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Hunter community advocates are calling for law reform to make holistic transition and closure plans mandatory for all large coal mines, after the Minns Government awarded NSW's biggest coal mine - BHP’s Mt Arthur - a four year mining extension today.

Tariq Ali's second memoir demonstrates his depth as a radical writer and thinker, writes Sheila Rowbotham

The post You Can’t Please All – review appeared first on Red Pepper.

Hunter community advocates welcome the release of the Post-Mining Land Use report, but say questions remain concerning rehabilitation and biodiversity, including whether the NSW taxpayer will be forced to foot bills that big coal companies should pay for. 

Liberty is a muscle that must be exercised!

Since January 20, 2025, Backbone Campaign and our volunteers and allies have:    

• Deployed 45 freeway banners in 5 locations over 13 consecutive weeks, 
• Shipped banner toolkits to 31 cities in 10 states, 
• Trained more than 200 people in bannering and light projection in our virtual workshops, and 
• Projected images focused on workers' rights, immigration, and illegal detention in Seattle, Portland, Kansas City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Minneapolis and Boston. 
  

For more than 20 years, Backbone has been preparing for this moment. Our high visibility activism tools speak to the moment and amplify our collective voices. Today, our work is more important than ever before. But, we cannot do this at the scale and scope that is necessary without growing support from people like you. 

Pitch in with a donation to keep growing Backbone's capacity to tool up and skill up people around the country. 

CHARLESTON, W. Va. — In response to the final passage of West Virginia Senate Bill 627, Ohio River Valley Institute Hydrogen Program Director Tom Torres issued the following statement:

 

The West Virginia legislature made a bad bet in 2023 when it opened up state forests, natural and scenic areas, wildlife management areas, and other state-owned lands for speculative CO2 storage development. Now, legislators are doubling down by allowing developers to lease pore space underneath state parks, further committing more of West Virginia’s magnificent natural resources to private profit.

These storage projects are unlikely to bring the economic benefits promised by their supporters but what they will do is expose even more people to the invisible but very real threat posed by catastrophic releases of CO2. Legislative efforts to remove this development from the view of park users only hides the threat of potential leaks or blowouts caused by unintended communication between storage projects and the likely hundreds of thousands of orphaned and abandoned gas wells in the state. Rather than protecting the interests of park users, this bill would make them ignorant to these dangers and less equipped to deal with them.

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The post Statement on West Virginia Senate Bill 627 appeared first on Ohio River Valley Institute.

On Saturday, April 12, one of our super volunteers made the journey with 2 Backbone Campaign banners to the Peace Arch on the border of US (Washington State) and Canada. 

 

The Federal Environment Department has weakened pollution rules for Wollongong Resources’ shuttered Russell Vale coal mine, allowing the release of metals into a popular local creek more than 100 times higher than the original conditions permitted.

Rep. Lauren Boebert is trying to open the door to nationwide wolf hunting and trapping. Soon, thousands more wolves could be in the crosshairs.

Join The Strategy Center for a Launch of our Statewide Organizing Work with the CA Black Power Network Help us build the collective power to advance statewide policy priorities as part of the California Black Power Network Thursday April 17 2025

Meeting 6:30-8PM

Refreshments 6-6:30PM

The Strategy and Soul

3546 W. Martin Luther King Blvd

Los Angeles, CA 90008

• Gain an understanding of our collective goals and policy priorities at both local and statewide levels.
• Commit to staying engaged in the fight to improve the lived conditions of Black Californians.
• Learn what it takes to win on critical policy and issue areas.

RSVP by Tuesday April 15th, 2025 RSVP

The post Join The Strategy Center for a Launch of our Statewide Organizing Work with the CA Black Power Network first appeared on The Labor Community Strategy Center.

The risk of plastic pollution to wildlife isn’t worth the convenience of plastic packaging at the grocery store.

Our April issue is chock full of Earth Month news, events, and actions. You can also check this page throughout the month for events celebrating our beautiful planet!

Upcoming Events

 

 

Hands Off Our Democracy – Nationwide Mobilization, Saturday, April 5 – 12-5 pm at the Japanese American Historical Plaza (Organized by Rose City Indivisible and 50501 Portland). Imagine, if you will, millions taking to the streets. If not now–when? More here!

