The Step It Up website will remain online as a memorial to all the incredible movement activity and success in 2007.  Yet the Step It Up blog is coming to a close.  In no way does that mean, however, that the movement is closing up shop.  On the contrary -- the movement, and the blog along with it, is going global.  Visit 350.org to check out what's emerging in the global grassroots movement to fight global warming.

For more blogging action regarding grassroots climate action in the US visit 1sky.org and itsgettinghotinhere.org.

In honor of the 1 year anniversary of our National Day of Climate Action, here is the e-mail that we sent to Step It Up supporters:

Dear Friends,

For hard-boiled political organizers, we�re basically nostalgic sentimentalists at heart, and so this week we�re thinking back with great fondness to last April 14, and the 1,400 demonstrations and rallies and events that you organized in all 50 states for the Step It Up National Day of Climate Action It was an awfully sweet day, with powerful results�not only was an urgent call to action issued from every corner of the country, but now it�s not uncommon to hear Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama echo your call for 80% Carbon Cuts by 2050.

And yet global warming continues, so we wanted to bring you up to date with where we are and let you in on the ground floor of our new effort:

* Step It Up has, as you know, joined with lots of other grassroots organizers across the country to form 1Sky.org, which is picking up real speed as one of the centers of the American fight against climate change. Please help them with their efforts�they report that former Step It Up organizers around the country took the lead in a series of 500 visits to Congressional offices earlier this spring. We think that with their leadership we�re very much on track to see significant climate change legislation as soon as President Bush leaves office

* Meanwhile, the science around climate change has continued to darken. We all watched the Arctic melt last summer, and an ice shelf the size of Connecticut crumple in the southern ocean this winter. James Hansen, our foremost climatologist, has just issued the most important scientific assessment of global warming in many years, which you can read here. Basically, it calls for limiting carbon concentrations in the atmosphere to below 350 parts per million. In fact, Hansen says: �If humanity wishes to preserve a planet similar to that on which civilization developed and to which life on Earth is adapted, paleoclimate evidence and ongoing climate change suggest that CO2 will need to be reduced from its current 385 ppm to at most 350 ppm.�

* Therefore, our organizing team is launching a new venture: 350.org. The final website won�t be ready for a few weeks, but since you�re family we�re letting you know now. In fact, we hope very much that you�ll visit the preliminary website that we�ve set up and start figuring out how to help.

Here�s our goal: We want to take this number, 350, and spread it all over the world.(more�)

350 is starting to make the news already. The USA�s top climatologist Jim Hansen was on the front page of the Guardian for his proclamation that 350 is humanity�s target.  Check it out below:

Climate target is not radical enough - Study Says
Nasa scientist warns the world must urgently make huge CO2 reductions

Monday April 7 2008

One of the world�s leading climate scientists warns today that the EU and its international partners must urgently rethink targets for cutting carbon dioxide in the atmosphere because of fears they have grossly underestimated the scale of the problem.

In a startling reappraisal of the threat, James Hansen, head of the Nasa Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York, calls for a sharp reduction in C02 limits.

Hansen says the EU target of 550 parts per million of C02 - the most stringent in the world - should be slashed to 350ppm. He argues the cut is needed if �humanity wishes to preserve a planet similar to that on which civilisation developed�. A final version of the paper Hansen co-authored with eight other climate scientists, is posted today on the Archive website. Instead of using theoretical models to estimate the sensitivity of the climate, his team turned to evidence from the Earth�s history, which they say gives a much more accurate picture.

Click here to read the full article. 

Click here to find out more about 350.org is responding to this scientific news. 

For more on what 350.org is, visit the new beta website: www.350.org.  The gist of it is that we're going global, and we need your help on several fronts.  Funding is one of them...

Pulling off an international campaign won�t be easy, and will require a little bit of capital to give it a jumpstart. With your help, we can build a global team of translators, organizers, and storytellers to drive our message home.

To donate, please click here to make a donation to our fiscal sponsor, the Sustainable Markets Foundation.  And after you do, shoot us an e-mail and tell us why you chose to stimulate the movement.  That way we can thank you properly and (with your permission) share your story with the Project 350 network.

This weekend, I watched a new movement developing right in front of my eyes.  As I scanned the faces around me in the plenary room at the Memphis Cook Convention Center, it was impossible to not feel a sense of excitement.  We were emerging as a powerful new force for progressive change, one committed to the principle of "Green for All."

Over 1,000 people, myself included, gathered in Memphis for the Dream Reborn conference this weekend to stand upon the shoulders of giants and create a vision for a just and sustainable future.  We gathered in the city where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was shot, on the 40th anniversary of his assassination, to pick up the torch of his legacy of economic justice and carry it in a new direction for a new generation.  As we face the social crisis of poverty and the environmental crisis of global warming, are there solutions in sight?  The Dream Reborn sought to explore this question � and the answer was an unequivocal "YES!"

Click here to continue reading on the 1Sky.org blog.

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�

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

(Taken from the 1Sky blog)

On April 4-6 in Memphis, Tennessee, 1Sky�s allies in Green For All are hosting "The Dream Reborn," a national conference bringing together community, nonprofit, business, and student leaders from across the nation.  Together we will commemorate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King on the 40th anniversary of his assassination and celebrate a new generation of visionary leaders.  By bringing together green-collar practitioners and advocates, we will exchange our best models and ideas, and we will provide a forum for learning about the new green economy in the spirit of Dr. King�s dream for racial and economic justice.

This gathering has the potential to be a landmark moment in this new movement�with only five weeks to go, Green for All needs your help!

Here�s what you can do:

1) Register!

We expect this conference to fill up fast�go to http://greenreg.com/TheDreamReborn to get started. Also get your hotel room TODAY! Memphis will be packed on this historic weekend, and hotel rooms are going fast. On our website are the last hotel blocks available in downtown Memphis, but you must sign up no later than March 13th.

2) Spread the Word!

Everyone is welcome to register! Please note that in order to create an equitable green economy movement, Green for All is committed to prioritizing participation from working class communities of color. With that goal in mind, please contact your lists, show your friends the website, and do everything you can to get great people to The Dream Reborn.

3) Sponsor a Community Leader

1Sky and Green for All understand that working class people of color are the heart and soul of this movement.  Amazing people are coming to the Dream Reborn: trainers, policymakers, practitioners, entertainers, scholars, activists, and mentors of every kind. It�s vital that we can bring community leaders and youth of color to Memphis to make the most of this incredible gathering.  Yet too often, local nonprofits, community activists, and youth don�t have the resources to pay for travel, lodging, and registration.  If you can spare anything to sponsor one of these community leader to come to the Dream Reborn, please lend your support.  Green for

All will link you up directly with the people you�re sponsoring, so you can hear about the difference you�re making.

In Memphis, we have the potential to create something incredible: the launch of an unstoppable movement dedicated to fighting poverty and pollution at the same time.  In whatever way you can, please join 1sky in working with Green for All to envision and create a green energy economy!

Click here to continue reading updates since Bali.

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 Nation on 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.

Click here to continue reading updates since Bali...

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.

Most of our crew is still here at the UN climate talks in Bali -- trying to carry the message that the US climate movement -- Step It Up, Power Shift, and countless more -- want to see bold, positive action before countries disperse tomorrow.  To convey that message, there have already been a series of energized events and actions taking place inside and surrounding the conference here in Bali.

Every day of the conference there have been youth actions directly engaging conference negotiators inside the UN compound.  And the youth, along with CAN International and Avaaz.org, have helped orchestrate the fossil awards of the day -- a dynamic presentation of what countries are doing the worst acts each day.

Furthermore, on Saturday, December 8th, local Balinese NGOs helped pull together a few thousand people taking to the streets as part of the international day of action on climate change.  Then on Sunday our crew helped aerial artist John Quigley gather a crowd to form a giant Earth being washed away, and the text ACT NOW (above).

And with just 1 day left of the UN conference the urgent call to ACT NOW is that much more relevant.  The countries assembled still have a long ways to go to establish a strong "Bali Roadmap" (as it's referred to here) for the next phase of international agreements to address climate change (to replace Kyoto).  So we need your help to send the message that Americans support bold action, despite the disruptive role our government is playing...

Click here to sign a petition (and enter your postcode as 1sky in order to signify your connection to Step It Up and the 1sky campaign -- www.1sky.org -- if you so choose). 

Our team will be joining numerous groups from around the world to deliver the names on numerous petitions to the international delegates on their final day here.  Please sign today.

You can also click here to sign Al Gore's petition in support of his participation here in Bali.  (And once we've all signed these petitions, let's get back to action organizing).

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 landfall 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!

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 

Our friend Rev. Fred Small has been on the front lines of the climate change struggle for years. Last week, he gave this sermon about the historic weekend of November 3rd, expressing the hope he feels for the next chapters of this rapidly growing movement. We thought you all might enjoy it...

The New Youth Climate Movement
A sermon by Rev. Fred Small
First Church Unitarian, Littleton, MA
November 11, 2007

"And now abide faith, hope, and love, these three; but the greatest of these is love."

So wrote Paul the Apostle to close the thirteenth chapter of his famed letter to the Christian community at Corinth. It's still my favorite passage in the Bible, no matter no how many weddings I hear it at. Love is the most important thing, the one essential thing, the most powerful force, I believe, in the universe.

And that's a good thing, because my faith and hope have been taking quite a beating lately. If faith demands confidence in the outcome and hope optimism, then global warming can really do a number on faith and hope.

With accelerating certainty and alarm, the scientists are telling us we're in for some very rocky times, our children even more so.

It's really nice that Al Gore won the Oscar and the Nobel Peace Prize, but in the nearly two years since An Inconvenient Truth premiered, the United States government has done precisely nothing to stop global warming. Instead of inspiring international cooperation to change how we produce and use energy, the melting of the North Pole has incited an international race to see who can exploit its resources the fastest.

As Lily Tomlin likes to say, "Things are going to get worse before they get even worse."

So I'm relieved and a little astonished by the news I bring you this morning. News of love, yes, always, but news as well of faith and hope, even in the same breath as global warming.

Last weekend I joined nearly six thousand young people at Power Shift2007, the first national youth summit to address the climate crisis. One of a handful of middle-aged and elder guests, I sat on a panel on"Faith and Climate" and presented two workshops, "Spiritual Practicein Sustaining Activism" and "Songs and Song-leading for Activists." I felt honored to have been invited, but I felt awed to be in the presence of these dedicated young people as they come into their power, and not a moment too soon.

The new youth climate movement is big, it's diverse, it's savvy, and it's determined.

These young people know they're the first generation ever to inherit a habitat globally damaged by their parents, and frankly they're not thrilled about it. They're not going to settle for political lip service or corporate green washing. These kids are dead serious, they're wicked smart, and they're fired up.

Thousands of teenagers, college students, and twenty-somethingsstreamed to the University of Maryland campus for Power Shift. They came from all fifty states, 300 congressional districts, and more than twenty countries. For three days they listened to speakers like Nancy Pelosi, Ed Markey, Bill McKibben, Winona LaDuke, George Lakoff, and Van Jones, as well as their own youth leaders. They attended panels on environmental justice, human rights, alternative energy, green jobs, communications, lobbying, and voter registration. They jammed classrooms for workshops with titles like "Strategic Tools for Movement Building," "Non-Violent Direct Action 101," "History & Principles of Environmental Justice," "Ecofeminism," "Wind Power on Campus", "Digital Organizing," "How to Be the most Persuasive Person in the Room," and "Preparing for Bali: Effective Youth Engagement in Global Negotiations."

The young people I encountered struck me as idealistic, pragmatic, and eager to learn.

Christians, Jews, and Muslims attending the "Faith and Climate" panel sought scriptural and religious grounding for climate stewardship. Others less religious were curious how faith might support and inform activism. A number were delighted to be introduced to Unitarian Universalism. At the workshop I led on spiritual practice, participants were looking for practical tools to sustain their commitment and avoid burnout. My workshop on songs and songleading, attended by over thirty singers, reviewed the powerful impact of singing in movements past and shared tricks of the trade. Misreading the schedule, I arrived ten minutes late to find the room already filled with song. They were teaching each other!

Power Shift was far and away the most racially diverse environmental gathering I've ever witnessed. Sure, white folks were in the majority, but people of color were everywhere�in the seats, on staff, as presenters, as performing artists, and as keynote speakers. African-American teenagers sported t-shirts emblazoned with the words "Green the Ghetto." Rev. Lennox Yearwood Jr. President of the Hip Hop Caucus, fulminated against global warming like a Baptist preacher denouncing fornication. One African-American hip hop artist rhapsodized on "the energy between God, Mother Earth, and me"; another linked polar bears, the evacuees of New Orleans, and detainees at Guantanamo.

Faith Gemmill of the Gwich'in people of Alaska told us of the Porcupine River Caribou Herd, upon which the Gwich'in have depended for subsistence since the dawn of time. Each spring, the caribou cross the frozen Porcupine River to reach their calving grounds in the north. But in 2000, the river thawed early, blocking their migration. The pregnant caribou dropped their calves on the southern bank, but instinct demanded they reach the safe haven of their calving grounds or perish. The mothers plunged into the swollen river, calling their calves to follow. 45,000 calves drowned.

Majora Carter, Executive Director of Sustainable South Bronx, told us global warming is an issue transcending race. "Don't all people want beauty in their lives?" she asked. "Don't we want all of our people to be happy, healthy, and productive people? Everybody needs someone to love, something to do, and something to look forward to. If people don't feel that their life is contributing to something, they feel isolated, angry, and alone. Don't we all want to be part of a larger movement to improve the society we share?"

The United States, she lamented, represents just 5% of the world's population, but 25% of the world's greenhouse emissions�and 25% of the world's incarcerated. Her voice broke as she spoke of one in three African-American men facing imprisonment in their lifetime. "I am tired of looking at my brothers and sisters and praying they beat the odds. I am tired of thinking, 'Which one is going to be doing time because of opportunities denied?'" She led thousands of us in a chant: "Green jobs, not jails! Green jobs, not jails!" "I need to hear you say it," she entreated, and who could deny her?

With so many voters in one place, it didn't take long for politicians to come calling. Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Congressman Ed Markey both appeared unscheduled Saturday night on the main stage.

Congressman Markey spoke first. In full-throated Ted-Kennedy-style rhetoric, he had the crowd cheering his call for youth to lead in against global warming. They cheered again when he called for legislation to increase fuel economy and support renewable energy. But when he boasted the bill would reduce global warming pollution by 40%,the cheers turned into a chant: "We want more! We want more! We want more!" and then "80 by 50! 80 by 50! 80 by 50!" meaning 80% reduction in greenhouse emissions by 2050, which is what the scientists say we'll need to stop global warming. It seemed to me a pretty sophisticated chant for five thousand kids.

Congressman Markey, figuring if he couldn't beat 'em, he'd better join 'em, led a brief chant of "Hey, Hey, What do you say? Global warming stops today!" and swiftly surrendered the stage to Nancy Pelosi.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives immediately endorsed 80%by 2050. She compared the assembled youth to the "magnificent disrupters" who founded the United States of America. The crowd responded positively, although I noticed one young man standing silently throughout her speech holding aloft a human spine (whether real or replica, I couldn't tell) as if in offering.

Later that evening, Bill McKibben, at age 46 the grand old man and reluctant rock star of the climate movement, ascended the stage flanked by the shock troops of the Step It Up campaign a generation younger. "I got to tell you what you guys look like out there," McKibben began, leaning his gangly frame into the microphone. "You look like a movement... This is the next great movement on this planet, and we better get it right or it will be the last great movement on this planet. You can't just change your campus, you've got to change your world. My colleagues behind me in Step It Up have organized 2000 demonstrations in all fifty states of this country. You can see the impact of all this organizing tonight. A year ago 80 by 50 was a radical idea, and tonight the most powerful person in the US Congress was leading a chant with those numbers. In twenty years of working on this, in twenty years of fearing on this, tonight's the most hopeful I've ever been."

On Monday, thousands of young people energized by the conference and trained in lobbying descended on the Capitol, rallied on the steps, and visited hundreds of lawmakers. Many wore green hard hats to dramatize their demand for green jobs, They crammed the hearing of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming(chaired by Congressman Markey).

Among those testifying was Billy Parish, founder of Energy Action, which organized Power Shift. At 26, Billy is now an elder statesman of the youth climate movement. "In four months I will be a father," he told the panel. "I urge you to consider what we say, not as politicians, but as fathers, mothers, brothers, and sisters. This is our future. . . . We will solve this [crisis], but we cannot do it without you. And if you do not join us, then find yourself another job. We are in the millions, and we are organizing. We put you in office and we will take you out of office. This is our lives at stake."

When Billy Parish says we solve this crisis, he doesn't know when or at what cost. He doesn't know how much damage already will have been inflicted on our precious earth. He doesn't know how much suffering we will endure before we learn the lesson of ecological and spiritual interdependence.

Neither do I.

In my spiritual practice workshop, I reminded the young people that Mahatma Gandhi had persisted in more than a half-century of devoted activism by heeding the counsel of the Bhagavad Gita: "Action alone is in your control. It never extends to the fruits. Be not attached to the fruits of action nor be attached to inaction."

Who knows what the future holds? Maybe the skeptics are right, and global warming will turn out to be vastly overestimated. Wouldn't that be relief? Or maybe we're already doomed and just don't know it. All we can do is act with courage and integrity on the best knowledge we have.

"As for prophecies, they will come to an end. As for tongues, they will cease. As for knowledge, it will come to an end." Only love never ends.

But like Bill McKibben, in the glow of Power Shift I find myself strangely hopeful. Thousands of young people are taking the information, skills, and contagious energy of Power Shift back to their schools, colleges, and communities, and the movement will multiply. However dire the threats we face, as these young people take up the watch, the earth is in good hands.

The day after Power Shift 2007, a second-year student at New College of Florida named Amy Ortiz posted a blog on itsgettinghotinhere.org, an online forum of the youth climate movement. She captures the spirit of this movement far better than I ever could.

