Category Archives: ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Congress ACTION ALERT! Support a Level Playing Field for Clean Energy


Union of Concerned Scientists

Urge Congress to support tax benefits that will unleash the power of private investment to make renewable energy even more competitive and create clean energy jobs.

Level the Playing Field for Renewable Energy

It is time for Congress to unlock billions of dollars of low-cost financing for clean energy by allowing renewables to be eligible for an important tax benefit that the oil, natural gas, and coal industries have had for decades.

A few months back, we wrote to ask for your support in leveling the playing field for clean energy. More than 27,000 UCS supporters like you responded by sending messages to Congress. Policy makers heard you and took action, adding their names as co-sponsors to bipartisan legislation that will give renewable energy access to the low-cost financing available to the fossil fuel industries. Now, the lead co-sponsor of the bill is asking for your help once again.
Urge Congress today to support a level playing field for clean energy.
Renewable energy has long been denied access to certain tax benefits and low-cost financing made available to the fossil fuel industry for decades. Bipartisan legislation now before the U.S. House and Senate will finally give renewable energy projects access—unlocking billions of dollars of low-cost financing for clean energy.
Let’s make sure Congress does not fail to seize this opportunity to ensure renewables compete on more even ground with fossil fuels. This should be a clean energy bill Congress can agree on.
Take Action Today!

Sincerely, Megan Rising Megan Rising Energy Campaign Manager Climate & Energy Program Union of Concerned Scientists

“The Amazon is not for sale!”


Amazon Watch
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Patricia Gualinga, fearless Kichwa leader
Patricia Gualinga, fearless Kichwa leader 

Last week we introduced you to Patricia Gualinga, a dear friend and fierce warrior from the Kichwa community of Sarayaku. For as long as I can remember she’s been on the frontlines, relentlessly defending her community and the Ecuadorian Amazon from oil development. Recently she has taken this fearless leadership to a whole new level.

I’ve worked with Patricia, her heroic family and the Sarayaku community since 2002 and can attest that they are some of the most inspiring, courageous people that I have ever met. Against all odds, they continue to fight…and win! But with new threats on the horizon, the battle for the Amazon can seem unrelenting.

Tomorrow is the final deadline for companies to bid in the Ecuadorian government‘s 11th Round oil auction, which threatens over 6.5 million acres of primary rainforest and indigenous territory. Another 1.5 million acres nearby and much of Yasuni National Park are also on the chopping block. This attack on such a vast swath of forest has mobilized indigenous communities, including Sarayaku, in defense of their rights and for all life. Communities are gathering in Quito this week, and tomorrow Patricia will join hundreds of indigenous representatives and their allies to protest this attempted sale of the Amazon at the Ministry of Hydrocarbons.

“Following the historic Amazonian Women’s Mobilization for Life (which Patricia helped lead), we are traveling to Quito to ensure our voices are heard,” she told me by phone last night. “We will not sit back as our government tries to sell our land—the Amazon is not for sale. I’m running for local office and am committed to building the indigenous woman’s movement in the Amazon. We will continue to mobilize and we need your support!”

This is a dynamic, commanding woman who radiates a passion and integrity that is contagious. In Sarayaku, she’s a treasure member of the community. In Puyo, she’s an indigenous leader running for office. At Amazon Watch, she’s Paty, our longstanding partner and a constant inspiration to our team. Around the world, she’s a powerful spokeswoman for indigenous rights, women’s rights and all life in the Amazon and on this planet that we share.

Patricia and her allies like Amazon Watch will continue to mobilize, but we need your support. Thank you for being a champion for Patricia as she defends indigenous territory and helps build an unprecedented movement in women’s leadership across the Amazon!

With deep gratitude for your support,

Leila Salazar-López
Leila Salazar-López
Program Director

We Desperately Need Your Help!


virginiaplantation's avatarBelle Grove Plantation Bed and Breakfast

VCA Announcement

The Virginia Center for Architecture selected us as one of 250 works of architecture in the Commonwealth of Virginia that they felt best represented Virginia’s rich architectural heritage.

The structures featured were nominated by architects throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia as they look toward the 100th anniversary of the Virginia Society of the American Institute of Architects in 2014.  They ask that you choose your favorites based on design, innovation, history, or the spirit of your community and Virginia. More importantly, select structures that hold a special place in your heart and mind.

Once the votes are tallied, the Virginia Center for Architecture will announce the top 100 structures — Virginia’s Favorite Architecture. These favorites will be featured in an exhibition at the Center opening on April 10, 2014.

 The poll can be found at http://vacelebrates.org/?p=334 and will run through Friday, December 20, 2013.

Ext View of Porch of left wing from ground

We are up against some serious competition!

We desperately…

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your doctor – and your boss?


 

Democrats

 

STAND With WOMEN

One of the biggest benefits of Obamacare is that being a woman is no longer a pre-existing condition. In fact, insurance companies are now required to cover preventive services, including birth control, at no additional cost.
But that might be about to change.

More than 40 for-profit companies, most of which are owned by men, are suing to deny their employees’ access to birth control without a copay. Republicans opposed to the Affordable Care Act are arguing that women’s bosses should have a say in their personal health decisions. This is an extreme move that could undermine a core tenet of Obamacare and compromise women’s health.

In 2012, millions of Americans had the opportunity to vote for a Republican presidential candidate who supported those companies’ position. (You might remember how that one turned out.) But today’s news shows that this fight is far from over — and that we can’t let up.
Add your name to make sure a woman’s health care decision stays between her and her doctor — not her boss.

The Supreme Court just announced that they’re going to hear this case. And if the Court rules in favor of the companies, then it could be up to employers to decide whether or not the women who work for them will have free access to birth control.

We’ve made great progress in fixing our broken health care system by guaranteeing women access to preventive care, and we can’t go back.
Speak out in favor of a woman’s right to make her own health care decisions:
http://my.democrats.org/Stand-with-Women

Thanks,

Lily
Lily Adams
Deputy Communications Director
Democratic National Committee