 

Celebrate World Public Health Day, April 7, by joining the 350PDX Forest Defense team & our friends from the Sierra Club for a watch party of the Break Big Biomass Webinar.  Action Night – Earth Day Was (and is) a Protest: Direct Action in the Trump 2.0 Era April 17th, 6:00-8:00pm.

 

 

As the push to log our forests to burn for cheap energy increases, people from across the country are gathering for a webinar to learn moreabout the false solution of biomass energy and its impact on public health. If you can’t make it in person, register here to attend this important webinar (note – the registration pageshows the event only in Eastern Time!). For those that can watch in person, doors open at 4:30pm, webinar begins at 5:00pm. Event at the Climate Justice Workshop (3639 N. Mississippi) and, if you can–bring snacks to share!

 

Action Night – Earth Day Was (and is) a Protest: Direct Action in the Trump 2.0 Era April 17th, 6:00-8:00pm.

 

 

This month’s Action Night will explore what taking action for the Earth has looked like over the past 50+ years since the first Earth Day and what we can do now in this time of growing government repression.  We’ll explore these questions with each other and attorneys Kenneth Kreusher, of the Oregon Justice Resource Center, and Brenna Bell of 350PDX. We’ll also share resources for taking more bold action!

 

Earth Day Celebration & Parade, April 26th, with Making Earth Cool, Bark, XRPDX, and Scrap!

Earth Day is for everybody! Come one and all, and let’s celebrate the beauty of our only home–Earth! Our wonderful planet provides all that we need. Through celebration and gratitude we remember our deep connection and relationship with the Earth. We will parade and we will sing and we want the city of Portland to join us! This is a free, family-friendly event with activities accessible to all ages and abilities to celebrate nature, and work toward a greener future for all.

Gathering at Sunnyside elementary begins at 11:00am, and the parade starts at 12:30pm.

A secular Earth Ceremony of rituals and songs to honor our beloved planet will take place same day at The Groves church at 7:00pm, followed by a cake potluck. More info for the Sunnyside event and Earth Ceremony found here.

350 Climate Justice Lobby Day – Tues, April 29,  8:45am – 1:30pm

Join 350PDX and 350 Eugene for an exciting day of talking to our legislators about climate justice issues in the 2025 Oregon Legislative Session! Lobby days are a great way to talk to your legislators face to face about issues you care about—in this case, climate justice—while seeing behind the scenes how change is made at the Capitol. Never lobbied before? Not to fear! We will start the day with a training, and you’ll be in meetings with folks from your district, equipped with talking points. Details and registration here!

Team News

 

Fossil Fuel Resistance Team

Last month was an exciting one for our team! On March 19, City Council voted 11-1 to pass the Zenith Accountability Resolution we’ve been fighting for! Many of our team stayed up until 11:00pm cheering on the results of the final vote. This was a big moment for our new form of government: it was the first resolution to come out of a Committee to then be voted on and passed by the full Council. This resolution passing means that there will be an investigation into Zenith Energy’s franchise agreement with the City of Portland, as well as an investigation into the City’s prior handlings of Zenith’s permits over the years. It’s time for the public to get some answers and for accountability to be taken. Thank you to all who’ve lobbied your Councilors for this resolution, who submitted written testimony, who showed up in person or watched virtually, and to the original co-sponsors of this resolution!

Thank you to all who showed up to our team’s film screening of ‘How to Blow Up a Pipeline,’ we nearly packed the Clinton Street Theater, and had a lively discussion afterwards!

Get involved: Our next team meeting is an exciting collaboration between us, SunrisePDX, and Breach Collective – a City Lobbying Training on Tuesday, April 8 at 7:00 pm at our 350PDX office. Let’s learn together how to work with City officials towards a Portland that works for all people. RSVP to Dineen if you’re able to make it: dineen@350pdx.org

Forest Defense Team

350PDX’s Ms. Bell goes to Washington

Our Forest Climate Manager, Brenna Bell, spent last week in Washington DC as a part of the Rachel Carson Council’s Week of Action against Biomass Energy. She joined almost 100 people from around the country – students, community leaders and advocates – to talk to Congress about the dangers of industrial biomass production.  Read more about her adventures to keep biomass energy exports out of the west coast, and the awesome people she met along the way!

Shade Equity Campaign: Urban Forestry is in the midst of rewriting the Urban Forest Plan, which provides the basis for an update of Title 11 (the tree code).  The code has received a lot of negative attention recently, and the Forest Defense team has been meeting with city councilors and spreading the word about the importance of a robust tree canopy. Public Comments about the Urban Forest Plan revision are due April 13th – more information here!