"The whole experience at Power Shift 2007," Amy writes, "was one of such incredible joy and optimism. Unlike most experiences I have had with climate change focused events, it didn't feel like we were facing incredible, insurmountable odds. Instead, I felt empowered, inspired and activated. This weekend, I realized more than ever before, that we CAN do it, and we WILL do it. As youth, we have the vision, passion and inspiration to lead our country towards the just, clean energy future we all dream of."

We've said it before, but it doesn't hurt repeating: this movement needs to keep on moving.  Not only that, while we're busy making sure the United States addresses solutions like the 1Sky plan, we need to make sure we're engaging with the climate movement globally as well. 

That's why it's good to know that momentum is building both here and abroad for the December 8th international day of action on climate change -- taking place during the United Nations climate negotiations in Bali.�

Globally there are already groups in over 75 countries gearing up for action.  And here in the US not only are there dozens of groups planning polar bear plunges there are also many groups joining the effort being coordinated by the climate crisis coalition.  Visit their website to learn more and get involved: ��www.climatecrisiscoaltion.org.

This weekend, leaders of all stripes confronted Congress and let them know it's time for leadership at the federal level on global warming. Many of these leaders were all of you, who organized and participated in rallies in your hometowns, who invited your Congressmen to join you there, and tell you how they will be a leader on global warming and address the boldest plans out there. While you were rallying at home, 6,000 students rallied in Washington, D.C. and met with their members of Congress to lobby the on the 1 Sky priorities.

The third prong of last weekend's onslaught on Congress was the last event at the Mayor's Climate Protection Summit in Seattle.  Mayor Bloomberg of NYC, Mayor Diaz of Miami, Mayor Nickels of Seattle, and Mayor Palmer of Trenton, NJ all were witnesses in a field hearing for the House global warming committee.  According to Grist blogger David Roberts, "Committee hearings tend to be pretty staid affairs, but some sparks flew at this one".  After easily debunking the common arguments such as "addressing global warming would drive jobs overseas and hurt the economy", or "what about China and India?", the mayors in attendance drove the point home that they have stepped up in their cities and towns, and now need a federal partner on the issue.  You can read more about the hearing on the Grist, here.

Students, citizens, mayors...who else does Congress need to hear from to know this is a priority issue?�

December 8 is right around the corner.  Check out this video of Peter Seeger gearing up for the international day of action on climate� change:��

Former Delaware Congressman Thomas B. Evans, Jr. (R) surrounded by a group of local children at the wind power rally in Rehoboth Beach.

From time to time we feel compelled to spotlight certain local struggles and initiatives. Sometimes, a challenge comes to our attention that seems like critical leverage points in the fight for a clean energy future.  The wind project in Rehbooth, Delaware is one such case.  Energized by a highly successful action on November 3rd, local organizer Marc Weiss is focusing on mobilizing those in and beyond his community of Rehbooth to support an offshore wind project.  In this guest blog, check out Marc's call to action below--and let's stand in solidarity with Marc for clean power!

 

Delaware can become the first state t�o build offshore wind power.

Opponents of wind energy want to stop the Bluewater Wind project.

Tell our State Government we want them to complete the agreement and make wind power a reality now in Delaware.

Here�s why we need wind power in Delaware:

The Bluewater offshore wind power project will produce 13 percent of Delaware�s electricity.  This energy is clean, safe, independent, non-polluting, non-greenhouse gas emitting, economically stable, cost-efficient, and very dependable over the long-term.  Generating offshore wind energy will help prevent the tragedy of global warming and keep our coastal areas from being flooded and destroyed. We won�t need to go to war or pay $90 per barrel for wind power.  It will save Delaware citizens $750 million on health care costs currently caused by air pollution from burning fossils fuels.

Send a letter, email, or fax to the following state agencies before November 13. Tell them to keep negotiating with Bluewater Wind until they close the deal:

Delaware Public Service Commission
Arnetta McRae, Chair
861 Silver Lake Boulevard
Cannon Building, Suite 100
Dover, DE 19904
Fax: (302) 739-4849
Email: [email protected]

Controller General�s Office
Russell T. Larson, Controller General
P.O. Box 1401
Legislative Hall
Dover, DE 19903
Fax: (302) 739-3794
Email: [email protected]

Office of Management and Budget
Jennifer W. Davis, Director
Haslet Armory, Third Floor
122 William Penn Street
Dover, DE 19901
Fax: (302) 739-5861
Email: [email protected]

Department of Natural Resources
John Hughes, Secretary
89 Kings Highway
Dover, DE 19901
Fax: (302) 739-6242
Email: [email protected]

Check out yet another video from this past weekend. On Saturday night, November 3, the Step It Up crew and Bill McKibben addressed a crowd of more than 6000 students. They came to Washington DC a�s part of the Powershift conference on climate change, and rallied all weekend for the 1Sky solutions. On Monday, they delivered your photos from Step It Up events all across the country to your members of congress. Lets keep this movement united, diverse and movin�g forward!

�

There are hundreds of great actions from Saturday to be highlighting, but we couldn't help spotlighting this great video put together by our organizing friends back in Burlington, VT:
��Not only that, but as our crew along with the thousands of students taking part in Powershift  2007 �delivered Step It Up photos to Congress, we stopped in to talk with Congressman Peter Welch, and he decided to join in the Green Finger Video Project with this new clip:�

The energy and optimism that you helped create on Nov 3 at Step It Up events throughout the country is only growing. The Step It Up team has spent the last 24 hours in Washington, D.C. taking part in Power Shift 2007 and printing out thousands of photographs of Step It Up actions that will be hand delivered to Congress tomorrow when thousands of students lobby for global warming solutions.

Check out the latest video from the Power Shift 2007 stude�nt conference. And click here to take action and support the students who will be lobbying in Congress tomorrow:

These have been an historic few days for the growing movement pushing for climate solutions and a just, clean energy economy. Yesterday, hundreds and hundreds of actions took place around the country. You showed your leadership in a thousand different ways - whether organizing an action, attending a rally, or taking the time to invite your politicians to come out to Step It Up events around the country.

We are still giddy watching the hundreds of photos coming in from coast to coast. Whether it's a photo of high-school students in Berkeley, California holding a banner with the three 1 Sky priorities or a picture from a town meeting with their member of Congress in Maine, we exercised democracy this weekend and it looked amazing. For too long, the debate over global warming has stayed in Washington and remained the territory of energy companies, corporate lobbyists, and other vested interests. You helped bring it out of the halls of Congress and into city parks, streets, and meeting halls in our communities. 

And your voice hasn't gone unheard. Over 80 members of Congress took part in yesterday's events. Tomorrow, we're building on that accomplishment. 

Right now, I'm blogging from Power Shift 07, surrounded by thousands of students who are taking part in the first ever national youth summit on global warming. There's an incredible feeling here. Preparations are under way for the largest lobby day in global warming in our country's history. The coal and oil companies may have millions of dollars, but we have thousands of students who will be carrying photos from Step It Up actions around the country. Tomorrow, they'll meet with their Representatives, legislative aids, and other movers and shakers on the hill and demand that Congress enact the 1 Sky solutions: cutting carbon 80% by 2050, creating 5 million new green jobs, and declaring a moratorium on new coal fired power plants.

The weekend isn't over yet and we have already accomplished so much thanks to all of your help. You know us though, we're always asking for more . . . so if you've got a little more inspiration and fire after watching the pictures on our slide-show of Step It Up actions, click here to learn how you can play a key role in supporting the students in the Capitol tomorrow. It's going to be a historic day and we want you to be a part of it.

A new day is here, and we have much reason to celebrate.�

We couldn't have imagined a better day yesterday -- this is a� real movement we're seeing emerge.  What a joy seeing hundreds of action photos and reports streaming in on the website -- and more are sure to come it today as well. 

If you haven't submitted photos or videos from your action, please do so right away.  Click here.

Though a little rest is extremely appealing right now, we're also immensely energized by all the actions that took place yesterday and our experience of sharing the incoming photos with the thousands of students that converged at the University of Maryland for Powershift (www.powershift2007.org).  So we're going to be spending today printing out all the photos from your actions and getting them in the hands of the young people at Powershift.  And tomorrow they'll be helping us deliver all these photos directly to members of Congress. �

Be sure to add your voice of support by calling in.  Click here for more details about Monday's call-in.

Thanks to everyone for helping make Nov 3rd such a great success.  Stay tuned for more coverage and updates from yesterdays action.  You won't believe the energy from the speakers and crowd at the Powershift event last night -- video coming soon.

Friends,

I'm writing from backstage at Cole Memorial Field House on the campus of the University of Maryland. There are five thousand college kids out in the stands, cheering lustily at one speaker after another--it's an amazing scene, something we couldn't have even imagined a year or two ago.

But the real scene for us is on the computer screen, where we've be�en watching pictures flash in from StepItUp actions all across the country. From the gale-lashed shores of Cape Cod to the sunny mid-west and the sunnier still California coast, we've been amazed by what you've accomplished. This is too much fun--we can't thank you all enough.

We're about to go on stage and share your successes with the nation. Rest satisfied, folks--you did your job!

There are few places in America more meaningful than the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. It's message of unity, reconciliation, and courage under the most difficult and challenging of circumstances is as relevant today as any time in our history. As Bill has said, we need a movement as morally urgent and powerful as the Civil Rights Movement to stop global warming and create a just, clean energy economy for all people. 

Today, hundreds of people rallied in front of this historic site to launch this new movement. We heard from leaders like Van Jones, who's new organization Green For All is uniting people of all backgrounds behind the message of a clean energy economy strong enough to lead people out of poverty, and Courtney Fryxell, the young woman and extraordinary organizer who pulled the entire event together. 

Van had it right when he said, "This is a weekend to remember. The kind of weekend that goes down in history." With hundreds of grassroots events around the country and thousands of young people in Washington, we are building a movement that will change our country.

Take a moment to look through the pictures here on this site from Step It Up actions around the country. Think about all those people in the photos - and all the people who took part in the April 14 day of action - and all the many more who couldn't make either day, but stand in solidarity with us. Reflect on the thousands of students who are here in Washington, D.C. this weekend - each person an agent for positive change, each person a leader in his �or h�er own way. And finally, think about what role you can play in this growing movement.

��

At the Lincoln Memorial today, we connected with a rich history of social change and took one more step towards a bright, sustainable future. To know that thousands of you were there with us in communities across the country made the moment all the more inspiring.

Coal fired power plants are one of the central causes of global warming pollution in this country and around the world. Coal pollutes our environment, devastates communities in Appalachia and beyond, and threatens all of our collective future.

In Madison, WI today hundreds of people rallied with a "No New Coal!" message front and center at their Step It Up event. Maia Donahue reports:

Last night Bill [McKibben] was in town, and spoke at a film festival and got the troops rallied up.

Over 100 people rallied outside of this ugly little eye sore of a coal plant, conveniently located in the heart of t�he University campus. People wrote a whole lot of postcards to the board of regents, the Chancellor, and the Governor, urging them to take action (this plant is currently the subject of a lawsuit by the Sierra Club, so some urging is needed).

Keep up the fight Madison! And to the hundreds of people around the country struggling to keep new coal fired power plants out of their communities we send our gratitude and solidarity.

The fight isn't over, but today was another important step forward. Over 80 members of Congress participated in our events today and heard the "No New Coal!" message front and center as one of our three 1 Sky priorities. And Congress will continue to hear that message - on Monday, when thousands of students lobby in D.C., and into the future, as this grassroots movement takes out one coal plant after another. It's time for green jobs, not dirty energy - time to put up wind turbines, not coal plants.

It's time for leadership - and you're showing it in ever corner of our nation.

Revolutionary spirit is alive and well in Concord, Massachusetts! Braving a tropical storm, a good crowd of people from around the area turned out to the Old North Bridge in historical Concord to summon the Revolutionary spirit of ages past. As promised, Sen. John Kerry came out to the event to offer his plans for leadership on global warming. An extra special thanks to the Senator for giving his speech in the rain - now that's commitment�! 

Kris Erkiletian writes:

This was a fantastic event. I got to meet John Kerry for the first time as well as other local activists in the new environmental movement. VERY INSPIRATIONAL. Lets keep it going.

And Ruby Kalinka reports:�

I was very impressed with Jim Marzilli's speech. He was very inspirational and passionate - all the officials were. It was really great to see people come, even in the rain, and support an Energy Revolution.

And we thought a tropical storm would slow you down? No way! Although the wind and rain that slammed into the East Coast this mor�ning got us off to a bit of a bumpy start, the day is shaping up incredibly.

It's a beautiful sight to see: hundreds and hundreds of photos streaming in from around the country. There's one from Sugar Land Texas where Rep. Nick Lampson came out to address the crowd. Lake Placid, NY where a huge crowd gathered. A beautiful photo from Oklahoma City full of local politicians coming together with their constituents. Or this photo on the right from the Groton School in Massachusetts - they did a human version of our logo on the school fields!

We are so proud and honored to be a part of this day. In just two months (for many of you only a few weeks - or days) we have put together an incredibly powerful and inspiring call for leadership.

Stay tuned to the blog and the website as more and more action reports come in. We'll have footage from the Lincoln Memorial soon and hope to have photos from New Orleans coming in before too long.

While hundreds of actions are taking place all across the country, over 5,500+ young people are rocking out at Power Shift 07, the first national youth summit on global warming. Our crew will be there with them tonight to culminate this incredible day of action all across the country with a concert and giant Step It Up rally. Take a look at the video below to get a sense of the momentum, energy, and excitement of this growing movement: 

�

Sunrise Action in Eastham, MA 11/3

Over the past several weeks, the news headlines have been filled with the drought in the Southeast, the wildfires in Southern California, and today, the news is filled with word of Tropical Storm Noel that is about to bombard the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast Coast.  No single weather event can be attributed to global warming, but science does tell us to expect increasingly erratic and dramatic weather events as the world warms.  And each one of these recent events have been some of the most extreme in their region's history.

As we speak, many Step It Up organizers in the affected areas are going bravely forward with their actions and figuring out last minute alternate plans, amidst forecasts of several inches of rain and 40mph winds.  What do these organizers do when global�warming prevents them from taking action on global warming?  They keep acting!   Will our politicians follow their leadership and courage in the face of a changing climate�?  Today we find out....

Wish your fellow Step It Uppers from the Northeast well as they brave the storm today.  Our hearts are with you!

What a day we have ahead. All around the country right now, people are getting up and heading out to hundreds and hundreds of rallies in their communities. Some will be small - just a gathering of friends to reaffirm their commitment to each other and our future. Others will be huge - thousands of people will be flowing into Washington Square Park in NYC this afternoon, thousands more are in Washington, D.C. at Power Shift 07 already, and thousands more will take action in Berkeley, CA later on today.

If you're heading out to an event today, remember, this is a joyous occasion. Enjoy the heck out of your gathering on Saturday. � Enjoy the community around you.  Enjoy being a player in our political system.  Enjoy the sense that you're making a real, palpable difference on the biggest issue our planet faces. 

Step It Up!

 

It was only 2 months ago that we rolled out the Step It Up 2 website in phases.  We had this thought -- "Wouldn't it be cool if we could flood our politicians with invitations and force them to come face to face with their constituents and address global warming?"  And with your help and hard work, the idea worked!

Last April 14th there were 1,400 actions calling on Congress to cut carbon 80% by 2050.   And now, we have all collectively issued over 14,000 invitations to our leaders.  Talk about participatory democracy.  This is a great achievement all on it's own, but not only that, we've also successfully convinced over 80 members of Congress to participate in the day of action.  Many thanks, everyone.  (Now what should we do that will involve the number 140,000? -- hmmm, this might need to go global for this one).

We can't wait to see the beautiful pictures and videos from the hundreds of actions taking place all across the country tomorrow.  Good luck to everyone on the East Coast -- be safe in the nasty weather.  And everyone who will have politicians joining your event, be sure to get them on the record addressing the 1Sky solutions.

Have a great time tomorrow!

I've just been to Eugene to speak, and it's hard to tell what the town is more excited about: the upcoming Step It Up rally, or this week's football game, which is the college game of the week and will draw the nation's TV cameras to Autzen Stadium tomorrow afternoon. We're agnostic in the gridiron battle between the Ducks and the Sun Devils of Arizona State, but we know what the greatest halftime show in the country will be. It comes from ace organizer Mary Wood, and is a metaphorical tour de force!:

�
The Biggest Kickoff in Human History*:

Hi football fans! Here in Oregon we�re known not only for our great football team but also for being the Green State.   Let�s show the nation that Duck fans are not ducking the issue of global heating!
�
Fans, climate crisis is the playoff we just can�t lose.  Our home turf is on the line.  The points against us wi�ll be lost lives and shattered prosperity for generations to come.   

The clock is running.  We've used up all of our time outs.  It's third down and we have a lot of yards to go. 

The world's climate scientists have had their huddle and they�ve given us a game plan.  We have to tackle carbon emissions.  In two years we'll need to cap those emissions and be on our own 10-yard line in 2010.  Then we'll keep pushing back those emissions over the decades.  The goal is to bring down carbon 80% by 2050.

We will need to break right through that defensive line of deniers and delayers.  We will need to run interference on the oil companies, and block new coal plants.  We'll have to rely on our receivers for some big plays -- I'm talking about solar receivers! 

We want touchdowns, not tipping points!  We want stadiums filled with football fans, not hurricane refugees.  It�s up to us.  We can�t punt this one. �

But we need an umpire and referees on this field.  We need rules to this game.  Where is our government?  Where are the officials?  We know where they are.  They're still back at the tailgate. They're presiding over the biggest barbeque in the history of Humanity.  We need to get them out of their fantasy league, onto the real field, now, before the clock runs out on us!  

Fans, there's no spectators in climate crisis.   We need all of you on this field.  We need quarterbacks, line-backers, tackles, and safeties.  We need the greatest offense and defense of all time! 

We're handing off the ball now to every one of you.  Take that ball and run with it.  Don't slow down.  Make a pitch to others whenever you see an opening.  Bring players in off the sidelines.  Above all, keep your eyes on the goal.  

