Step It Up

The Blog Reborn...

Tue, 15 Apr 2008

1 Year Later - The Movement Goes Global

Mon, 14 Apr 2008

350 Is Making Headlines

Sat, 12 Apr 2008

Stimulate the Movement...Donate to 350.org

Sat, 12 Apr 2008

A Report From The Dream Reborn

Wed, 09 Apr 2008

Step It Up Continues On...

Tue, 11 Mar 2008

This is the fourth is a series of posts catching up the blog since our return from Bali�

Many folks have been emailing and asking whether there�s going to be a Step It Up 2008. Well, that�s really up to you�

No, we�re not doing another nationally web-coordinated Step It Up action (at least right now). But that�s not stopping folks from keeping this movement going. Some of the groups that first started organizing for Step It Up a year ago in preparation for April 14, 2007 are still going strong. Not only did they organize amazing Step It Up 2 actions last November and generate thousands of invitations to politicians, letting them know that we mean business, but now they�re raring ahead with new plans and new actions of their own accord.

Many folks have teamed up with 1Sky to keep the pressure on their state�s senators and representatives with the Spring Into Action effort going on this month. Others are ahead with their own local action plans, stepping it up even more. And this is just what we need. Despite all the amazing action and activity around global warming in the last year, congress is still just limping along, hardly in sight of taking the action we need. Presidential candidates are now talking a good game on climate (mostly). But talk isn�t enough. We need Congress to step it up and take action. The only way to make that happen is to keep the pressure on and escalate this movement.

We�re also starting to see ever increasing victories at the local and state levels. The latest: the Massachusetts senate passed a bill on Thursday, March 6 requiring 80% carbon emissions reductions by 2050 and emphasizing green jobs! The movement is having its effect, thanks to all the activists, citizens, organizations, and leaders stepping up in their area. But we�re still missing essential national legislation and international action. So a big thank you to everyone that�s moving ahead with new action plans, whether its under the name of Step It Up or not.

You might be wondering then, what it is that our team is doing, if not organizing another Step It Up? We haven�t been idle this winter either. Stay tuned for our next plan. And in the meantime, feel free to keep in touch and let us know what you�re working on.

Onwards�

The Dream Reborn

Tue, 11 Mar 2008

Winter Action -- No Rest for the Weary

Mon, 10 Mar 2008

This is the second in a series of posts catching up the blog since our return from Bali�

January and February were more big months for the climate movement. As the presidential campaigns gradually took over all the airwaves amidst the mainstream media, the climate movement has just kept on churning out action.

Focus the Nationon January 31st culminated with over 1,700 events around the country! Way to focus, everyone, and congrats on rounding up such massive numbers. With it�s emphasis on students and solutions, we�re sure to start seeing even more new ideas and energy pouring forth from the youth movement, which is already swelling in incredible ways.

Remember Powershift 2007? Now state-level Powershift conferences are sweeping the country. Some are still in the works, so don�t fret if you thought you already missed out. But students haven�t been sticking to conferences either. There has been direct action, civil disobedience, and more. Take a look at itsgettinghotinhere.org for all the latest dispatches from the youth movement. The next wave of action is planned for April 1, Fossil Fools Day, which will be one of the first ever youth climate efforts coordinated globally.

And it�s not just the students that are continuing to step it up. 1Sky had a successful Valentine�s Day action and is now starting to get down and dirty with keeping the pressure on our politicians. Check out the plan to Spring Into Action and sign up today.

Back from Bali

Mon, 10 Mar 2008

The first in a series of posts catching up the blog since our return from Bali�

In December 2007 our crew shipped off to the UN Climate Conference in Bali, Indonesia. Global warming wasn�t exactly stopped in Bali � the UN international processes have a tendency to live up to their reputation of making snail-paced progress. Looks fun, eh? Fortunately, the ground is being laid for some real breakthroughs down the road, assuming the US will sign on and cooperate with, if not lead, this global effort.

One of our tasks while in Bali was bearing the good news and energy from the US grassroots climate movement. We were most definitely well-received by those willing and interested to talk to a few 23-year-olds at a UN conference. And rest assured, the rest of the world is thrilled to know that all of you all are out there organizing for action in this country. It means a lot to folks that you, we, the grassroots, don�t intend to let this issue slide by without real action. But we still have a long ways to go till all our communities and all our leaders have stepped up to the climate challenge at the appropriate scale. We have to keep the movement moving.

While in Bali, we were also thrilled to meet and learn more about all the great folks building the movement in their own lands. With just a handful of those efforts combined, one petition alone had over 2 million signatures calling for action. The grassroots is a sizeable force.

Youth from around the world, organizations of all sizes and missions � they�re all taking on climate change in their own way. And increasingly large amounts of the worlds attention is turning to the international processes of figuring out how exactly we�re going to collectively address this global challenge. During the conference itself, we teamed up with several of the grassroots groups there to help pull off the great aerial photo calling for action now � just one symbol of how ready everyone is to work together for real action. The grassroots is ready.

And so, despite the slow pace of the UN meeting itself, we left Bali seeing real opportunity, sensing real hope for what can come. More action is brewing.

Now back in the states (aside from finding our new homes, as we headed to Bali homeless), we�re looking into all kinds of ways we might help from our US vantage point to see action through. There�s much to be done. Fortunately, the winter has not been an idle one�

Click here to continue reading updates since Bali.

Donations

Bali United Nations Conference Is Coming to a Close -- Add Your Voice...

Wed, 12 Dec 2007

Bali Actions

Kuta Beach Aerial Art

Global warming is here

Fri, 23 Nov 2007

We can see it in Southern California, Georgia, the arctic, New Orleans, and now Bangladesh. And the most recent IPCC report tells us its worse than we thought. On the night of November 15th, Cyclone Sidr made landf�all in Bangladesh, flooding villages, destroying crops, killing livestock, and reducing tens of thousands of homes into mud and sticks. Due to an early storm warning many were able to get to shelter during the cyclone, but now many are returning to find their lives and livelihoods decimated. The government estimates 4 million people to have been affected by the storm.

Two days after Cyclone Sidr hit Bangladesh, the IPCC released their 4th and final summary report, declaring that global warming "could lead to abrupt and irreversible climate changes and impacts."The report also stresses that global warming and its effects are happening faster than anyone predicted, as sea levels and extreme weather events are on the rise. Bangladesh is truly �a canary in the coalmine in terms of the climate crisis. The combination of rising seas and extreme weather events like Cyclone Sidr will in all likelihood be devastating for a nation with a lot of poverty and little capacity to handle these challenges.

We haven't asked you to do anything like this before, but its becoming increasingly clear that we need to both mitigate future impacts of global warming, and at the same time, help those around the world who are already experiencing the effects. Here are a few sites who are helping with the relief effort in Bangladesh:

Oxfam International
Relief Web

Let us give thanks for the planet we have, and keep on fighting for its future!

New Bill for No New Coal

Sat, 17 Nov 2007

Amidst the sobering news of the 4th IPCC report that was released today, there is some reason to feel hopeful. No doubt moved by the efforts of citizens like you all around the country and at Powershift, Henry Waxman (D-CA) announced yesterday his plans to introduce a moratorium on new coal-fired power plants. Congratulations on your great work - together, we can make our voices heard and shut down the possibility of any new coal-fired power plants.� Check out the source, here:

http://oversight.house.gov/story.asp?ID=1613