Connect with the Team: We meet every first and third Monday from 6-7:30pm, alternating in-person and virtual.  Contact brenna@350pdx.org, tyler@350pdx.org, or felice.kelly@gmail.com for more information.

 

Climate Policy Team

State Advocacy: Help us continue to move our 350PDX Climate Justice Priorities through the Oregon Legislative Session!

In addition to attending our lobby day, here are other ways to show up for climate justice during the legislative session:

• Make Polluters Pay (SB 1187) has a public hearing next week. Similar to bills that passed recently in Vermont and New York, it requires polluting industries to pay for the impacts of climate change—such as increased heat, drought, or intensified wildfires—on Oregon’s communities and infrastructure. Submit online testimony for Make Polluters Pay (SB 1187) here by April 7 at 8 am. Here’s a toolkit with sample testimony language to get you started! See the one-page info sheet.

• Attend Move Oregon Forward advocacy day on April 17 in Salem to speak up for a climate friendly transportation package. Register here!

• Mark your calendar for the Building Resilience coalition’s lobby day on May 7 in Salem, we’ll share more details soon.

• Many of our priority bills are in the hands of the Ways & Means Committee, which decides which things make it into the budget. The committee is doing a “roadshow” where they’re hearing from people around the state about their budget priorities…but none of them are in Portland. Never fear, you can attend the Salem event virtually and offer verbal testimony on April 16, or submit a written comment. See our list of bills in Ways & Means on our priorities page, and choose the ones that are most important to you to speak up about.

“Climate Coffee Chats” with city councilors

We’re setting up relatively informal meetings with city councilors and small groups of constituents from their district who care about climate and environmental justice. Our first one with Councilor Kanal on March 17 was a great success! If you’d like to join future events, please only sign up for ones in your own District. So far, we have the following events scheduled:

• District 1: Councilor Avalos, April 18, 6:00pm, register here if you are a D1 constituent and would like to attend; Councilor Dunphy, April 30, 5:00pm, register here if you are a D1 constituent and would like more info when it’s available

• District 2: Council President Pirtle-Guiney, still working on details, register here if you are a D2 constituent and want more info when it’s available

• District 3: Councilor Novick, April 11, 6:30pm, register here if you are a D3 constituent

• District 4: Councilor Green, April 23, 4:00pm, register here if you are a D4 constituent and would like to attend

 

Community Development

Some of the best things about building a movement are the rad collaborations we get to do with incredible groups and organizations throughout the city. This spring, 350PDX is collaborating on a project with art students at PNCA in Sarah Farahat’s course Theory & Practice: Art Matters! Collaboration in Community, bringing light to our Stop Zenith campaign. Our work will culminate in an immersive experience at PNCA’s first Thursday event on May 1st. Come and celebrate the powerful confluence of art praxis and climate justice!

Did you know the 350PDX Book Club is now meeting every month? We alternate between virtual and in-person meetings the first Wednesday of each month! Our May book is still TBD, but sign up here to get on the mailing list or check our website for updates on meeting times and book selections.

Attention: Foster-Powell neighborhood! A 350PDX volunteer has organized a Little Climate Actions event at the Holgate library, every

 Monday in April. The group will have a bill each week that folks can contact their legislators about in different mediums: write a postcard, send an email, or make a phone call. There will also be kid-friendly crafts and activities, so bring the whole family!

The Arts Team

At our artbuilds, the Arts Team continues to produce powerful images of climate justice and our Earth. The next Artbuild is Sunday, April 13, 12:00-4:00pm at 3639 N Mississippi. We’ll finish our puppets for the Earth Day parade on Saturday, April 26. On that day we’ll join with Make Earth Cool, BARK, and Sunnyside Environmental School at the Sunnyside Schoolyard near 3421 SE Salmon at 11:30am for the Earth Day parade. We’ll need 30 puppeteers then, can you be one of them? It’s fun and it delivers a strong message of climate justice that the audience enthusiastically responds to.