We are all part of Team Humanity, in it together, and together we're unbeatable, because we're playing to win the biggest trophy of all - climate security for our families, our children, our communities.

So let�s all get behind the biggest kickoff in human history.  Go Ducks!  Let�s beat those SUN-Devils!

See what we mean about local press? Check out the great coverage of a Step It Up event in Connecticut that'll be taking place tomorrow. It's a perfect example of why you need to call--today--your local newspaper, AP bureau, TV station, and public radio station. It's the megaphone for your efforts! Click here to find some of the media outlets in your town.

A Teen Takes Up the Fight to Help the Environment
by Melissa Pionzio - The Hartford Co�urant

Emily Rantoul �was concerned about the environment. And after the 15-year-old Portland resident and her family attended a lecture featuring primatologist and environmentalist Jane Goodall, Emily became inspired to raise awareness about global warming on a local level.

"She just really showed that she cared. Just by how she spoke, you could tell she just spent all her days [on] this issue," Emily said of Goodall, who discussed Roots & Shoots, an environmental and humanitarian education program.

With her family's help, Emily formed Riverfront Roots & Shoots, which provides information and events that encourage people in Greater Middletown to think about ways to help the environment.

As part of National Climate Action Day, Roots & Shoots will sponsor a walk across the Arrigoni Bridge Saturday to demand green, affordable, rapid transportation. The walkers call themselves GART, she said.

"Middletown and Portland are very close together, but there are very few buses and they don't come frequently enough to be useful," said Emily. "I take a bus from Middlesex Community College, where I am a student, but it only takes me to the transit station, so I have to walk over the bridge to get home to Portland."

Emily said she sees many lone drivers regularly travel over the bridge every day.

"That is a lot of emissions," she said. "We are really trying to get buses to be green, buses that run on vegetable oil or use solar power and more bus rounds and routes."

Participants in the event, which begins at 11 a.m., are encouraged to meet at either the Middletown Transit Depot or the Portland Police Station and walk across the bridge simultaneously. Legislators such as Rep. James O'Rourke have been invited to the march, which is co-sponsored by Stepitup07.org, a national campaign that calls for leadership on global warming. Other community groups such as Transportation Alternatives Middletown (TAM) and ArtFarm will also take part.

"It sounds like a great project that they have taken on and it is certainly something that TAM would be interested in," said TAM representative Beth Emery. "Our mission is to increase awareness and to increase the likelihood of getting more people to consider getting out of their car and getting alternative transportation. It's not just doing that but working toward creating an environment that makes it easier for people to ride a bike to Middletown or take a bus to a job in East Hampton, which right now is very difficult."

Marcella Trowbridge, artistic director for Art Farm, which is dedicated to creating high quality theater with a commitment to simple living, environmental sustainability and social action, said her group will lead the procession from the Middletown side.

"We will meet in the middle and just hopefully generate some more awareness about National Climate Action Day," said Trowbridge. "But also about this focus on affordable, rapid transit. That is something that could really make a difference and could be really, really helpful."

Contact Melissa Pionzio at [email protected].

�

Bernie Sanders is my hero. He was th�e first politician to come aboard at the f�irst demonstration that began the Step It Up movement. And he's been the greatest champion in the Senate of solutions that take the science seriously. Here's what he said in the Senate yesterday:�

Let me co�ngratulate Step It Up. You are doing exactly what should be done - leading a strong grassroots movement that will transform our national energy system.

Earlier today, the Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on �Private Sector and Consumer Solutions to Global Warming and Wildlife Protection approved legislation, often called the Lieberman-Warner bill, crafted to address global warming. I opposed this bill for a variety of reasons. The most fundamental is, that based on the scientific evidence, it would not reduce greenhouse gases emissions enough to stop catastrophic changes in the Earth�s climate. This committee action is the first step of many in a lon�g process in Congress.

Although the legislation is a step in the right direction, it simply does not go far enough to do what scientists tell us must be done to stop global warming. If we are not extremely bold and aggressive, this planet faces dire consequences in the years to come.

During negotiations over the past two weeks, I worked with Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) to strengthen the bill and he should be applauded for his diligent efforts. We did have some success, including the adoption of my amendment that would require automobile manufacturers to improve fuel efficiency. To be eligible for a pool of new funds to produce more fuel efficient cars, auto makers would have to manufacture vehicles that average at least 35 miles per gallon.

Unfortunately, other critical amendments that I authored, and which were supported by all of the major national environmental organizations, were voted down. Incredibly, the bill guarantees whopping sums over a forty year period for coal ($324 billion) and car makers ($232 billion). Yet, an amendment I offered to guarantee substantive resources for solar, wind and other renewable energy sources was turned down. A majority of the members of the committee also blocked an amendment that would require any new coal-fired power plant to reduce its carbon emissions by 85 percent, an approach which has tremendous support at the state and local levels. The committee also voted down an amendment to make polluters pay for carbon emissions starting in 2026 instead of 2036.

The committee also failed to set a goal of reducing emissions of heat trapping gases by 2050 by 80 percent � the amount scientists say must be achieved if we are to reverse global warming. Sadly, the bill only calls for at most a 63 percent reduction by 2050.

I am proud that we pushed to improve the bill and that it is stronger today than when it was unveiled two weeks ago. Never the less, we have a lot of work to do. I look forward to working with the grassroots to improve the bill so it can meet the global warming challenge.

The American people truly are ahead of Congress in understanding that we need bold action for our planet. The voices of the people need to be heard from one end of the country to the other. I hope that grassroots activists do all that they can to demand that Congress pass a final bill that will really do the job.

Thank you for all that you are doing.

**Opinions expressed in the Step It Up 2007 blog are the opinions of the authors themselves, and do not reflect an official position of Step It Up 2007**

Hey organizers, as you are busily finishing up the final nuts ands bolts for your action tomorrow, check out this SNEAK PREVIEW� of what the action report-back tool will look like:

�

The website is going to transform tomorrow allowing you to view and submit action reports, and this tool is what you should look for in order to include your action report, photos, and video on the website.  Almost there...�

We can just feel the buzz of activity around the country tonight. With only two days left until the big day, we've been fielding calls from coast to coast from organizers, media, and members of Congress. Everyone is looking forward to the big day.

Here in our office, we can hardly tear ourselves away from our computers. From one corner of the room, May yells "We just got another action in New Hampshire!" The phone rings, and Lauren takes a call from California about the actions in San Francisco. We'll be on the phone soon with half our organizing team who are in Washington, D.C. to get the latest update from Power Shift 2007, the first national youth summit on global warming that will be starting tomorrow with over 5,500 youth planning on attending.

And as you can see in the picture, we're also putting the final touches on a banner of our own. It will be hung at our culminating event in Washington, D.C. on Saturday night when Power Shift and Step It Up will come together at a major rally and concert to celebrate our accomplishments and help launch the new 1 Sky campaign (check out their new website to learn more). Pictures of Step It Up rallies around the country will be displayed as students do an action of their own. In our minds, nothing could be more suited to the day�s call for leadership than having thousands of students, our current and future leaders, coming together in the nation�s Capitol.

If you're an organizer or planning on attending an event, now is a great time to make some signs, banners, and materials of your own. It's easy! Just grab some paint or markers, canvas or paper, and get to work. Feel free to express yourself. Which of the three 1 Sky solutions resonates most with you? What's the one thing your voting to protect in next years election? What's the one message you want your leaders to hear?

On November 3rd, we'll have pictures from around the country of rallies big and small, loud and joyous, colorful and extravagant. And with your help, Congress will hear our message: now is not the time for empty rhetoric or back-peddling - it's time for climate leaders!
�

When Al Gore talks, we listen--and we hope everyone else will too. This year's Nobel Laureate sent out a special plea earlier today to everyone on the AlGore.com and Live Earth email lists, which is a lotta lotta people, reminding them to get to their local rally. And he asked us to send along a personal thanks to everyone who's participating. Maybe we should think of it as a giant send-off party for his trip to Oslo!

One of the most incredible things to see is the Step It Up events that continue to be registered even in the last days before November 3rd.  It goes to show that even great events can be put together in very little time.  Just two days ago, we had a new event show up on the site, with quite an incredible back story.

The event is organized by 11 year old Madeleine MacGillivray who is on the path to starting her own non-profit organization SUPERHEROES NEEDED.  

Here's a bit of their description of their organizaiton: Superheroes Needed is a new kid founded, kid-powered creative grassroots mission targeting the # 1 environmental challenge � Global Warming.  Kids take immediate action to fight global warming, get help where it is most urgently needed, teach big kids about global warming, and activate the next generation of global environmentalists - the green generation � generation g! We take on evil planet destroyers like big oil companies and ma�ke changes as kids with the voice we already have, by making smart choices in what we buy, and how we act every day at home, school and in our communities. In 5-10 years, these kids will be voters, and after that, leaders. Superheroes Needed is targeted primarily towards 8-14 year old students who are comfortable with technology�text messaging, podcasting, blogging, surfing the web. Beyond just affecting change on the national scale, these superheroes are taking it international, to help drought-plagued communities in Africa who are already being affected by global warming.  To support their cause, visit their website to purchase one of the necklaces they make, the profits of which go to building latrines and water pumps in Africa.

Wow! These kids really get it.
This Saturday, Superheroes Needed will be �stepping it up� in the East Village of New York to answer the question �Who�s a Leader� by calling out our leaders exactly one year before the 2008 Presidential election to fight global warming!  There will be some celeb guests in attendance to wish the young superheroes well, including Kate Erbe of Law & Order, Ambassador Kick Kennedy, Actress/Environmental Activist Q'orianka Kilcher, and more.  Check out their event description to find out more: http://events.stepitup2007.org/november/events/show/2760. Thanks for Stepping it Up, Superheroes!

I know we are beginning to repeat ourselves, but it is hard to put "phones are ringing off the hook" in any other way.  There really is no way around it.  There is so much excitement here in our office, and it is just a tiny fraction of global warming action going on around the country.

 You all are furiously painting banners, calling Senators, and emailing media contacts across the country as you all prepare the awesome events we've been hearing so much about.

 Our friends at Powershift 2007, the largest youth conference on global warming ever, are frantically preparing for the arrival of 5,500 youth in College Park, MD.

 And the halls of Congress are abuzz with debate about what bold climate policy needs to look like.

 As we all prepare for an overwhelmingly exciting weekend, it's always important to remember why we are working so hard to pull all this together.  Check out the green finger video again, and think about everything--and everyone-- that we are working �so hard to provide a future for. 

�Wow--the pace sure has picked up! The phone is still ringing off the hook, and we're getting ready to move our headquarters down to Washington, D.C., for a few days to participate in an awesome rally at Powershift. We're hearing from organizers who are getting great local media coverage, and we're even doing some interviews ourselves!

Meanwhile, we're still hearing about great actions. Today we wanted to write about our friend Phil Thornhill over in London. Phil is the National Coordinator of the Campaign against Climate Change, and he is organizing a solidarity event in London. Phil came to visit New England a few months ago, and attended the inaugural party here at our Action Center. So it's an extra special shout-out! Here's his event description:

"A small gathering for a solidarity event around the statue of Franklin
Delano Roosevelt in Grosvenor Square, outside the US embassy, London
UK. With banners for Step it Up and Global Day of Action on the 8th
Dec."

Stay tuned for more about the Global Day of Action on December 8!

Just two weeks ago, we still had doubts that our invitation tool was working. Only a handful of members of Congress had agreed to attend events or issue a statement of support. But the invitation counter kept going up thanks to your hard work - 8,000 invites, 9,000 invites, and just a few days ago over 10,000 invitations sent. At the same time, more and more events kept being signed up in communities nationwide. News of local rallies, concerts, marches, and bike-rides kept coming in from around the country.

And guess what? It's worked!

Today, we cruised past over 50 members of Congress participating in Step It Up's national day of climate action this November 3rd. Not all of them will be attending events, which is what we all asked for - but �those who aren't are sending statements or representatives. Sometimes we can't blame them: it's probably best that Senator Akaka not emit all the carbon to fly back to Hawaii from D.C. for an event, we'll take a video instead.

Members of Congress will be participating in events all around the country -  representatives like Rep. Chris Shays will be attending an event in New Canaan, CT or Rep. Steve Kagan will be at an event in Green Bay, WI. One Congressman is spanning both coasts: Rep. Earl Blumenauer from Oregon will be in Miami at the Rail~Volution Conference that began today.

At each event, members of Congress will be able to meet with citizens in their community who are leading the fight against global warming (that's you!)�. And in each instance they'll be presented with the 1 Sky priorities that Step It Up is supporting:�

• Green Jobs Now: 5 Million green jobs conserving 20% of our energy by 2015.
  
• Cut Carbon 80% by 2050: Freeze climate pollution levels now and cut at least 80% by 2050 and 30% by 2020.
• No New Coal: A moratorium on new coal-fired power plants.
  

Our friends over at the Drum Major Institute just announced a brand new website. And you know how much we love websites, but this one is REALLY cool! At TheMiddleClass.org, Drum Major Institute analyzes bills that would have a significant impact (positive or negative) on the squeezed middle class, as well as on the aspirations of low-income Americans who want to work their way into the middle class. One of the issues they track is Energy and Environment. The way they do it is very hip, and worth an introductory visit. But don't take my word for it--click here!

The entire approach resonates with the Step It Up message--
"The Drum Major Institute for Public Policy neither supports nor opposes any candidate for office. Rather, we believe better policy can be created when ordinary citizens � not just political insiders � know how their legislators voted on the issues that matter most to them, and when legislators know their constituents are watching."

On November 3, you get the chance to hear directly from your elected officials on the issues that matter to you! Join an action today!
�

These past few days, we have all witnessed a pretty incredible display of democracy as thousands of people have been able to interact personally with their politicians through our invitations, building a relationship with our government that will deepen on November 3rd. And, they have heard us, promising to attend events across the country. With Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, a little serendipity and the magic of post-season baseball helped demonstrate that our politicians truly are ready to listen to what we have to say.

I happen to come from a family of devout Red Sox fans, and so couldn't believe it when I found myself with a seat at Game 2 of the World Series in Boston.  My sister came all the way from Wyoming (where she is organizing the Jackson Hole Step it Up event!) to join me, and on Thursday night we entered our beloved Fenway Park to begin a night of hot dogs and heckling.

As we reached our seats, I practically bumped into the Senator himself, out to enjoy the phenomenon that is the 2007 Red Sox, taking pictures and chatting with fans. I seized the opportunity (call me opportunistic...) and invited him out to an event as my sister and I snapped a quick photo with him. He was really excited about the whole campaign, and I promised I would follow up with his scheduler.

A few quick emails later, followed by some scheming with Massachusetts organizer Roger Shamel, we finally heard yesterday that the Senator will be attending the Revolutionary Rally at the Old North Bridge in Concord, MA, my hometown!  He will join recently elected MA Representative Niki Tsongas, and other great speakers, at what promises to be a great event.

Point being, Step it Up has been filled with funny little moments like these, where we realize that this is what democracy is all about.  Our politicians are people, like us, who are ready to listen and ultimately follow our lead. On November 3rd, let's flood these events and demonstrate where we want to go!

Here we go! With just 3 days to the big day, Step It Up is gaining incredible momentum. Have you seen the leader counter up there recently? We are adding members of Congress by the hour. You've helped create an unavoidable call for change - the way things are going right now, Nov. 3 will have more politicians addressing a single topic than in a very long time.

Here's some of the recent highlights:

• Video from Florida of Melissa Meehan promoting her event on Fox News (click the player above) - you too can make the news: check out our organizer headquarters for media tips.
  
• Confirmations from politicians around the country, like Congressman Baron Hill in Indiana who will be going to the Bloomington rally that is being put together by all-star organizer Stephanie Kimball.
• Word from Power Shift 07 that over 5,000 students are registered for this weekend's conference in Washington D.C.! They'll be doing a major Step It Up action Saturday night and delivering photos of actions from around the country straight to Congress on Monday, Nov. 5

For those of you on the website for the first time - nows a great opportunity to send some final invitations to politicians to get out to Step It Up events. For organizers, keep up the fantastic work - just think, on Sunday you can just sit back and watch the slide-show of events from across the country. And for everyone, help us spread the word - - Nov. 3 is going to be an incredible day and we want to share it with everyone.

And Happy Halloween! �

We originally posted this a while back, but thought it was worth posting it again with new folks visiting the site each day.  Watch -- and take action...�

Just a few minutes ago, we received a video from Senator Barack Obama's office. Turns out that the more than 500 invitations Step It Up supporters sent to his scheduler did not fall on deaf ears. In addition to the video, he will be sending former Senator Tom Daschle to speak on his behalf at the Step It Up event in Des Moines, IA. Obama heard you loud and clear, and it's �up to you to decide whether he's addressed the issues you care about.

�He knows that you are the leaders of the grassroots climate movement, so let Barack Obama and the other leaders know what you think (click here to get in touch with him). And keep inviting them to November 3rd events near you so that they know nothing beats an in-person address at a Step It Up event.�

�

We've invited all the candidates to attend rallies or submit videos to address a broad array of issues affecting climate change, and you can too.

�Here is a guest post by Beka �Economopoulos and our friends over at Project Hot Seat, including new resources for Step It Up organizers: 

Step It Up is fast approaching - are �you ready for the big day?  We can either stand up for what is right - our health, humanity, our planet, or we can sit by and watch while decisions are made that threaten our world and our lives.  On November 3rd, the movement to stop global warming will step it up a notch, to hold our leaders accountable.

Whether there's a politician attending your Step It Up event or not, you can still take advantage of this day of action to light a fire under Congress.  From collecting signatures for postcards to Congress, to distributing fact sheets, to encouraging people to leave voice mails for elected officials, there's a lot that you can do at your event on Saturday.

Here are some downloadable materials from Greenpeace, True Majority, Step It Up and 1Sky that you can use at your event to educate the public and pressure your Representative to champion strong global warming solutions.

