Dear John,

The war in Ukraine is escalating the climate crisis, taking the planet over a cliff. Energy security and the life of the planet require an immediate transition from fossil fuels to 100% renewable energy. 

Last week, Senator Bernie Sanders, Rep. Cori Bush, and Rep. Jason Crow introduced legislation to require President Biden to invoke the Defense Production Act to create a rapid transition to renewable energy and protect vulnerable communities from the energy disconnections and price swings that are the trademarks of fossil-fuel utilities. Contact your senators and representatives now and tell them to support this vital legislation. 

The war in Ukraine is an environmental catastrophe. Each bomb dropped, whether Russian or American — U.S. and other NATO countries have already supplied Ukraine with more than 1,700 missiles —  creates an explosive release of heavy metals and toxic chemicals. Add to that all of the diesel fuel storage facilities that have been hit and ammonia spreading over at least 2.5 kilometers after the Sumykhimprom chemical plant in northern Ukraine was hit, and we get a picture of the devastation that will persist for years. 

To replace Russian oil, President Joe Biden is ordering the release of one million barrels of oil per day from the U.S. strategic reserves and he is urging Congress to get the oil industry to increase drilling on federal lands. Rather than increasing oil production, we must immediately transition to 100% renewable energy. Contact Congress now and tell them to support the Sanders, Bush, Crow legislation for a clean energy future. 

The Energy Security and Independence Act — S.4013 in the Senate and H.R. 7439 in the House — would: 

• Invest $100 billion in clean energy;
• Create a Domestic Renewable Energy Industrial Base Task Force to work with environmental justice advocates, manufacturers, scientists, labor unions;
• Provide $30 billion for the Energy Department to weatherize and insulate 6.4 million homes and;
• Invest $10 billion in heat pumps.

CODEPINK has been yelling from the mountain tops for years that WAR IS NOT GREEN. Now, with the war in Ukraine in full swing and the climate catastrophe escalating by the day, it’s imperative that the U.S. move immediately to renewable energy. There isn’t a moment to waste. Contact your representatives in Congress now!

Towards peace in Ukraine,
Jodie and the entire CODEPINK team: Ariel, Ann, Audrey, Clay, Danaka, Emily, Farida, Justina, Kelly, Leonardo, Marcy, Mark, Medea, Michelle, Nancy, Olivia, Paki, Samantha, Teri, Shea, and Suzie

P.S. On Saturday, we hosted a global online rally to call for a negotiated solution to the war in Ukraine, with such speakers as Noam Chomsky, Vijay Prashad, and Irish politician and member of the European Parliament Clare Daly. We are following this up with another call — May 7 — to take to the streets for a ceasefire and negotiations. Find or host a May 7 event in your city, which could be a rally, a teach-in, or simply passing out flyers that we will provide. Educating our communities is critical at this time.