Reach out to Donna if you’re interested! Murph1949@aol.com

Volunteer Spotlight Joaquin Moore

Joaquin Moore is an artist, designer, and environmental advocate who seamlessly blends creativity with activism. With a background in graphic design dating back to 2016 and a B.S. in Environmental Science from Portland State University, Joaquin has always been passionate about using visual storytelling to drive change. They have been an active volunteer with organizations like Bark and the Mt. Tabor Weed Warriors for years, working to protect forests and restore urban green spaces. When they found the 350PDX Arts Team, they were drawn to the passionate community of artists using their skills to fight for climate justice.

Since joining 350PDX, Joaquin has contributed to several impactful projects, including the Ax Drax posters, the Climate Justice Voter Guide, and a variety of puppets, signs, and screen-printed designs for actions and campaigns. With experience as an Art Director, Graphic Designer, and GIS Specialist, his work brings together bold visuals and environmental advocacy, making complex issues more accessible and engaging. Whether through digital design or hands-on community art, Joaquin continues to use creativity as a tool for change. Check out Joaquin’s beautiful work here!

350 Washington County Team

Our next online meeting will take place online at 6:30pm on Tuesday, April 8. For the link, reach out to debbygactivism@gmail.com. We’ll share information on Washington County campaigns, as well as policy work we’ve been accomplishing in this busy legislative session.

We’re taking on a big new project to put on an Electrification and Sustainability Fair in Hillsboro in August; lots of planning is happening in partnership with the City of Hillsboro and with local allies. Our general activities include: connecting with the Beaverton and the Tigard Climate Action teams, stewarding our Pollinator Garden at Bagley Park in Hillsboro, and more! We always welcome newcomers to our events and to our monthly online meetings (6:30pm on the second Tuesday of the month). Please sign up HERE.

SW Neighborhood Team

The 350PDX Southwest Team includes neighborhoods on the south and west sides of Portland. We meet monthly on Zoom to plan for in-person actions, presentations, and discussions in our communities. Sign up on the 350PDX Volunteer Interest Form and indicate that you are interested in joining the group, or reach out to Pat at patk5@msn.com to learn more.

Here are some ways to get involved: (I) Participate in our monthly online planning meetings. Next meeting is Monday, April 21st at 6:30pm. (2) Sign up to distribute yard signs promoting Climate Action Now! at community events. (3) Join our weekly street corner demonstrations

Team members will be waving signs at SW Multnomah and SW 35th on Fridays at 4:00pm in April. Come join us, we have extra Climate Action signs to share!

Support 350PDX and local businesses during Earth Month!

We are lucky to partner with some of our favorite places in Portland during the month of April. Head to the following spots to eat, drink, or shop and your purchase will support small businesses in Portland as well as 350PDX!

 Radio Room – buy the “Earth to Emily” drink and 50% of proceeds will go to 350PDX – only during April! 

 Dove Vivi – 10% of pizza sales on Tuesdays go to 350PDX

 Annie Bloom’s Books – Mention 350PDX when you make a purchase on Earth Day (April 22) and we’ll get 15% of proceeds!

Thank you for reading our monthly newsletter, and for being part of the 350PDX community. Hope is a practice, and it will take each of us to get us through the current state of things. The climate justice movement needs support now more than ever. Donate to 350PDX today.

With gratitude,

Brenna, Cherice, Dineen, Irene, Jessica, Katie

The post April 2025 Updates and Events appeared first on 350PDX: Climate Justice.

The current administration continues with antics that cause millions to continue to wonder what is going on. But that doesn't stop our drive for our current bannering campaign.

A Western Downs farmer whose priority agricultural land-listed farm has been heavily impacted by coal seam gas-induced subsidence has lodged an urgent request for ministerial intervention against further nearby drilling by Arrow Energy. A summary of the complaint, which was sent to Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie, is available here.

Through our numerous online bannering workshops and resources from our website, we have shared our bannering materials and build process with 100s across the country.

Whether we’re cleaning the kitchen and bathroom or doing a load of laundry, no one wants to use products that could expose us to harmful chemicals—especially ones linked to cancer or that could affect our children’s ability to learn and grow.  Safer Choice: A certified win for consumers, businesses, and the environment The EPA’s Safer […]

The post EPA’s Safer Choice program is at risk—here’s why it’s worth fighting for appeared first on Toxic-Free Future.