1) Help us send thousands of postcards to Congress.
Download postcards here, print and copy them, and then collect signatures at your local Step It Up event.  Need tips on collecting signatures?  Watch this video, it just takes a minute.  Be sure to keep the signed postcards and send them to 702 H Street, NW, Suite 300, Washington, D.C. 20001, or fax them to (415) 255-9201. We'll include them in a bulk delivery event to Congress.

2) Educate the public.
Download a Project Hot Seat fact sheet to distribute at your event.  With facts about global warming and suggestions for how to shift the climate in Congress, this flyer is a good way to educate and engage the public. �

3) Reach out and call Congress. Recruit people to call too!
Download a phone call flyer, copy, and distribute it in any public space, put it on car windshields, get creative! Recruit Step It Up participants to use their cell phones on Saturday to call Congress and leave a voice mail urging them to pass strong global warming solutions. We need steep reductions in global warming pollution, and it's going to take every one of us to put Congress in the Hot Seat!

Thanks Project Hot Seat! 

For all other organizer resources visit the Organizer Headquarters section of the website.�

YouToo can become an online video star. Mayors, Governors, Congressmen, Presidential Candidates, Raffi and other noteworthy leaders will be at these events. Be sure to have a camera on hand to document them addressing the three 1Sky Priorities. Ask them to put a little green ink on their finger. But better yet, share it with the world when you're done. With your help, we can make this national day of action as big, fun, meaningful, and moving as it needs to be - a solution on the scale of the problem. Great work everyone!

In Santa Cruz, California, a broad coalition of students, local organizations, business leaders and citizens is planning a great day of action. Event organizers Ellen Farmer and Jeannie Collins had this to say about their event:

"We were inspired to produce our Step It Up! Santa Cruz event after seeing Bill McKibben speak in person at a mid-September conference in Washington DC--Confronting the Triple Threat: Climate Change, Peak Oil, and Resource Depletion, sponsored by the International Forum on Globalization. �We bought the DVD from the conference, got permission to produce a 20-minute piece for local community TV, featuring Bill's speech, then started networking to create our own local event." �

People Power, one of the main sponsors, is a community organization promoting bike lanes, bike-to-work days, walking, and accessible public transportation, is working with Local Solutions to Global Problems--a new group working with progressive communities of faith to create climate change support networks--to host the event.

A speaker will talk about mountaintop removal coal mining, addressing the 1Sky No New Coal priority, and they are involving people of all ages, from young skateboarders (check out the cool poster they've deigned!) to families on bikes. Anything that's people-powered!

Neuroscientists estimate that each neuron in the human brain is connected to 10,000 others. That kind of intensely bound network exists in so many places in the physical world�from the balanced ecosystems that make the whole planet function to the intricate cellular structures of plants and animals. Our everyday structures, too, resemble the network of neurons in our brains. Take the internet, for example�just think of a popular website and count how many links there are on one page, and how many links to others� there are on each of those pages.

Perhaps the most important kinds of networks are the human ones: friends, families, coworkers, neighbors and everybody else we know. Like neurons in the brain, each of us connects with people each day, becoming something larger and louder than ourselves. The 10,000 people that have used our invite tool over the last few weeks have proven that sharing singular actions with others�part of the intricate web of human relationships�multiplies their power. In a certain way, we�re becoming a web of neurons, interconnected; a brain powerful enough to think a social movement into existence, and make climate change history.

Make sure you get connected by attending a Step It Up event near you on this Saturday November 3.

With one week to go before November 3, we expected Monday to be busy. We didn't guess how exciting it would be! Today we learned that Senator Chris Dodd will attend the Step It Up event in Concord, New Hampshire, and Senator Hillary Clinton will send a representative to the event in Des Moines, Iowa. For more information on David Slutzky, her surrogate, keep reading! Congratulations to the event organizers, as well as those of you who sent hundreds of invitations to both senators. Stay tuned to the blog for more updates throughout the day.

David Slutzky is President of E� Inc., an ecology and economics policy think-tank based in Charlottesville, Virginia. Mr. Slutzky is also on the faculty of the Department of Urban and Environmental Planning at the University of Virginia. Mr. Slutzky was elected to the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors in 2005, and serves as the Chairman of the Charlottesville-Albemarle MPO. He has more than 20 years' experience with environmental policy issues in diverse public and private sector contexts.

After working in the commercial real estate and finance industries, Mr. Slutzky began to focus on environmental issues, co-founding a major international environmental consulting firm, Environmental Risk Consultants, Inc. (ERC) and ERRIS, at one time the largest environmental data company in the country. Mr. Slutzky later served as a Senior Policy Adviser on environmental issues in the Clinton White House. He served as Coordinator of the International Task Force of the President's Council on Sustainable Development where he focused his efforts on the environmental implications of international capital flows, sustainable development, urban environmental issues and NEPA issues. Previously, Mr. Slutzky was a Senior Policy Advisor at the EPA, where he served as founding Director of the Urban Initiative, an effort to redefine the relationship of the Agency's programs to the urban landform. This Initiative examined the impact of EPA's program implementation strategies on urban revitalization efforts with the objective of supporting rather than undermining such efforts. Mr. Slutzky later became the Managing Director for McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry where he worked with major corporations to redesign industrial processes to reflect ecological and social equity, as well as economic concerns. He received his Bachelors degree in Political Science in 1977 from the University of Chicago where he also completed coursework toward a PhD in Political Science. He received his J.D. from the Program in Environmental and Energy Law of the Chicago-Kent College of Law at the Illinois Institute of Technology. **The listing of a public appearance by an elected official or candidate is solely for information purposes. The information is not intended to suggest that such public official or candidate holds viewpoints consistent with or inconsistent with those held by Step It Up 2007 or affiliated organizations. Step It Up 2007 does not rate or track the positions of elected officials or candidates for office.**�

...or really, Step It Up crew member Jon Warnow did.  Though modest as he is, Jon won the award in the name of the movement, crediting all the Step It Up organizers and friends across the country for the award. 

What award?  Jon went out to California last week to receive the Brower Youth Award.  Check out this great little film that documents some of Jon's role behind the scenes at Step It Up headquarters:�

And we're off! With just under a week until the big day, Step �It Up actions are already beginning. The feeling of momentum is incredible right now (or is it just the warm glow of a Red Sox World Series win . . . we've got some Boston fans in the office - condolences to our Colorado organizers). 

On Saturday, actions kept streaming in as people around the country keep signing up events. And on Sunday, we got some more confirmations from politicians that they'll be attending events, including Rep. Timothy Bishop from New York and Rep.  Harry Mitchell from Arizona. It's not too late to rope in your political representatives - today's a great day to give their district offices another call to make sure they've received your invitations.

Then, this morning, we're greeted at the office by a picture from UVA of a Step It Up event they did on October 27! "We called ourselves the 'cutting edge' of Step It Up and we succeeded," writes Cal Trepagnier. The event was part of a statewide conference on climate change and was a major success. Cal reports �

Rest assured this year will be very successful if our event is any indicator.  We drew 150+ people in U.Va.'s stone amphitheater where we remembered the founder of our university and Founding Father, Thomas Jefferson.

Great work UVA! We're looking forward to receiving hundreds of photos from around the country on Nov. 3rd. Make sure to upload photos from your actions as soon as possible on Saturday - we'll put them up on the website and get them into the hands of thousands of students at Power Shift 07, the first national youth climate summit in Washington, D.C. On Monday, Nov. 5 they'll flood congress with photos from all across the country demanding for climate leadership and 1 Sky! Now that's what we call a movement . . .

Since entering the race for President, and entering our illustrious Leader Counter, Stephen Colbert, has had probably the fastest invitation rate of any leader, surpassing Ron Paul in just 24 hours.  Ron Paul fans, where are you?  But Colbert hasn't committed to step it up quite yet, so check out this video from a Step It Up �organizer, and then send an email to the candidate�!  Yes, you are America, but are you a Climate Leader?  The jury is out, Colbert...

 

This morning an exciting new action popped up on our website from Waukesha, WI.  After a quick celebratory dance, I called up the organizer to hear his plans, which include a human-powered concert that won't only be carbon neutral, but carbon negative.   Turns out he had found out about Step It Up months ago, only to forget the name, but he's kept on planning the event regardless.  Just this morning, while reading an article on Alternet, he came across the name of Step It Up, and signed it right up!  Better late than never, right?  Especially in the case of this awesome event!  Check out the press their event got in their local paper this weekend to hear how they're really getting his attendees to step it up, �get fit, and take action on climate AT THE SAME TIME! 

CITY OF PEWAUKEE - City of Pewaukee resident Dan Aukofer jumped on top of an exercise bike in the middle of his barn on a dreary Friday afternoon and began pedaling, slowly increasing speed.

Behind him, his friend Dan O�Brien fiddled with knobs on a control panel, which turned a small light on.

Moments later, Caribbean music began playing and a stage light cast Aukofer in different colors on his bike. He told O�Brien to turn up the volume of the rhythmic music and began to pedal faster.

Both the music and lights were being powered by Aukofer�s bike.

"This is something that I have been planning for years," he said. "Instead of taking from the (power) grid, I�m actually feeding to the grid."

Aukofer is an environmentalist, fitness fanatic and music lover who said he tries to live as environmentally friendly as possible. His love for the environment and preserving precious resources pushed him to combine his three passions.

The result will be a concert on his farm next Saturday that will have all electrical aspects of the show powered completely by people riding bikes in front of the stage.

To pull off the show, Aukofer enlisted the help of Chuck Smith, president of Current Electric, a leader in the "green" electricity industry in the state. In order to generate the necessary power, they built the bikes into what they describe as "contraptions."

For the Waukesha event description, click here: http://events.stepitup2007.org/november/events/show/2729

We're pleased to be joined by Will Steger for a guest blog - here's a guy who really knows how to Step It Up. Steger has been an eyewitness to the on-going catastrophic consequences of global warming. A formidable voice calling for understanding and the preservation of the Arctic, and the Earth, Will Steger is best known for his legendary polar explorations. He has traveled tens of thousands of miles by kayak and dog- sled over 40 years, leading teams on some of the most significant polar expeditions in history.

Global warming is a reality. It threatens both our society and life, as we know it on earth. I have been to both poles; and I�ve seen catastrophic consequences of the climate change. I crossed both the Ward Hunt Ice Shelf in the Arctic and Larson A and B Ice Shelves on Antarctica. All of which, to the astonishment of scientists, abruptly collapsed into the sea in the last decade as a result of climate changes. I experienced firsthand the melting of the sea ice on the Arctic Ocean. The polar sea has lost one fourth of both its thickness and area in the last two decades. Its once reflective surface is now exposing the darker ocean surfaces; because darker surfaces absorb more energy than lighter ones, warmth is accelerated. The summer sea ice is predicted to virtually disappear during the second half of this century, dooming animals like the polar bear and walrus to probable extinction. In 1990, I testified before Congress about the danger of global warming thawing the northern permafrost releasing methane gas, a dangerous greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere. This process is now in motion. The record warm summers in the Arctic are advancing the thawing of the high elevations of the Greenland icecap. The loss of ice that we are now experiencing worldwide is the fingerprint of global warming.

The Arctic and the Antarctic regions have been my home for over 40 years. To survive in these lands, I have become intimately familiar with their vast lands, wildlife, and climates. The changes I see deeply affect me in a way neither a scientific study nor a satellite image could. Without action, life in the Arctic faces extinction. With action, we can address the root causes and limit the impact.

How can we act to avert the worst consequences? We must take action.�

Action begins with education. Global warming must be an essential topic in the K-12 educational agenda.  Because we are dealing with an immediate threat, we must also launch a public education campaign to engage everyone. Congregations, environmental groups, youth organizations, campuses, clubs of all kinds will play a pivotal role informing and engaging their members and moving them towards action. We must expect that our leaders in government, industry, congregations, and schools, are well informed about global warming and its consequences.

The effects of global warming are pervasive. We cannot delay in slowing and reversing this trend. Our economy, security, health, and the environment demand it.  Step it up!

Will Steger

To learn more about Polar Explorer Will Steger, the Will Steger Foundation, and Will's next expedition to the Canadian Island visit www.globalwarming101.com

Here is a guest post by Ada�m� Siegel, originally printed in a DailyKos diary: 

C02 emissions are growing at ever faster rates, in part, because the oceans are absorbing less CO2 and tropical forests are being devastated.  Ecosystems are shifting.  Fires are spreading. Droughts continue.  And, it is nearly November, the heat has yet to go on.  Have we already pulled the trigger?

And, life is filled with advertisements for SUVs. Christmas (and Halloween) lights are going up all around. The White House tells us Global Warming is good for health.

It is a Mad World ...

Click here to watch the YouTube video accompanying this post -- it's worth it. 

The latest from a series of updates from Bill McKibben on the Step It Up campaign published on Grist:

This has been th�e grimmest week in a long time for those of us following the global-warming crisis -- and the best week, too, for those of us at Step It Up who are organizing to do something about it.

Bad news first: It's not just the wildfires in Southern California. It's not just the epic drought in the Southeast. It's not just the bathtub ring in Lake Mead. It's not just the eight inches of rain deluging poor old New Orleans. Those help to tell us how far global warming has proceeded to date, but they don't tell us what more is to come.

That's the job of science, and here's what science told us this week: things are unraveling. Check out the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences to see what I mean. Natural carbon sinks -- the top few meters of the ocean, for instance -- are turning steadily less efficient as the planet warms. They're not performing as well as they have in the past, and so more carbon is accumulating in the atmosphere instead. The natural system is starting to break down.

Not only that, but human systems are breaking down too. Instead of growing more efficient in our use of fossil fuel, the data indicates those improvements have stopped. Economies are growing fast -- China said this week that its economy would soar 11.5 percent this year -- but only by burning cheap coal in ever-larger amounts.

Taken together, the two trends mean we're moving ever farther away from getting carbon emissions under control. As Dr. Corinne Le Quere of the British Antarctic Survey put it, "Only the most extreme climate models predicted this. We didn't think it would happen until the second half of the century."

Momentum works both ways, though, and some of the news is good. As we move into the home stretch for the big Step It Up rallies on Nov. 3, everything is beginning to click. People are issuing a thousand invitations a day through our invite tool to their senators, congresspeople, and presidential candidates. And the politicians are responding -- the number of confirmed speakers for Nov. 3 has doubled in the last 24 hours. We're on our way to having more national politicians addressing a single issue on a single day than at any time since the great national teach-ins of the Vietnam era.

We don't know, in any given hour, whether to hope or despair. The computer screen shows homes going up in flames -- but it also shows hundreds of emails from organizers who are steadily going about the last-minute tasks of inviting reporters, sending out final email invitations, and calling congressional district offices. The TV blares disaster -- but the phones keep ringing with new allies in new parts of the country seeking new ways to help out.

It feels weird -- but it feels like hope.�

Our endlessly energetic and creative organizing friends down in New York City are up to some excellent work yet again.  Here's the latest:

First of all, click here to see their actions elegant new website. 

Also, check out organizer John Hunka's latest plan for getting members of Congress to show up to their event:

"On Friday and Saturday, I'm going to jot down short notes to all of our Congressmen and Congresswomen from New York City, and I'm going to put the notes in envelopes with some info about the 1 Sky priorities.  Then, on Sunday, I'm� going on a bike ride around the city to hand-deliver the envelopes to district offices.  We've tried emails, phone calls, and letters, yet we have only one Congressman who has agreed to come.  I think it's time to pull out all the stops.  As they say, if Moses won't come to the mountain, I'll bring the mountain to Moses."

Not a bad idea, eh?  Following-up by phone with congressional schedulers is important, but it doesn't hurt get creative as well.

And speaking of creativity.  Check out text message action plan the NYC� organizers are implementing.  Organizer Stephanie Corrado explains:

"New York City is buzzing with talk of the Step It Up rally that will be held in Washington Square Park.  In addition to attending the event on November 3rd and listening to great speakers, bands and participating in eco-projects, Step It Up NYC is giving you the opportunity to take the campaign a step further and become a member of its mobile community.  For all those New Yorkers out there, text STEP to 30644 and receive information on how you can STEP IT UP beyond the rally."

Keep up the great work, friends.  And everyone in NYC, join the NYC mobile community today.

Those of you who follow Step It Up know how much we believe in the power of distributed action for national change. We're always glad to see when other social change agents rely on it as well. For example, this Saturday is a distributed demonstration about the War in Iraq, coordinated by many organizations and including some our friends and allies, United for Peace and Justice and Code Pink. They've also made a cool video to promote the event.

United for Peace and Justice is helping elevate the issue of climate change by working to promote peace, and director Leslie Kagan told me yesterday that in the pamphlets they've created for tomorrow, they're including educational information about climate change. With the No War No Warming protest on Monday and this on Saturday, we see how more and more groups are working to support each other!�

We believe it is going to take a green Marshall plan to rewire our economy for sustainable, clean energy. And as our friend Van Jones says�, that means jobs: and lot's of them. Global warming is a crisis, no doubt about it, but it also presents an incredible opportunity to revitalize our economy and create green pathways out of poverty. Step It Up is only one part of a growing effort to create a diverse and powerful movement to fight poverty and pollution at the same time.

Our latest action pushing the Green Jobs for All message is out of Michigan. Co-organized by the Blue Green Alliance and Greenpeace, a rally is planned in Kalamazoo with a simple message: "Real Climate Solutions = Green Jobs for Michigan." The Blue Green Alliance has long pioneered the way in creating a movement that unites labor and the environment and we are honored to have their support this November 3rd.

If you're organizing a rally this November 3rd or are joining an action, think about how you can integrate the message of Green Jobs. Where are the places in your community where work needs to be done? How you help guarantee new, clean energy jobs go to the people who need them most? How can the clean energy economy in your town lift up the people most impacted by our current economic system?

In 8 days, we'll send a strong message to all of our politicians: climate leaders are also social justice leaders.

Here's a guest post by the stellar Step It Up organizer gearing up for action in Seattle and Bellevue, WA.  

