Forward on Climate Rally

On Feb. 17, 2013, several local environmental groups organized a caravan of buses to the "Forward on Climate" rally in Washington, D.C. The rally was organized by 350.org, the Sierra Club, and the HipHop Caucus, as well as other groups, to call on President Obama to act quickly on his statements in his State of the Union Address earlier that week. During this address, the President said, "...for the sake of our children and our future, we must do more to combat climate change." As a short term goal to address climate disruption, the rally challenged the President to reject Transcanada's planned Keystone XL tar sands oil pipeline that is proposed to run from Canada to the Gulf Coast. For the long term, we call on the President to take strong measures to protect the planet from greenhouse gas emissions and pollution associated with fossil fuels.

Locally, Sierra Club, Penn Future, PA Interfaith Power & Light, and Clean Air Council sent about 150 people, which filled two and a half buses, to this historic demonstration, the largest climate change rally in U.S. history. Estimates of the crowd at the rally and march were in the range of 35,000 to 50,000. Speakers included Michael Brune, Bill McKibben, Van Jones, Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Rosario Dawson, Chief Jackie Thomas, and more. In the biting cold, the throngs rallied near the Washington Monument and then marched around the White House and back to their starting point, where circles of people danced in the sunshine, celebrating an important milestone in the US environmental movement.

-- Sue Edwards

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Which Would You Cut, Something Important or Oil Subsidies?

The NRDC has a great campaign comparing oil subsidies to other cuts made in the sequester. Click here to check out the photos on their Facebook page.

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Kids' Concert for Clean Air

A Kids' Concert for Clean Air on Feb. 2, 2013, Groundhogs Day, at the Lucien E. Blackwell West Philadelphia Regional Library, co-sponsored by Sierra Club and Mom's Clean Air Force. It was a free concert featuring Meg Russell of Meg's Melodies.

It was attended by about 35 or 40 people, two thirds of them children. It was a lively event, and the children got to move, play and hear songs about healthy eating and exercise, pretend to be a variety of things, make sounds like rain and thunder, and play with percussion instruments, a beach ball, ribbons, pompoms, and a parachute. They were greeted by a large green groundhog (aka William Kramer) as the concert got underway. Sierra Club activist Kevin Little spoke at the end about riding bikes, walking and using public transportation, turning off lights, and taking other steps to reduce climate change. Parents and older children took the opportunity to write short notes to Pres. Obama or Sen. Toomey about clean air and protecting our environment. Moms Clean Air Force had petitions to sign as well as stickers, notebooks and pads of paper for participants.

--Sue Edwards

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