In the first part of the program, author and Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund’s education director Ben Price joins the program to talk about his new book, Wouldn’t You Say, A Collection of Essays on Environment and Community. In the book and in our conversation, Ben explains that what we’re seeing today is not a perversion of the promise of America, it’s actually a proof of concept, a continuation of foundational ideologies never meant to protect we, the people, and certainly not to protect the ecosystems of which we are a part. Ben discusses rights of nature not as a legal north star but as a need to shift our thinking about relationships, between ourselves, the law, and empirical reality. Next up, Dr. Kim Wilson and Maya Schenwar join the show to discuss the book which they co-edited, We Grow the World Together: Parenting Toward Abolition. Maya and Kim discuss this multi-generational project which also combines voices from the inside and outside, highlighting the contrasts and connections between the carceral systems of literal and figurative cages, and how prisons are and have been the canaries in the coal mine for the restrictions on our basic rights. They discuss abolition as a tearing down but perhaps even more so of a building up, how kids are integral to the creative imagination necessary for building new worlds, and the emergent possibilities outside of our current death-making system.

Watch Interview with Ben Price Here LISTEN TO THE FULL SHOW HERE Order “Wouldn’t You Say?” Here!

The post Project Censored: Conversations on Environmental Justice, Abolition, and the Future We Build appeared first on CELDF.

By Simon Pirani. First published on Monday in the London Evening Standard The Silvertown tunnel, which opened to traffic on Monday, drives London backwards. The extra HGVs and cars it brings to east and south-east London will exacerbate air pollution, and undermine efforts to deal with climate change. The tunnel reinforces London’s motor-traffic-centred transport system, when […]

Discrimination persists within global newsrooms. We must support historically marginalised voices to challenge the status quo, says Jeevan Sangha

The post Why mentorship matters in journalism appeared first on Red Pepper.

TORONTO — As Canada moves forward with plans to build millions of new homes, the carbon emissions associated with the materials that make up houses and other major infrastructure are substantial. But a new Clean Energy Canada report released today finds that building with lower-carbon materials and methods doesn’t need to make housing more expensive—and even has the added benefit of supporting Canadian industries at a time of high tariffs and trade tension.

Manufacturing the construction materials that make up our buildings, from the concrete foundations to the drywall, creates significant carbon pollution. Meeting the previous federal government’s housing plan (which would support nearly four million houses by 2030) was expected to generate the equivalent of more than a year’s worth of Canada’s total emissions by 2030.

Thankfully there are a number of cleaner material options, many of which are made in Canada, from steel produced in Electric Arc Furnaces to low-carbon concrete mixes. This report looks at the price of using these cleaner products, finding that lower-carbon equivalents are available in Canada at the same cost or for a negligible cost premium across almost all building materials and case studies explored. 

In a world where the U.S. is an increasingly unreliable trading partner, choosing these lower-carbon materials can help scale up domestic industries, enabling them to become more competitive exporters to other global jurisdictions, like the EU, that are seeking low-carbon products. 

There is one key way to help set up these industries for success, the report argues: “Buy Clean” policies, where governments require that cleaner materials are used in public construction projects. By using this approach in public procurement policy, Canada could avoid up to 4 million tonnes of emissions by 2030 (the equivalent of 850,000 cars). Such a policy can offer a trade-compliant route to supporting Canadian industries at a time of tariffs and uncertainty. 

Head to the report for more on why building clean homes and infrastructure doesn’t need to cost the earth.

KEY FACTS

• Material emissions savings of up to 32% for concrete, 100% for structural steel, 53% for rebar, 55% for drywall, and 98% for insulation were identified at no or negligible cost increases in the case study analysis.
• More efficient design of buildings can already reduce both cost and carbon by reducing the quantity of construction materials needed. Simplifying or streamlining building designs can also speed up construction. 
• The federal government has adopted policies requiring concrete and steel used in federally procured projects to be lower-carbon. Major construction projects funded by the federal government also require emissions reduction of 30% across the whole project. 
• With building operations such as heating and cooling getting electrified, the emissions from construction will make up a larger share. The embodied emissions of an efficient electrically heated building can make up as much as 93% of the building’s cumulative emissions impact by 2050.

RESOURCES

Report | Building Toward Low Cost and Carbon

Report | Building Success: Implementing Effective Buy Clean Policies

Report | Money Talks

The post As Canada builds more homes, cleaner materials won’t cost more—and would benefit domestic industries: report appeared first on Clean Energy Canada.

The post A LANDWORKERS’ ALLIANCE LAND USE VISION FOR AGROECOLOGY AND FOOD SOVEREIGNTY appeared first on Landworkers Alliance.