The impacts of global warming are already being seen here in Washington. Warmer temperatures caused by global warming are leading to reduced snow pack, worsening water shortages that fuel drought and wild fires. The political climate is also heating up. Rep. Dave Reichert from Seattle�s Eastside has been put in the Hot Seat. In the last few months alone over 2,000 constituents of Washington�s 8th District have taken action urging Congressman Reichert to become a champion on global warming.

Since being in the Hot Seat, Congressman Reichert has taken significant steps in the right direction by supporting increased fuel efficiency for vehicles and by opposing liquid coal incentives. However, it�s time Rep. Reichert and the rest of Congress become real leaders on climate change by stepping it up and addressing the 1Sky priorities.

We thought we�d really heat things up in Washington, so we�ve invited Democratic candidate for Congress Darcy Burner to join the conversation on November 3. One year before the election, we are giving Congressman Reichert and Ms. Burner the chance to publicly announce their plan to stop global warming. We want to know who is really going to Step It Up in Washington. We�re hosting a good old-fashioned town hall to hear from both sides of the aisle and to find out who our climate leader is.

Our very way of life is being threatened in Washington and across the globe and we need action now to reduce global warming pollution to ensure a healthy future for the planet. Congress has a choice: It can get to work on real solutions to global warming or be the Congress that did nothing while the Earth grows hotter, more dangerous, and more unpredictable. It�s time we turn the public�s frustration over government inaction into congressional action on global warming. It�s time we tell Congress to Step It Up!

Stay cool,
Kristin

Kristin Wheeler
Greenpeace USA
Global Warming Organizer
952-201-0249
www.washingtonhotseat.org�

There are three 1 Sky principles that we are asking each politician to address this November 3rd. But global warming involves many different issues, from agriculture to trade. And we're going to need to address each of them in the coming years. One of those issues is nuclear power. Here's one viewpoint from David Jay who works with Green Guerillas Against Greenwash:

Here's the good news: the harvest is beginning to come in. After years of hard work, this movement is beginning to get the political attention, investment dollars and grassroots support, necessary to address climate change head-on. Events like Step It Up are gathering together the energy that our society will need to make a truly monumental transformation: to transit-based� cities, a renewable energy grid and a carbon-free economy.

This presents our movement with a new and interesting dilemma. Now that we're gathering up enough resources to completely transform a society, those resources are bound to attract people who aren't necessarily a part of the solution. I'm talking about greenwashers, about politicians egging for the spotlight, the occasional con artist and some folks whose hearts are in the right place but whose ideas just don't work. To be clear, I am NOT telling you to be afraid. I'm not saying that we need to implement some greenwashing terror alert level. We just need to be smart.

Take nuclear power. Nuclear lobbyists have been working overtime to make sure that they can get a nice big piece of the climate change action. Anytime you hear someone in front of a microphone or TV camera talk about "keeping nuclear on the table," you'll know that those lobbyists have been doing their job. And they are working hard. That's because the green movement that we're leading is their last, best hope for nuclear power in this country.
�
Let's go back to the birth of nuclear power in this country, a spark made possible by a massive splurge of wartime spending. By 1954 it looked like we were in for a brave, new atomic future, and the american people were promised that, thanks to nuclear power "our children will enjoy electrical energy in their homes too cheap to meter." Eager to jumpstart the brave new atomic age, our government poured hundreds of millions into the nuclear industry and eagerly waited for nuclear energy to make coal-fire power plants a thing of the past.

Decades passed, but nuclear lobbyists kept coming back and asking for more money to prop up an industry rife with huge cost overruns and technical difficulties. By the 1970s, 10 short years after the first commercial nukes came online, the lack of a solution to radioactive waste disposal, as well as coordinated protests across the globe, slowed and then stopped the industry from expanding. Even government (read: taxpayer) funded disaster insurance wasn�t enough incentive to build more power plants.

Washington and Wall Street began to realize that the cry for subsidies would never stop. Nuclear power could not compete in the free market, and by the end of the 1970s, orders for new nuclear power plants stopped coming in. These days, the plants that were started back in the 60s and 70s are getting too old to operate, and for the nuclear industry to build new ones they'll need another massive infusion of cash.

Let's forget for the moment about the generalnastiness of uranium mining�, the recentaccidents and near disasters, the fact that nuclear waste is deadly for hundreds of thousands of years and is sitting around in containers that last 20, and the fact that no one has the faintest idea what to do with it. Economically, nukes don't work. While wind, solar, and other renewables are fighting to out-compete fossil fuels, nuclear energy is still mired with resource-intensive mining, bulky facilities and high risks, sucking support that should be going to clean technology and innovation.

Even if it were economically viable, nuclear plants take from 10-15 years to get from licensing to the grid. With climate change, we don't have that kind of time.

On November 3rd, we need to ask ourselves and our leaders to have the vision to create real change. That means having the wisdom to recognize that there are distractions, like nuclear, that we can't afford.

Click here more information about Green Guerillas Against Greenwash

�Check out this cross-post from The Huffington Post

If Hurricane Katrina was a shot across the bow, it seems as if the war has now begun in earnest. A war between people and a planet that no longer behaves in any of the ways we expect. This, it turns out, is what global warming feels like. The great fraying is underway.

You can see it in the fire-ridden canyons of southern California, where the land was drier than it had been in 90 years. You can see it in the cracking earth of the southeast, where Atlanta stands a few weeks away from running out of water. You can see it in the southwest, where bathtub rings line the great reservoirs, and in the Sierras where the snowpack shrivels. You can see it in the streets of New Orleans, where eight inches of rain fell in a few hours the other day.

None of these events can be linked directly to climate change. This isn't CSI; there's no DNA test to prove paternity. But these are precisely the things we expect would happen as the climate changes. Warm air holds more water vapor than cold air, so evaporation increases and we get drought. Once that water's up there, it's got to come down someplace, and we get floods.

Systems on earth have begun to show this same kind of unsettling change. In late August and September Arctic ice melt was setting records. For the first time ever recorded, the Northwest Passage opened. Meanwhile, observers on flights above Greenland reported that meltwater "cascades" the size of Niagara Falls, were pouring water into the bottom of its great ice sheet. A deep lake may now be forming at the base of the glaciers, speeding their slide into the sea.

And according to a new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences published earlier this week, something even scarier has started to happen: the earth's natural "sinks" for storing excess carbon dioxide have begun to lose their effectiveness. Sea water, for instance, is suddenly absorbing less CO2, because stronger winds are mixing carbon-rich deep water into the surface layer. As Dr. Corinne Le Quere of the British Antarctic Survey put it: "Only the most extreme climate models predicted this. We didn't think it would happen until the second half of the century."

All this, by the way, has happened with just a single degree of global warming. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which won the Nobel Prize for its work, has predicted that the planet will add another five degrees or so in the course of the century. The great fraying has begun, but it's nowhere near finished.

The only remaining variable is how fast and how well humans will respond. Americans, by far the biggest source of the problem, need to lead the way. So far, Congress has done nothing. At all. Having waited this long, half-measures simply won't do the trick.

A popular movement is finally arising to force that change -- a movement that grows stronger with each passing tragedy. Last spring we at Stepitup07.org organized an historic 1,400 demonstrations in all 50 states; a week from Saturday we'll host another round of big national demonstrations, which will coincide with the largest gathering of college students yet who want to fight global warming.

We know we're not going to prevent all climate change -- it's too late for that. But we cling firmly to the hope that, working together to win rapid federal action, we can slow it down, and keep it from getting completely out of control. We're calling for serious reductions in American carbon emissions -- 80 percent by mid-century -- and for an end to new coal-fired power plants. It's the minimum that scientists tell us makes sense.

Most of us can't go fight the blazes in the hills above Los Angeles. But we can damp down the great central fire of global warming that keeps sparking all these other disasters. It's a fight that seems more necessary with each passing hour.

� A few weeks ago we featured a blog by noted thinker on climate solutions Peter Barnes. Peter just released a new "Citizens' Guide to Carbon Capping"which we heartily recommend. It's a very helpful resource and we hope you get a chance to check it out. Heck, you could even print it out so people at your action could read it.

The foreword is written by none other than...Bill McKibben! Also, it is published using a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike license and may be freely reproduced as long as it is attributed to the Tomales Bay Institute �and distributed free of charge. So share away! While you're at it, you can learn more about the growing movement to protect our common assets at Onthecommons.org. Thanks, Peter!

Just a few minutes ago, Step It Up Kennebunkport organizer Jennifer Niese called to let us know that Representative Tom Allen, also a candidate for� US Senate from Maine's 1st district, will attend her event. �Welcome aboard, Representative Allen!

Kennebunkport is the summer home to two U.S. presidents & also a low-lying coastal area. Mapping studies of climate change show parts of the town could be under water as a result of sea level rise.The dramatic rally will be on the town green, and area that could be underwater in the business as usual scenario. RSVP for her event by clicking here.

�

When we talk about grea�t American leaders, Ella Baker is near the top the list. The highest ranking woman in the NAACP, she went south in 1957 to help found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and then became one of the key adult advisors to the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. (Check out Bernice Reagon Johnson's Ella's Song lyrics here).  So it's no surprise that one of the finest social justice organizations in America bears her name, nor that its president, Van Jones, is carrying on in her tradition.

The Ella Baker Center will hold a Step It Up rally in conjunction with organizers in Berkeley, CA on November 3, urging Bay Area Senators and Representatives to get behind the three 1Sky priorities. And one of those priorities-a massive Green Jobs campaign-is largely the brainchild of Van and his colleagues, as he explains here:

When we talk about global warming, we often focus on the danger-it's hard not to, when the Arctic is melting like an ice cream on an Oakland summer afternoon. But responding to climate change offers opportunity too-the opportunity, above all, to undo some of the injustice that plagues our economy.

We've done a careful analysis of the Green Jobs that would be created if we moved aggressively to retrofit homes and businesses with insulation and tight windows, if we installed solar panels and windmills, if we took seriously the energy challenge. We're not talking thousands of jobs-we're talking millions of jobs.

But we need to make sure that those jobs go where they're needed the most-to the Americans who have never really had a chance to participate in the American economic dream. We need the kind of job training that will take people from the inner cities and make them pioneers on the frontiers of energy conservation and renewable power. That will take money.

It's money we need to spend, though. Environmental economists have begun to teach us the folly of not counting ecological costs-of pretending that it costs nothing to simply pour carbon into the atmosphere. In just the same way we need to start counting social costs. Sending people to prison because they don't have a job costs big bucks-and it costs us our communities too.

Over the next two years we need to work with allies across the environmental movement to see our small beginnings swell into a green wave, one whose effects can be measured in the atmosphere and also in the streets. Let's Step It Up-together. Ella Baker once said, "give light and people will find the way." We like the metaphor--and in our fight for new energy we take her literally too.

Lucy Stone

Today's Action Spotlight comes from West Brookfield, MA where on Nov. 3rd the environmental heroes of tomorrow (and today!) will gather at the birthplace of early women's rights activist Lucy Stone.  Read on to learn about Lucy's life story, and how Step It Up 2 is proudly following in her tactical footsteps:

Lucy Stone was born in 1818 on a farm in West Brookfield, Massachusetts. In 1847, she was one of the first women to graduate from college (Oberlin). She paid her entire tuition after her father refused because she was a girl. One of the first to do so, she devoted herself to women's rights and made a career as an orator. Lucy Stone was the  organizer and leader of the First National Women's Rights Convention, held in Worcester, Massachusetts where Lucretia Mott, Frederick Douglass, and Sojourner Truth were a few of the speakers. Shortly thereafter, Susan B. Anthony joined the cause for women's suffrage from the writings of Lucy Stone. When Henry Blackwell finally convinced Lucy to marry him, it was contingent upon her keeping her own name. She was instrumental in the fight for women's rights and it is interesting to note and of direct consequence on the Step It Up campaign that Lucy Stone "developed a systematic process of petitioning legislators that thereafter became the AWSA's (American Women Suffrage Association) trademark: she polled all the candidates about their attitudes on women's rights and published the names of those who supported expansion of the franchise, encouraging others to focus in on targeted politicians for future petition drives." (xvii,Lucy Stone: Pioneer of Women's Rights by Alice Stone Blackwell)

Lucy Stone is an excellent example of a leader for the Step It Up campaign. She led a grassroots that became a national campaign to make changes in the legislature and in popular opinion. It is with much honor that we tread on the same ground as Lucy Stone did. We are planning a fun afternoon of games, crafts and ideas to spread the green news. If you're in the area, come join us at the Lucy Stone Homesite to learn about ways to be a climate leader and to celebrate the National Day of Climate Action! Come and stand where Lucy Stone was inspired to devote her life to women's rights. We, too, can be inspired to make changes, one step at time, to save and protect our beautiful earth.

Thanks West Brookfield for Stepping it Up, and to organizer Laura MacL�achlan for this blog post!

A few days ago we heard the unfortunate news that Kansas Senator Sam Brownback has dropped out of the Republican presidential race. Despite receiving over 40 invitations to attend Step It Up events, Sen. Brownback decided to step away from the limelight, and spend more time in his home state.

Luckily for us, author, journalist, and satirical pundit Stephen Colbert has decided to fill the Brownback void by announcing that he too will be running for president! (in South Carolina). Regardless of his single state candidacy, we think that a leader like Colbert should be welcomed in all 50 states. As with all our leaders, political or otherwise, we encourage everyone to invite respectable public figures of all kinds to your events. Feel free to call, e-mail and write letters to Mr. Colbert, not in place of, but in addition to your local and state representatives. Welcome to the Big List Stephen!

As the pace picks up with 10 days left before November 3rd, we're starting to get more confirmations from politicians...

Today Rep. Michael Michaud of Maine (left) and Rep. Joe Donnelly of Indiana (right) both confirmed that they will be attending Step It Up events and coming to address the 1Sky priorities on November 3rd.  You might think that 10 days left isn't enough time to keep getting confirmations from politicians.  But from all the accounts we're getting, now is the best time to follow-up by phone and ask to speak with schedulers again about November 3rd events near you.�

So click here to invite all the leaders -- and start by making a phone call today.

We're approaching the 8,000 invitation mark, and all those invitations are paying off.  Now let's make sure our politicians follow through and take the time to meet with their constituents about this most important issue.  Onwards...

By now, you probably know that we here at Step It Up HQ are technology geeks. When we see a new and exciting gadget that will help us get the word out, we like to try it out. Well, the newest one we've come across is text messaging on cellphones. So far, people in cities have used text messages to gather large groups of people at specific places and times in what are called flash mobs. We can harness the popularity of text messaging to increase the speed and efficiency of our community organizations and gather people together at a split-second notice.

One group, a friend and ally of ours, has also begun to use text messaging to spread important information to consumers concerned about climate change.

Climate Counts is a non-profit campaign that scores companies annually on the strength of their voluntary actions to reverse climate change. To help consumers get access to scores when they're actually shopping, Climate Counts has partnered with Working Assets Wireless on a mobile phone activism program called Climate Counts On-The-Go. �

With Climate Counts On-The-Go, just text "cc" and then the name of the company you're curious about to 30644, and get the Climate Counts ranking of a company delivered right to your phone. Climate Counts is already planning the next phase of the campaign, where people who use i�t will not just be able to receive climate information but will be able to use their phones to interact with scored companies as well.

Climate Counts is using the new technology of text messages to help people make informed decisions, and in that way, they're broadening the way people relate to the climate movement. If you're in the middle of organizing your own Step It Up event for November 3 and you plan to buy, say, some paper to make posters, or if you're attending an event and plan to buy a snack on the way, use your thumbs to see how the companies you know line up.

Though Step It Up headquarters is now in New Hampshire, as Vermont organizer, Johanna Miller, writes� in this piece, Vermont was the real place of origin of the Step It Up effort.  So it's with great pleasure that we're sharing Johanna's guest post about their plans in Montpelier.  This event is a great example of how to combine our focus on national action with more local, state change.  Keep it up, VT!

Vermont is blessed with a long, rich history linked to many things threatened by global warming � maple sugaring, magnificent fall foliage, skiing.� The Green Mountain State is also blessed with Congressional leaders standing at the forefront of the national discussion and calling for aggressive action now. Vermont�s esteemed Senator Bernie Sanders, in fact, is the lead sponsor of the most aggressive climate change bill currently under consideration in Congress. Senator Patrick Leahy and Congressman Peter Welch are also strong supporters of substantive action on climate change.

Ironically, however, our �green� state is led by a Governor who, in theory, supports action on climate change. In reality, however, Governor Jim Douglas vetoed a promising climate change and energy bill passed handily by the Legislature. Clearly, the Governor needs to STEP IT UP.

That�s why, on November 3 on the steps of the capitol in Montpelier, our Step It Up rally will focus primarily on the governor. We�re employing several fun elements to highlight this glaring absence of leadership. First, we are serving homemade Vermont apple pie and Ben & Jerry�s ice cream. Why? Because leadership on the most pressing environmental challenge of our time is as American as apple pie and ice cream.

Attendees will also hear from Vermont�s former Governor Phil Hoff, a leader who mustered the courage necessary to tackle the most important issue of his generation � civil rights. Many people attribute Governor Hoff�s leadership, which included starting a Civil Rights Commission in Vermont, with helping to catalyze the success of the civil rights movement nationwide.

Governor Douglas is invited, once again, to attend our Step It Up event and sign a pledge to reduce Vermont�s GHG emissions 80 percent by 2050. We will have a chair onstage for the Governor, which we hope will not remain empty. If it does, we have asked regular Vermonters to help ensure Vermont leads by expressing what they would do if they were Governor. In 250 words or less, we are asking people to put forward their ideas for tackling climate change. Organizers will deliver these testimonials to the Governor (and to area newspapers, as writers allow). Groovy music from the Great Brook Blues Band, including their own call to the Governor, titled �Big Boss Guv,� will be part of the festivities.

