard and Sonal Jessel were recognized among City & State New York’s Energy & Environment Power 100. WE ACT’s board chair Jeff Jones and former WE ACT board member and current New York State Public Service Commissioner Rory Christian also made the list. See the full list here ([link removed]) .
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WE ACT Credited for Success on Climate Advocacy Despite Limited Funding
In case you missed it over the holidays, an article in Fast Company called attention to the fact that nonprofits working to address the climate crisis through advocacy received 0.4 percent of all the charitable donations in 2020. The author, Carbon Switch Founder Michael Thomas, cited WE ACT as an “example of a nonprofit accomplishing a lot on a shoestring budget,” noting how we helped eliminate the use of fossil fuels in future New York City buildings with the Gas Free NYC ([link removed]) law. Read the article here ([link removed]) . And make a donation here ([link removed]) !
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Dana Johnson Raises Concern About Federal Hydrogen & Carbon Capture Investments
Dana Johnson raised concern in E&E News’ EnergyWire on January 5 about the Biden administration’s investments in hydrogen and carbon capture projects, explaining that these are false solutions to the climate crisis. Read the article here ([link removed]) .
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Annie Carforo on the Importance of Gas Free NYC in the National Fight to Reduce Emissions
In a January 6 article on the PEW Charitable Trusts’ Stateline blog that explores the use of gas bans to curb emissions, Annie Carforo spoke about the importance of passing the Gas Free NYC ([link removed]) law in New York City, which is not only the nation’s largest city but also “a four-season city. We have very cold winters and hot summers, and we're saying all-electric is possible.” In other words, if we can do it here, we can do it anywhere...Gas Free USA! Read the article here ([link removed]) .
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Listen to Vernice Miller-Travis on the Dive-In-Justice Podcast
In case you missed it over the holidays, WE ACT co-founder and board member Vernice Miller-Travis was recently interviewed for the Center for Whole Communities’ Dive-In-Justice podcast. Listen here ([link removed]) .
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Learn About Community Choice Aggregation: A New Tool to Achieve an Equitable Transition to Clean Energy
Jasmine Graham will be one of the speakers at a webinar on Community Choice Aggregation, a new and transformational tool for community energy empowerment and climate justice. Join us on Wednesday, January 19 at 7:00 PM EST for this online event co-sponsored by Citizens for Local Power, Energy Democracy Alliance, Mid-Hudson Energy Transition, and New Yorkers for Clean Power. RSVP here ([link removed]) .
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