As the origin of the Step It Up movement � starting first with a five-day walk across Vermont and, then, seeding the amazing partnership among the Step It Up team � Vermont has a unique place in this movement. While we are proudly leading on one hand, we are falling far behind on the other. We hope hundreds of impassioned Vermonters will stand up and be counted on November 3. Help counter the Governor�s milquetoast response to the climate change crisis by calling real, substantive action. Step It Up, Congress! Step It Up, Vermont! Cut carbon 80 percent by 2050!

Hope to see you there� 

(The views and opinions expressed in the blog do not reflect Step It Up's organizational position.)

�

Check out a couple of int�erviews� with Bill �McKibben yesterday that hit the� airwaves:

�Click the button for streaming audio

�*S�tep It Up on Democracy Now! with radio heroine Amy Goodman�

*Step It Up on WBUR, Boston Public Radio talk show Here & Now�

You can feel the momentum picking up... 

We just surpassed the moment when 7,000 invitation had been sent to politicians -- and we didn't even manage to blog about flying past the 6,000 invitation mark, we're moving that quickly.  Now, don't forget to follow-up your invitations with phone calls to campaign or congressional offices and asking to speak with the scheduler.  That's the best way to ensure we'll have some leaders attending events on November 3rd.

And with Power Shift and Step It Up right around the corner, new energy and creativity is bubbling up all around.  Check out the latest response to the Green Finger Video posting by some young leaders at Sidwell Friends School in Washington D.C.

��Our friend Tom Jackson, being very supportive of Step It Up, is offering organizers FREE DVD copies of his amazing movie Out of Balance.  All you have to do is email a description of your Step It Up event, as well as a shipping address, to here.  Check out below more information about Out of Balance:

Think Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth and take it one step further. Out of Balance is an expose on the largest, most powerful oil company in the world.  Director Tom Jackson clearly points the finger at ExxonMobil for using its immense power to block efforts to wean us from our addition to oil.

Featuring commentary from Bill Mckibben and RK Pachauri, Chairman of the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), a co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore.

In its quest for even greater power and wealth, ExxonMobil, rather than help define and defeat the problem of global warming, has used the media to misinform the public, blatantly ignoring the health of our planet and its inhabitants.

A group of scientists, business executives and environmentalists are determined to battle and overcome this greedy Goliath.  Out of Balance lends hope by giving solutions which will not only save the ecosystem, but ensure future generations have a livable planet.

� We can only watch in a kind of sad horror as flames devastate one of the richest parts of the richest nation on earth. There's no refuge from a changing earth anywhere--I've spent the day worrying about my aunt, who was evacuated near San Diego yesterday. These are, we pray, temporary environmental refugees, but they're just as scared and scarred as people around the world who face disastrous change--the UN says we may see 450 million people fleeing environmental devastation by mid-century.

�Watching from a distance, we can't help put out the flames or shelter the afflicted. All we can do is try to make it less likely that these disasters spread, by trying to bring global warming under some kind of control. That's what Nov. 3 is all about--call it firefighting on a large scale, at the very center of the blaze. Write your politicians and tell them you're scared, you're angry, and you want to see them out on November� 3 to explain what the hell they're planning to do.

Click here for LA Times coverage of the fires.

Click here for San Diego Union Tribune coverage.

Click here for Bill's interview with Democracy Now about the fires.

The big day is just around the corner, and more and more organizers all across the country are getting their plans together in wonderful ways.  Slowly but surely we're hearing back from members of Congress and presidential candidates.  Though, it doesn't hurt to give them another follow-up call to speak with a scheduler directly and try to work out the best plan for having them attend an event.

And irregardless of politicians attendance, there are some great plans for fun and truly meaningful actions on November 3rd.  Not only that, but a few actions are getting so organized that they have action websites of their own.  Check out the ones for Atlanta and Boston:

Boston: http://www.stepitupboston.com/

Atlanta: http://www.stepitupatlanta.org/

Keep up the great work everyone.  We're entering the home stretch...

I figured it was time to introduce myself before it was too late and we all get caught up in the success of Nov. 3rd.  My name is Lauren and I�m new to the Step It Up crew and feel very fortunate to be apart this exciting and energetic grass roots movement.   I was a local Step It Up organizer, yes one of the 1,400, in my community here in beautiful New Hampshire last April 14th.  I really loved the experience of being able to bring several communities together to rally around the same cause, and learned one of the most valuable lessons in my life so far; organizing isn�t hard, it�s actually pretty fun and everyone can do it.  If I could throw together an event in about two weeks while trying to graduate and plan for the future, you can still do it too.

For our work this fall, I�ve been focusing on working with candidates to get commitments from them to attend a Step It Up event on Nov 3rd.  With many of my interactions with campaigns I�ve been able to see how all the invitations and phone calls that each of us make really has an impact on what the candidates are saying and how they gauge what is important to the people.  So if there is anything we all need to do is to keep it up; our most powerful resource is our voice, and collectively we can�t be ignored on Nov. 3rd.     

So as I continue to contact these campaigns until they commit, I hope that you will join me, even if you�ve already invited everyone. Being in crunch time with Nov 3rd just around the corner, it�s important to remember what it is that motivates us to put so much time and energy into working for change.  For me it�s my family and my little brother�s future. What�s your motivation?

We are really excited about the great event being planned down in New Orleans for Nov 3rd by several motivated Tulane students.  In the words of organizer Lauren Sher
�The city of New Orleans, of all places, can attest to the affects of global warming. Katrina was a signal to the world that w�e can no longer stand on the sidelines. It's time to take a stand and demand leaders STEP IT UP and get serious about our future.�

The event kicks off with a sweet rally that flows into a second line parade down the city streets to the Super Dome where they will join with football fans to take a group picture with a clear message calling for national action on climate change.  Among the attendees include City council members, representatives from the Gulf Coast Restoration Network and the Alliance of Affordable Energy and hundreds of New Orleans citizens and Tulane students.

Oh and Senator John Edwards will be there as well!

How did it work out that these New Orleans organizers were able to get Edwards at their event? One word: persistence, and maybe some luck.  All of our leaders are well aware of Step It Up on Nov 3rd thanks to your thousands of invitations, yet we all need to follow up with them on the phone, more than o�nce, to get that confirmation of attendance.  Edwards himself, like many others, has been willing to attend a Step It Up event for quite some time, yet it�s their scheduler that we need to nail down on the logistics.  So don�t get discouraged if you haven�t gotten that commitment, courting a candidate to your event can be just like courting a date, it can take several tries with different angles, but at least no flowers or chocolates are necessary.  

Check out Bill's new post on the daily Kos:

Georgia10s excellent riposte to Tom Friedman made me think that everyone might enjoy seeing a few pictures--and that they might serve as further encouragement to email everyone y�ou ca�n think of with the Step It Up Invite Tool so that we can get our politicians to actua�lly come out and listen on Nov. 3. These snapshots (there are hundreds more to see at ste�pitup2007.org) came from our last round of actions on April 14, 2007 when people gathered in 1400 locations--by day's end everyone had uploaded pictures, and here are a few.

 

�

�

Key West--on the mainland's only coral reefs, an underwater demonstration--because those coral reefs will be gone in 30 years.

In lower Manhattan--thousands of people like these in blue, joining hands to form a 'sea of people' to show where the tide line will be in America's most expensive real estate

�

Out West--multi-day ascents of �glaciated peaks, which won't be glaciated much longer

In Salt Lake City--where Mayor Rocky Anderson led the charge

And so on and so on and so on.

The point is, people are already on the move, even if they haven't penetrated the Friedman bubble. There need to be many many more, however--which is why it would be awfully nice if you could spread the word to everyone you know about StepItUp on Nov. 3 � Many thanks,

Bill McKibben

p.s.--many Kossacks helped with rallies last time round--post more pics if you got 'em! Bill McKibben [email protected] �

He says he's got the strongest climate policy of any of the presidential candidates...But will he address the 1Sky priorities on November 3rd? Click here to make sure he attends a Step It Up event near you.

��

�This is what we are doing, as Lennox Yearwood of the Hip Hop Caucus put it so simply yesterday afternoon as he addresssed the gathering of seasoned and brand new activists at a Presbyterian Church in D.C..  The church was the site of the preparations for the No War No Warming action today and in the back of the sanctuary, artists finished stenciling signs, and put the finishing touches on banners, paper maiche globes, and several polar bear costumes as Yearwood spoke.  Today marks a historic day in the progressive movement, when two important dots are connected --- the war and global warming -- through a dozen or so creative direct actions on Capitol Hill.

With limited time, money, and energy, we often find ourselves becoming wholly focused on one issue, or even one organization, and are often unable to pick our heads up and see that our work and our energy could be strengthened through solidarity with other causes.  When more oil is used in combat in Iraq on a single day, than the entire country of Bangladesh (pop. 150 million) uses in a day, we know it is time to connect the dots.

Today over 200 folks demonstrated peacefully, with 70 of them risking arrest to show the urgency of these issues.  Through critical mass bike rides, rapping and dancing polar bears on the steps of the House Building, sit-ins on Independence Ave., and many other awesome visuals, they sufficiently caused a ruckus and shut things down for at least a few hours.  The action was successful today, both in the attention it drew from media and politicians, and the connections it bridged between these movements.  I was happy to be able to be on the ground here today to lend my support from the Step It Up crew as a legal observer to protect those who were willing to risk arrest.  But this is just another day in the movement - we have much more work to do- so let's keep it moving!  Not too much longer till Nov. 3rd.
�

Hey Organizers: we've got a great suggestion for you to promote your November 3 event. CNN is set to release a new documentary about climate change, and it airs tomorrow and the day after. You might consider having an event planning meeting and then watching the documentary, or even just sending an email to your co-organizers and encouraging them to watch it. Sometimes it's helpful to watch a film or T.V. program that reminds us why we're doing what we're doing. And those of you reading this who aren't November 3 organizers, well, I'm sure you read between the lines. You can watch this program too; and perhaps it will inspire you to take part in the grassroots mobilization on November 3.

Here's more about CNN's "Planet in Peril":

Planet In Peril is CNN�s new riveting documentary about climate change and its effects happening in real time.  Bringing viewers the stories behind the statistics, CNN anchor Anderson Cooper, chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Animal Planet host and wildlife biologist Jeff Corwin will focus on four main issues that threaten the planet and its inhabitants: climate change, deforestation, species loss and overpopulation. 
Planet in Peril, filmed across four continents and 13 countries, airs over two nights on CNN/U.S. on Tuesday, Oct. 23, and Wednesday, Oct. 24, from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. (ET/PT) and globally on CNN International.

�"Before you go, come up to the events platform with me," she said. I jumped up into the air and glided to a landing on the glass platform where a November 3 Step It Up action will be held. I flew there because the platform, decorated with a translucent Step It Up logo and a photo of Al Gore and the IPCC receiving the Nobel Prize for Peace, is suspended a few hundred feet above the ocean, off the coast of Better World, part of the web-based computer simulation world called Second Life.

The organizer of the event, Delia Lake, a virtual high-heeled brunette controlled by a real person staring at a computer screen somewhere, is one of the many Step It Up organizers around the country planning events for November 3. "I have an 8 hour day planned," explained Delia via online text chat. "Since second life has residents from around the world, we have not limited our event to the USA. We are expecting lots of people to come, and in fact 3 of our scheduled speakers are non-US." At 3 in the afternoon, speakers will give way to live music and dancing.

Is a virtual Step It Up event still an event, even if the people attending it are not meeting up face-to-face? Well, as it turns out, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John Edwards, along with a number of congresspeople have "avatars" (virtual representations of themselves) on Second Life, probably manned by clicking campaigners. Delia, a veteran Second Life organizer, has already invited the virtual candidates to her event.

Before you scoff at Second Life, and picture people in their underwear, staring at bright, buzzing computer screens in dark rooms, flying their avatars around virtual worlds and "attending" events, think about the fact that the online simulation just recently registered its 10 millionth member.

Delia expects more than 250 people to join her Step It Up event on Second Life, a good turnout, real or otherwise. The internet, in all its permutations, nooks and crannies, is an important tool for people to connect with each other, and as long as virtual activism turns into real activism, we're all for it! And who can resist live music and a dance party, even if it is virtual?

Click here to join Delia at her virtual event in Better World.

We knew we were doing well when Alpha Phi sorority girls sent us a pho�to from Texas last spring of their whole chapter smiling behind a Step It Up banner. This fall, we're thrilled to be featured in Cosmo Girl. Welcome CG fans - as Jess says, "Green Love and Girl Power!" That's a combo no politicians in their right mind should try and stand against . . . read on for the full post from cosmogirl.com:

Hey girls,

Do you ever feel like you want to do something to help the environment, but you're just not sure where to start? Well, I just learned that the organization Step It Up is holding a national rally to curb global warming on Sat.�, Nov. 3. I love this cause and the idea that girls everywhere can take a stand against global warming�on the same day!

In April, Step It Up held a national rally, like this one, with more than 1,400 events in 50 states, making it the largest global warming event in U.S. history! Girls from the sorority Alpha Phi at The University of Texas at Austin supported the cause with a sign that said, "Hey Congress! Step It Up! Cut Carbon 80% by 2050!"

Check out this speech that Tiffany Cordero gave (in front of 8,000 people!) at a rally in New York City in April.

Would you like to get involved with this awesome organization, and take a stand against global warming? Check to see if there'll be a Step It Up rally in your area on Nov. 3 here.

Green love and girl power!
Jess, Editorial Assistant

Here's an great way to help get the word out for November 3... 

We need to engage media sources of all kinds, everything from online blogs to local papers.  In addition to setting up meetings with the editors and writers of local news papers, a great way to get the message into papers is to write letters to the editor.  Check out the letter that Benton, Maine organizer, Linda Woods, had published in her local paper: click here.

We have other tips and resources for ways to get media attention for Step It Up in your area in the Media section of the Organizer Headquarters.

And click here to see other great ways to spread the word.  Thanks, everyone.  Keep up the great work. 

Today we welcome guest blogger Deirdre Gill from the blog "Green Guide for Kids" to hear about how to harness kids' abundant energy and idealism for the good of the planet, where to find resources geared towards kids, and her awesome collaborative art project/Step It Up action on November 3rd: 

I was nine years old when I learned that human beings were polluting the planet and I remember feeling two things. The first being dismay and the second hope. I was so eager for someone to tell me what I could do to make an impact. My teachers and parents taught me what they knew about the environment and what actions could be taken to help solve the crisis. Having this information and taking small but meaningful actions made me feel like I was part of the solution and helped curb the anxiety I felt.

Watch any five year old for a few seconds and you'll see that kids have a real need to be in constant motion. That urge for kids to get up and go is why kids are such a powerful force to change the world.  While most adults stand around and talk about doing things, kids do things.

It is with this in mind that I decided to write a green guide for kids and start a website. My goal is to provide an accessible guide for kids to get the facts on the environment and learn about ways they can take action. I try to make these activities practical so that children can do them on their own without the help of an adult. I also try to encourage kids to develop a relationship with nature so that when they grow up they will continue to take care of the environment.

There is a wealth of information out there on living more environmentally sustainable lives that adults can help kids filter through. Teachers can search by topic and grade level for projects, lesson plans, and other resources through the Green Database on Edutopia.org and through The Edible Shoolyard. I am also really impressed by the numerous environmental community organizations for children I have come across. Among them are Teens for the Planet Earth, Global Kids, The Jason Project, Green Guerillas, and my favorite, Roots & Shoots.

For my November 3rd action we will be gathering at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn to paint our Step it Up banner. The plan is to start with a long scroll of paper with our main message. Then all participants will color, write, paint, or collage their own messages onto the banner. The scroll can be unrolled on either end to make sure that there is unlimited room for all the inspired contributers. When we hold it up for politicians and entire the country to see, we will have created a message that is personal for all of us.

One of the great joys of working on Step It Up is the opportunity to talk with hundreds of organizers around the country who are pulling together an event for November 3rd. It's a diverse group, from seasoned activists to first-time organizers, grandmothers to high school students, and city-dwellers to people in rural places.

Above all, it's an incredibly hopeful array of individuals and communities - - more than any new technology or scientific report, it's this coming together, what Bill McKibben refers to as the "technology of community,"  that convinces us we can do something about this crisis.

Just a few moments ago, I talked with Anne Marie Treger who just signed up an event for Summit, New Jersey today. She took part in an event last April 14 with her children and had a great time, but wanted to draw out even more people to the next gathering in Summit. Until recently, however, she hadn't heard of Step It Up's plans for November 3rd. Then, she heard Bill on the radio talking, as he often does, about Step It Up and how this initiative came together - bubbling up from the grassroots and sustained by thousands of people across the country.

With 16 days left until November 3rd and a busy personal life, Anne Marie decided that she had to take action. And before you could say "80% by 2050" she had found a historic place, contacted local speakers, and signed up the event on our website. It can seem intimidating to take those first steps, she told me on the phone, but now she's well on her way to organizing a great action and has already accomplished more than she thought possible in a few short days.

That's exactly the spirit we're looking for - the initiative to take a leap of faith and sign up an event for your community. It's a leap of faith that we're all taking together. There's no guarantee that Step It Up will break through the noise and money in Washington, but we think organizing in our communities, that coming together that Bill refers to, is our best chance to make a difference.

If you haven't yet signed up your event, take the time to do so now - or join up with an event in your community and help chip in to make it a success. There's still plenty of time. And with your help, November 3rd will be another important step in this growing movement to stop global warming.

Step It Up organizer Roger Shamel asked presidential candidate Bill Richardson to attend a Step It Up event on November 3rd. Richardson was rendered speechless. Will he address the 1 Sky priorities at a Step It Up event? Help us get an answer by sending him an invitation here.

 

Breaking News--our blogger friends over at Firedoglake have just posted about Step It Up! Check it out here.

You may remember a while back how Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson shot a video addressing  every mayor in the country encouraging them to Step It Up, to join the action on November 3rd and commit to supporting the 1 Sky priorities in their cities. Daniel Bell, one of our stellar organizers, used his Iowa charm to squeeze a question about Step It Up into an interview with the mayor of Berkley, Tom Bates in response to "Rocky's Challenge." Check it out:

The City of Berkley has big plans for reducing their emissions. They're leading the way  in their State, and they're ready to see some climate leadership at the federal level. Berkley is so psyched about Stepping It Up they'll be hosting 3 November 3rd events within a 5 mile radius of each other! Well done Berkley, and thank you Mayor Bates!

For all of you diligently charging ahead with the nitty gritty of organizing (for November 3rd actions or anything else), here's something you might find to be both an enjoyable and useful, quick break... 

We're pleased to announce that the book, Fight Global Warming Now, has just been released.  This book, co-authored by our crew here at Step It Up headquarters, was really a collaborative project of all the Step It Up organizers from the April 14th day of action and other climate activists across the country, who shared their stories and insights on organizing in the climate movement.

The sub-title for the book is The Handbook for Taking Action in Your Community, and it is intended to offer a few accounts and tips on how to effectively organize within local communities while also striving for national, even global change.  It's a quick read, and you might even find it useful in the last few stages of your preparation for November 3 -- particularly the chapter called "Make It Snappy," which contains a few ideas on how to pull of effective action on short notice.

We're no experts on organizing.  We're all young and haven't been doing this sort of thing for long.  But with the help of everyone that contributed stories and ideas, the book turned out alright.  So a BIG THANKS to everyone that helped us put it together!  Enjoy, and then, of course, get out there and organize.

Just two short days ago, we had a mere 4,000 invitations, but NOW, we're half way to quintuple digits! If we can get 1,000 invitations and a presidential candidate confirmation every two days, we'll be set. Keep up the great work! Our phones are ringing off the hook these days with Congressional schedulers calling the office to hear more about your events. We're now approaching a proverbial RED ZONE where schedulers are on the prowl for the best events to send their congressmen to. They want something local powerful, meaningful, and seductive to the media, and our events are perfect. Let's keep calling schedulers, and let those invites flow like wine.

Most of you should hear from us within the next couple weeks as well. We're always working hard to answer your questions and get a better sense of what people are up to. Right now our organizer headquarters is brimming with freshly updated suggestions, anecdotes, and materials. Please take a glance or two, and don't hesitate to e-mail the team with your questions and comments. Rock on!

So I am the newbie around here, and want to take a moment to introduce myself.  Like many of us, I just graduated from Middlebury College, spent the summer in New Hampshire with the Climate Summer project, and originally got started doing climate stuff at Middlebury with the Sunday Night Group.  However, some might claim that my heart lies in Montana, where I spent the past two months working in Glacier National Park as a boat captain and tour guide for the Glacier Park Boat Company.

Two seasons working in the park has fostered a deep respect for the natural beauty of the area, and anyone who knows me has heard far too much about my time spent there.  As a lover of everything mountainous, it�s hard not to fall for the snow-capped peaks, glacially carved valleys and stark landscape. And, of course, it is difficult to avoid thinking about global climate change.  With arguably only 19 glaciers left of the 150 evident when the park was established in 1910, the park finds itself in a dramatic state of change.  Hiking up to the Grinnell glacier, which struck visitors in the past with its sheer magnificence, tourists are now faced with mere evidence of former beauty. While still striking (after all,  it's no fault of the glaciers), the dwindling glaciers are part of a provocative landscape that offers the perfect opportunity to talk about the impact of climate change.

Working as a boat tour guide within this landscape both enables me to educate people about global warming and inspires me to continue the work of getting the U.S. to actually do something about it. And, of course it is not a bad way to spend two months. Yet to now live here in New Hampshire, surrounded by amazing people and hearing about the hard work that you folks are doing across the county, is pretty incredible.  Keep inspiring, everyone!

This just in: NY Congresswoman Kristen Gillibrand just accepted an invitation to attend a Step It Up rally. This follows up her in-district appearance last April - welcome back Kirsten! The NY 20th district has 6 Step It Up actions either within the district or along the border. One of our all-star organizers, Councilwoman Judy Villa-White has been in close communication with the local office, which will be sending a field representative to her November 3rd Glens Falls Event. Not only that, but the office will be working on making a Rocky-style YouTube video addressing her constituents in each of the neighboring events, that way they all know how she plans to confront climate change.

This RSVP goes to show that persistence from local organizers is the most effective way to really get your congressmen/women to respond. Keep up the great work!

Yesterday, Bill posted a diary (his first ever!) up on the Daily Kos. Thanks to all the Kossacks who responded and are getting involved in the campaign. With any luck, our Invite Counter will push past 5,000 invites - - and we're having some very promising talks with Congressional and Presidential Candidate's schedulers about attending events. Remember, call your politicians and get them out on Nov. 3rd! Here's the post from Bill:

After several years of constant lurking, and occasionally writing about Kos in the MSM and even getting to speak at Yearly Kos, this is my first post. It's because I want to ask folks to take a few minutes to help us with a project and introduce you to a new tool we've developed to make it happen.

Some of you may remember the Step It Up rallies that we organized in the spring--1,400 rallies in all 50 states that helped make calls for 80% cuts in carbon emissions a standard part of the global warming debate.  We're at it again--on Nov. 3 we're holding demonstrations all across the country (well, except in North Dakota, at least so far). This time we're trying to cut the number down a little bit (last time we had a bit of the cannibalization problem that Starbucks must encounter when opening new sites) and instead concentrating on getting politicians to actually come address the issue, head-on no excuses, tell us what the hell you're going to do. (You can see the map of all the rallies so far at stepitup07.org, and it's not too late to organize one in your community.)

To get the politicians out to these gatherings, we've invented (well, not me--I'm not really the software-engineering type) an new little widget that allows you to easily send invitations to both your Senators, your Congressperson, and all 17 presidential candidates, inviting them to the nearest rally. It won't take more than a few minutes.

And it works. We debuted this tool last week, and now people are inviting their politicians by the hundreds every hour. And we're starting to get RSVPs. Over the last few days Edwards, Kucinich, and McCain have all agreed to come on. The word is spreading fast--here's an op-ed in the LA Times this morning,  and a post from Grist. But we can make this a juggernaut if everyone will take a few minutes and do some heavy duty clicking.

Look--I've been working on this stuff for twenty years, ever since I wrote the first book for a general audience about global warming. There's finally the start of a real political movement (and the Nobels last week really helped). But at the moment we're losing the race: Arctic sea ice is melting so fast that even scientists are shaken. If they're shaken, then we better be stirred to action. This is the easiest opportunity you're ever going to get to help out (there will be harder ones ahead) Many many thanks!

Last March, Van Jones, the visionary leader of our ally the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights and now Green For All, said this in an interview:

We need to send hundreds of millions of dollars down to our public high schools, vocational colleges, and community colleges to begin training people in the green-collar work of the future -- things like solar-panel installation, retrofitting buildings that are leaking energy, wastewater reclamation, organic food, materials reuse and recycling.

Since then, Van has been making this vision a reality. His Green For All has been taking off, winning accolades from members of congress and presidential candidates and was recently recognized at the Clinton Global Initiative and highlighted by Bill himself. 

"Green Jobs Now" is the first of our three priorities that we want every politician to address on November 3rd. What's their plan to make sure the new energy economy is a just one? How much money are they willing to invest to train people from disadvantaged communities in green jobs? How well do they articulate a vision for the future that values our human resources just as much as our natural resources?

If you're organizing a Step It Up event for November 3rd, think about how you can integrate the message of Green Jobs Now into your rally. How about wearing some hard hats? Or getting a speaker from a local Boys and Girls Club or YMCA to talk about job creation? It can be as creative as putting up a solar panel yourself to as simple as a community discussion - - whatever it is, let's make sure our call for Green Jobs Now resonates loud and clear on November 3rd and into the future.

Together, we can help ensure that the coming green economic wave lifts all boats.

Here's the latest dispatch on Grist: �

You can advance many great arguments against making Iowa and New Hampshire the bellwethers of our political life: they are pale, unrepresentative, rural, and obsessed with a few issues (the price of corn has doubled in the last year due to the ethanol boom, which in turn is due to the Iowa caucus). But one argument that their backers always make rings true as well: in an America so oversized that politics takes on an entirely abstract feeling, in these two states the presidential candidates actually engage with citizens. The New Hampshire primary and the Iowa caucus offer the only punctures in the airless sphere that is high-level American political life -- the only chance for regular people to get inside for a moment.

What do I mean? Here's what I mean:

At noon last Saturday, a few of us were sitting around the Step It Up 2 offices along Elm St. in Manchester, N.H., eating a lunch we'd carried in from a nearby diner. We looked out the window, and there was Dennis Kucinich peering in at our signs and banners. Lindsay Franklin grabbed the Flip camera and ran out on the sidewalk where she asked him if he'd come to one of the Step It Up events on Nov. 3 and give a talk. Sure, he said -- and with that we had our first commitment from a presidential candidate. 

The second came 10 or 15 seconds later, when someone's cell phone buzzed. Ian Hough and Zo Tobi were two blocks down the street, listening to John McCain speak at a forum organized by Clean Air-Cool Planet. When question time came, they stepped up to the mike and asked the senator if he'd come to a Step It Up rally, and he said yes, if he got an invitation. We didn't bother telling him he'd already received several hundred through the invite tool on our website -- ace organizer Roger Shamel simply got up from the audience and handed him a hard-copy invitation. Not only that, but McCain said he might support a moratorium on new coal-fired power as long as we could show him possible alternatives.

Before the day was out, we'd also heard from John Edwards...

Click here to continue reading this article on Grist.

Breaking News!

Senator John Edwards will be part of Step It Up on November 3!  After Stepping It Up last April 14th in Fort Myers, Florida, Senator Edwards is looking forward to taking part again.  This time around he'll be in New Orleans for the big day joining in with the Second Line Parade organized by Tulane students and the organization Healthy Gulf.   Edwards responded to our collective call for leadership after 120 invitations were sent his way by Step It Up organizers and supporters.

How many invites will it take for other leaders to commit? Senator Hillary Clinton has received 250 to date and Senator Barack Obama has received almost 170.   

Now that a handful of presidential candidates have RSVP'd, it's a great time to remind your elected officials about your event. Give them a call today--we've found that calls really make the difference. And while your at it, don't hesitate to call us here at Step IT Up Action Center, we'd love to hear how things are shaping up with your events and inviting your leaders. 

So we really like this idea of the green finger - the vision of thousands of green fingers raised around the country on a single day this fall, united together to work on a common cause that day, each with their own reason for being there hidden beneath their index finger.  And it wouldn't stop there - all the way through the election, the movement would keep building, people joining in solidarity from all around the country, to post their response of why they were committed to fighting global warming. 

But we had no idea if anyone else would think it was cool.  Until we got this sweet video from the place where all cool trends start, New York City.   Check out what the New York Step It Up organizers made at their last organizing meeting:

Check out this opinion piece by Bill McKibben in today's Los Angeles Times. We're using the internet in new and exciting ways to take real action, and we're more than the sum of our parts.

The power of the click

click here to see the article at latimes.com

Wow. What a weekend! In less than a week we sent more than a thousand invitations to candidates for federal office, giving us a total of 4,000 personal requests for an appearance at a November 3rd event. These invitations themselves were an astounding feat, but the best part? It's working! Just this weekend, two presidential candidates agreed to join the movement of concerned citizens ready to confront climate change. It just goes to show that politicians really do care about our requests - the fact that communities all across the country are doing something about this problem is a big deal for the leadership of our country. McCain's response in particular goes to show that democrats aren't always the ones leading the way on this issue. Who will step it up next? Who's a leader?

Our most successful efforts so far have come from organizers who called district offices directly, or sent hand written letters. Nothing beats getting a real person on the phone though, so be sure to call, and ask for the scheduler. Be sure to call both Democrats and Republicans- they both want our votes. Let's keep those invites coming, and the RSVPs will surely come rolling in. Great work everyone!

How about this for a double-play? Not only did we receive word from presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich that he would attend a Step It Up event on November 3, but we got one from across the aisle as well. Senator John McCain, a Republican frontrunner in the presidential primaries, committed to attending an event, wherever he will be on that date.

McCain introduced significant climate legislation in the US congress in 2003, but will he address the issues of coal-fire power plants, green jobs and an 80% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050? Climate change is a bi-partisan issue, and we here at Step It Up headquarters feel that any candidate who addresses the issue is on the right track.

We can't compromise on climate, and politicians from the left, right and everywhere in between need to be on board to make sure that we pass bold and comprehensive legislation. Invite Senator McCain to your event on November 3 by clicking here, and ask him to address the 1Sky priorities.

Well, we finally got the first confirmation from a presidential candidate on Friday. We were sitting in our office and saw Congressman Dennis Kucinich walk by our front door, taking a moment to peek through the window before continuing on at a quick clip. Luckily, we spotted him and chased him down to get this video commitment to attend a November 3 Step It Up action.

If you want Dennis to attend your rally, click here to invite him. Let's make sure all of the other presidential candidates follow suit--we want to make sure that every politician addresses the three 1Sky priorities on November 3rd.

It seems quite appropriate that today, on "Blog Action Day", there's going to be some BIG action and announcements on our blog here at Step It Up -- stay tuned later on today.

Blog Action Day is a unique day with 15,000 blogs signed up to write about something related to the environment.  That's not too hard for us here at Step It Up (climate being our thing and all), but it's fun to join in such a widespread effort.  And our hope is that some of those blogs will write about the exciting work all of you are doing gearing up for November 3, when we'll take our online action to the streets!

So, keep your eyes peeled for interesting environmental news out in the blogosphere today.  And stay tuned here for some exciting announcements...

Normally, we'd encourage you to check back and read our blog every day. But tomorrow is a day to take a break and give Mother Earth a rest from the constant drain of laptops, lights, microwaves, and all the other things that require electricity. Get outside (maybe to put up fliers for your Step It Up event?) and celebrate nature as part of "Unplug Day." Read on for an explanation from the crew behind Unplug Day 2007:

The "Unplug America" campaign was introduced by Indigenous Peoples in 1992 in response to the 500 year anniversary of the arrival of Columbus to the Americas. October 13, 1992 was designated as a starting point to look forward to the next 500 years and work to make a sustainable and just world, starting by giving Mother Earth a rest!

Unplug Day is an invitation to all people to show our love and respect for Mother Earth by challenging unhealthy patterns of consumption and the continued production of poisons that destroy our environment. October 13th is a day to unplug � turn off the TV and radio, shut off the taps, and leave the fossil-fuel burning vehicle at home! Instead, take a walk with friends and family, tell stories, do something artistic, and say a prayer for Mother Earth and our communities. It's only one day but also a first step in reducing our carbon footprint, exploring consumer choices and ways of life that are more healthy and sustainable, and acting for future generations.

Please join us in celebrating life and honoring the interdependency of all things!

Unplug Day 2007 is sponsored by the Indigenous Environmental Network, the Seventh Generation Fund, and Honor the Earth. 

The news that Al Gore and the IPCC will share this year's Nobel Peace Prize couldn't have made us any happier (though if we were on the committee we would have added Jim Hansen to the list).  We think the Nobel Committee is aiming its message squarely at Americans, the last developed country in the world not taking this problem seriously--and we think they're saying "the rest of the planet has long since made up its mind about global warming -- isn't it time you Americans paid a little more attention?"

Of all the items we've read across the blogosphere this morning about the prize, we liked the one from Josh Marshall at TalkingPointsMemo.com about the best--especially because it ended this way: "Where can we go from here?"

The whole point of our stepitup07.org efforts is to find the next Al Gores, the politicians who are going to stand up and actually lead on this issue. Remember, Al Gore was a Senator when he started this work, a Senator sitting in hearings, listening to scientists, eventually taking a crucial role at the front of the parade. He did it without a movement prodding him along--but he's an exceptional case. It's clear that most of our politicians, who are going to need to make tough calls in the next two or three years, badly need to hear from their constituents.

Today, all kinds of people are badgering Gore to run for president. Which is fine by us. But even if he does, and even if he wins, he's going to need a lot of committed people in Congress to get anything done. And if he doesn't, we can't have the rest of the presidential field just thinking that climate change is 'Al Gore's issue.' Stepitup07.org is about using people power to create new leaders.

If there's any way to celebrate this great prize, it's by inviting a dozen politicians, right now, to see who's actually serious.

We've got another one! We just got word from Western Massachusetts that Congressman John Olver will be attending a Step It Up event in Lenox, MA. (That's the Congressman, second from the left, in the photo).

We should have known we could count on Lenox to get their Congressman - the organizer of the Step It Up event there is none other than our friend and fellow climate champion Tom Stokes. Tom has been a leading force for pushing the United States to sign the Kyoto Protocol and help build an even stronger agreement that would take us beyond the Kyoto reduction targets.

He is also one of the founders of the Climate Crisis Coalition, a friend and ally of Step It Up that has been on the vanguard of the climate movement for years.  Their work has been commended by Al Gore and Pulitzer Prize winning author Ross Gelbspan. Along with supporting Step It Up, the Climate Crisis Coalition is organizing an event called "No War, No Warming" which will be taking place Oct. 21-23.

As you can see, Tom Stokes is a busy guy, and we're especially grateful that he's taken the time to pull together a Step It Up event. It goes to show that busy schedules and climate organizing can go hand in hand - and that it's not too late to put together a Step It Up event in your community. Sign up today and join the movement people like Tom are helping build!

Yesterday afternoon we heard great news from Representative Chris Carney�s office from District 10 in PA. While he can�t show up in person on November 3rd, his Regional Coordinator will be attending the Step It Up Central Susquehanna Valley event and issuing a statement from the Congressman himself!

If your representatives� schedulers are telling you they can�t make it, first of all, be persistent! If they won�t be near your event on November 3^rd, let them know there will be events across the country, and we can help direct them to the event closest to where they�ll be. If that doesn�t work, let them know they can issue a video statement, like Mayor Rocky Anderson�s video, or a written statement to be read at the rally. We know we need politicians who are ready to lead on global warming, and take action scaled to the problem � so this November 3^rd, let�s make sure they let their constituents know where they stand.

A few days ago Thomas Friedman wrote on Op-Ed in the New York Times called Generation Q-- as in the "quiet generation."  In the article, Mr. Friedman was referring to folks in their 20s, which happens to include all of us here at Step It Up headquarters (except Bill of course -- he's more...mature).  Today the Times was kind enough to publish my response...

To the Editor:

Looking for �activism and outrage,� eh? Well, I�m happy to report that there are at least some of us in our 20s working overtime to shake things up.

Heard of StepItUp2007.org (where I am a national coordinator) or maybe 1skycampaign.org or perhaps Powershift2007.org?

Before jumping to the conclusion that pointing people to Web sites is proving that our generation is �too online,� take a look at what we�re up to. More than anything we want a movement to take on global warming � to express our outrage and also our hope that we can do better.

We�re not just blogging and harnessing the power of online networks; we�re trying to inspire on-the-ground activism and political engagement. We�re using every tool we have, the Web included.

But we don�t just need more action from our generation. We need everyone to join the movement to fight global warming � now!

Will Bates
Manchester, N.H., Oct. 10, 2007

Click here to read the other letters to the editor responding to Generation Q.

Also, this Op-Ed story seems to be picking up some traffic on blogs and sites beyond the Times -- so much for not being "too online".  Click here to read what's being written, but then let's get back to the task of organizing for change.  

�

So, you th�ink we here in Manchester aren't working hard to get candidates out t�o your eve�nts? T�hink ag�ain! Here is a play-by-play of our interaction with Hillary yesterday that proves our devotion to you...��

12:30 - The crew leaves from our office, video camera in hand, ready to descend upon a Hillary event in Derry with awesome climate questions, and psyched to invite Hillary herself out to a November 3rd action.

12:45 - Said crew is thwarted by the fire marshall. Apparently, over 200 people can't fit into the Derry auditorium. A tad deflated, we head to lunch. Mmmm�fries and soggy eggplant.

2:00 - We return and our friends at the Hillary campaign manage to sneak us up to the receiving line. Our spirits up, we push ourselves into the chaos of New Hampshire voters clamoring to talk to the Senator.

2:10 - I am next in line, and Jamie is ready with the camera to film our interaction.

2:11 - Quick camera hand-off as Jamie gets shuffled away!

2:12 - I manage to grasp the Senators hand and ask her, personally, to attend a November 3rd event, and remind her that she has already received over 200 invitations. The camera's batteries, however, are dead.

2:13 - "Step it up? Step it Up?" she asks, looking around at her staff, "Do we know about this? Talk to my schedulers, and thank you for the invitation!" Or something like that.

2:14 - I get pushed towards her scheduler, and give him necessary information.

2:15 - But wait! We want Hillary on camera. So, Jamie manages another question down the line. In response to his question about global warming, she says, indicating the importance of the issue, "Well, that's it. That's the whole ball game, isn't it?"

Yes, Hillary, it is. So step it up and get out there on November 3rd!

Libuse Binder, author of Ten Ways to Change the World in Your Twenties, offers this guest post with a fun idea for Nov. 3 actions!

Earth�s current inhabitants have reached a critical juncture. As the world�s population grows, so do environmental and social concerns about such issues as global warming, poverty, and demand for non-renewable resources. However, this is not to say that we live in a society without hope. There are currently thousands of national and local organizations and businesses that are committed to causes such as sustainable living, green energy, fair trade, socially responsible investing, corporate responsibility, and humanitarianism. Ten Ways to Change the World in your Twenties is an organization and book which brings like-minded individuals together and offers tangible ways to make the world we are inheriting a better place.

In addition to describing fresh, easy to implement solutions, Ten Ways offers readers access to others in their local and global communities who share the same concern and initiative. Ten Ways taps into the potential of this energetic, influential generation of leaders and offers clear ideas for creating a world without global conflict, environmental mayhem, or poverty.

Ten Ways to Change the World in Your Twenties is a continual work in progress as organizations and individuals work together to formulate new ideas and strategies. Ten Ways is a friend and ally of Step It Up and asks those that can to throw a party with a purpose on November 3rd. Use your party as a way to gear up for the climate action nearest you or afterward to celebrate the day�s events. Remember your party should reflect your interests, so be as creative as you can! Don�t be afraid to ask your guests to dress up in funny costumes, play dodgeball, or just sit on the couch and talk about what you can do to promote clean energy, efficiency, and responsible business practices.

Choose activities that suit the interests of you and your friends, and everyone will have a great time. If you want to do more than raise awareness, you can even make it a benefit gala to help the Step it Up Team reach their goals. Simply ask your friends to bring a small donation rather than the usual host/hostess gift. Once you throw a party with a purpose on November 3rd, you will never want to throw a regular party again!  

Step It Up is focused on getting the U.S. moving on climate change, but we're part of a global movement of citizens working to stop global warming. Check out this latest report from the small Pacific Island nation of Palau!

After learning that Palau�s Minister of Resources and Development, Fritz Koshiba, had recently seen and felt moved by An Inconvenient Truth, Carolyn Barnwell, a friend of Step It Up and a 2007-2008 Thomas J. Watson Fellow researching climate change issues on islands, worked with Tarita Holm from the Ministry to organize a large film screening (in a country with no cinemas).  The aim was to give a large group of Palau�s leaders an opportunity to see and understand the possible impact of climate change, and spark discussion and collaboration.   

Carolyn spent the last few months focusing on understanding perceptions of climate change in states all around the country of Palau, when she decided it would be worthwhile to affect decision-makers� perceptions of climate change.  On October 5th, the top leaders in the Republic of Palau gathered to watch An Inconvenient Truth by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore at the Ngarachamayong Cultural Center.  The event was hosted by Bilung Gloria Salii and Minister Fritz Koshiba of the Ministry of Resources and Development, on behalf of President Remengesau, Jr. 

Numerous organizations around Palau (Belau National Museum, Bureau of Public Health, Coral Reef Research Foundation, Ngarachamayong Cultural Center, Palau Conservation Society, Palau Public Utilities Corporation, Palau Red Cross Society, Palau Visitor's Authority, Protected Areas Network Office, Roll'Em Productions and the Nature Conservancy) co-sponsored the event.  Having this variety of societal leaders was beneficial because, for example, leaders from Palau�s Olbiil Era Kelulau [Congress] did not know about the Red Cross� climate change public awareness campaign or disaster relief programs.  After the film, House of Delegates Vice Speaker Noah Idechong, who is the chairman of the Committee on Resources and Development, said that the House of Delegates is ready to create an inter-agency working group for climate change.  

An excerpt from the Island Times (vol. 2 no. 77) article:

"Ms. Barnwell was the guest speaker at the film screening and luncheon.  Scientists, she said, have confirmed that typhoons are getting stronger because of higher ocean temperatures, which means they are more destructive. "Palau has been very lucky in the past, but doesn't mean we will always be. We need to listen to what the scientists are telling us," she said.

She also lauded the government�s efforts in environmental protection and conservation and said she would share the information with the Step It Up movement, a social movement involved in addressing the climate crisis facing the world.

The movement has lobbied the US Congress for the passage of climate change legislation.  It held the largest environmental demonstration last April 14, the biggest since Earth Day 1970.�

Paramount Chief Ibedul Yutaka Gibbons said the film made him think seriously on the climate change issue.  He said he had heard about it in the past, but he didn't pay much attention to it.  He said in the next council of chiefs meeting he will put the enforcement of Traditional Bul protected areas as a top agenda priority.    

The momentum in Palau is indicative of the power of An Inconvenient Truth, using visual media to teach people about the climate crisis, and creating time and space for leaders to collaborate about addressing climate change.  After last Friday's film screening, President Remengesau urged the nation to play a proactive role in the worldwide problem of climate change.  Let�s hope America�s leaders Step It Up on Nov. 3rd !

We just did it! Amazingly, with your help, over 3000 invitations have now been sent to politicians and candidates nationwide.  With invitation all-stars like St. Paul organizer Wanda B. (or "Raging Granny" as she refers to herself), North Carolina  Reverend Rebecca Booher, or Iowa teen Scott Syroka, who all help top our lists with the most invitations sent, it's easy to see why this day of action will be such a success.

And, as we cruise by this small milestone, it certainly feels like our movement is taking shape and becoming a palpable force that politicians and candidates won�t be able to ignore. Our verbal responses from Sen. Obama and Elizabeth Edwards at events just this week show that the powers that be (namely, politicians and their lovely spouses) are hearing our call.

But, we need to keep them coming!  And, more importantly, we still need to paint the country green!  Thanks to some awesome organizing from Wyoming that finally puts a dot near the Tetons, North Dakota is the only lonely state left without an action.  And, without an action, there can be no invitations sent to our North Dakota senators and congressmen.  So give us a hand; call and email everyone you know in North Dakota.  Aunts and uncles, sons and daughters, old family friends, college roommates�they are all potential organizers just waiting for the chance to get involved. Let�s keep this movement moving!

�

Thomas Friedman wrote an Op-Ed for the New York Times today expressing that he is "baffled" by the state of activism today - by the overabundance of mouse clicks and Facebook groups for a cause, and the dearth of politically engaged folks getting out in the streets to "speak truth to power".  Here's an excerpt:

"America needs a jolt of the idealism, activism and outrage (it must be in there) of Generation Q. That�s what twentysomethings are for � to light a fire under the country. But they can�t e-mail it in, and an online petition or a mouse click for carbon neutrality won�t cut it. They have to get organized in a way that will force politicians to pay attention rather than just patronize them.

Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy didn�t change the world by asking people to join their Facebook crusades or to download their platforms. Activism can only be uploaded, the old-fashioned way � by young voters speaking truth to power, face to face, in big numbers, on campuses or the Washington Mall. Virtual politics is just that � virtual."  Read the rest here.

While Friedman focuses his challenge on the younger generation, all of you involved in Step It Up and the climate movement at large have shown a huge range of ages and backgrounds who are ready to both click their mouse to organize, and then get out in the streets for the cause.  So let's all flood Tom with letters today with our stories about how we are both using virtual organizing tools, and getting out on our campuses, in our communities, and in Washington to "light a fire under the country" this November 3rd and beyond.  Tell him about your Step It Up event, Powershift, 1 Sky, and all the other initiatives to bring global warming to the forefront of the political realm.  �You can find the directions for responding to his Op-Ed here: �http://www.nytimes.com/ref/membercenter/help/lettertoeditor.html.   Then send the article to all your friends and family to urge them to get involved in the movement.

While you're at it, submit your letter to your local newspapers, and send us what you've written!  For our sample LTE, click here.

   Hey there! My name is Jason Kowalski, yet another new member of the Step It Up team. I've been hard at work over the last couple months trying to make sure this whole operation flows smoothly, so I guess I might as well share a little bit about myself instead of blogging about all the great stuff other people are doing (there's no shortage of material these days). In the grand scheme of things I'm pretty new to the climate movement outside of campus dining halls and small classrooms, so after graduating from Middlebury�College this May I decided to �live green or die� over in New Hampshire, where I spent the summer working on the movement with friends. As part of Climate Summer I joined up with students from all over the country to help put on a number of fun climate-related events: a 5 Day March, parades, teach-ins, and even a few chats about the climate at Nascar events. One of the coolest actions we organized was called Climb-it for the Climate where we explored the idea of calling for history-book-caliber leadership, but from summits thousands of feet above sea level. Many members of the StepItUpfamily� led trips up mountains named after historic leaders, dubbed �the Presidential Range� in north�ern New Hampshire. In the end we had over 175 people scaling the Presidential Peaks, each bearing a message tailored to their mountain/historic leader: �What Would Washington do? Cut Carbon 80% by 2050.� (Click here for photos and more �costume shenanigans)

   Now of course we�ve taken the general leadership idea to the next level with the new brand of web-based maroon and yellow greatness that is Step It Up 2.0. After stretching myself thin studying and climateering in college, now I feel very lucky to have the privilege of organizing around this issue full time. My role on the team is to be sort of a policy nerd. For some reason I get really excited about the units, numbers, and policy programs that will drive all the great innovation we�re talking about. I guess it�s the ideas that all this is so doable that really gets me psyched�. As a matter of fact, it was an economics class that really sparked my ignition within the climate movement. Nothing beats a solid graph to get your mind rolling around these epic solutions being proposed. (For some of my favorite bedtime reading, click here).

�Of course I've also learned that reading policy papers is no way to fight global warming NOW. Solving the climate crisis is worth devoting a chunk of your life to regardless of how much scientific/economic/political training you have. Personally, I was trained to study medicine and literature, but luckily for me all you really need to spark a revolutionary social movement is a good conscience and a handful of equally passionate friends. Our movement needs all the intelligence, stamina, and creativity we can get, and I get to sit back and watch that poor in all day long. We've got what it takes to make this happen, all we need to do now is friend our leaders.�

Step It Up wouldn't just have been more difficult to organize a few years ago - it would have been impossible. Along with the sweat, passion, phone calls, and general hard work that thousands of people are putting in around the country, there is a key element that makes Step It Up come together: the Internet.

In the final weeks before November 3rd, we need your help putting this so-called inter-web to work. If you're reading this blog post, that means you're on the web right now. At your finger tips is an incredible tool to help make social change, help us put it to work by spreading the word on blogs, social networking sites, email lists - - anything you can think of. Read an article about global warming online? Encourage people to take action by joining us on November 3rd! Find a discussion forum where people are chatting about politics and social change? Tell them about our "Invite the Leaders" tool and challenge them to invite their politicians.

Or, if you've really got the techno-bug, take a minute to work us into your website. Every link helps, from the Sierra Club's "Step It Up" site, to our friends at Lawrence High School in Maine and their "Gang Green" site helping promote their environmental club and Step It Up event. Thanks team!

So, let's take the internet by storm in the coming weeks - you've got the power, use it!

Good news!  Representative Nick Lampson of Texas's 22nd district has agreed to attend the Step It Up event in Sugar Land, TX -- how sweet it is (sorry, I had to do it).

We're continuing to turn up the heat on the rest of Congress and presidential candidates by flooding them with invitations for November 3 events -- and it's paying off.  We're glad you'll be joining us, Rep. Lampson.  And a big thanks to Sugar Land organizer John Preston for his solid work to set this up.

Now who else is going to step it up?  It's up to us to follow through with our invitations, get everyone we know to help send invitations, and get our politicians to confirm.  Keep us posted on how your efforts go.

Exciting news! We here at the Step it Up Headquarters in Manchester have reason to believe that Sen. Obama will �probably make it to one of the November 3rd events.�  What makes us so confident? Those were his exact words about a half hour ago, at an event in Londonderry, in response to a verbal invitation by Nashua, NH Step It Up organizer Zo Tobi. In fact, Senator Obama already knew about Step It Up and our efforts to engage leaders in events across the nation.

So, of course this means that we need to flood his mailbox with more invitations (apparently, 124 have not been convincing enough!). Let�s ensure that he follows up his new energy platform with an official RSVP to a November 3rd action and that he stands strong in his commitment to bold national leadership on climate change.

Obama touched upon his own admiration for Abraham Lincoln in his address today, so perhaps the action in Ottawa, Illinois, where Lincoln famously debated Stephen Douglas, is particularly inviting for the Senator. Whatever action he does end up coming to, however, he has no excuse ; we now have actions in almost every state (Wyoming, Nebraska and North Dakota�come on!)

Down in Miami Beach, communities of faith are uniting to organize a 12 hour day of action and service on November 3rd. Under the banner of FUSE: Faiths United for Sustainable Energy, people of all faiths are coming together to push for lasting change, both locally and nationally. Their action combines common sense business decisions with the moral imperative to reduce emissions, and revolutionize our energy mix. Check out their action description:

"For 12 hours, between 3 p.m. and 3 a.m. Faiths United for Sustainable Energy (FUSE - www.fusenow.org) will be going door to door, making contact with businesses, and speaking with pedestrians, in order to raise awareness about the issues connected with our society's dependence on fossil fuels. We invite everyone: individuals, clergy, elected officials, and families, to join us for the whole event, or just for a small portion. We will be going door to door on South Beach asking businesses to switch their incandescent light bulbs with CFL bulbs, which we will be carrying to be sold on the spot at cost. We will be providing them with information cards showing them the carbon emissions they will save, as well as the financial benefits, for every CFL they use. These cards (printed on recycled paper), will also outline the simple actions they can take to reduce their carbon footprints, along with the phone numbers to call for a free energy audit appointment and to learn about a solar energy program offered in South Florida."

For more information on how people are channeling their faith into the movement, check out the FUSE website.

One of our organizers wrote us an e-mail describing the heat-induced hospitalizations that occurred at the Chicago Marathon yesterday. At 88 degrees and 86% humidity the race was called off at 11:30 am � about three hours in.  In the meantime, 302 runners were hospitalized and one was pronounced dead.

Can we blame these deaths and injuries on the changing climate? Not entirely. But we can have strong feelings about the impact of global warming on the changing character of a region. Here�s a comment posted in response to a Chicago Tribune article:

�So very sad to hear about the death of that runner, I am a New Orleans native, "transplanted" here after Katrina devastated our home. One reason I came to love Chicagoland are the actual change of seasons. Today�s heat & humidity (October in Chicago?) remind me of the same we have back home MOST of the year! Does anyone really doubt this global warming phenomenon? I don't see how they could.�

The IPCC stresses the difference between a change in whether and climactic change, but they do note that the �frequency and intensity� of extreme weather will increase as the climate changes. New Orleans weather in Chicago is a perfect example of this shift. While carbon emissions were not solely responsible for the death and hospitalizations in Chicago, they do threaten our notions of geographic identity and our ability to host annual events safely. Will November 3rd be a blizzard? Will we have a November heat wave? Which climate leaders will Step It Up? Stay tuned to find out. And in the meantime, invite your leaders! Call them up. Let them know that extreme weather like this concerns you. Let them know that you care about such extreme weather, and let them know how you think they can Step It Up!

Photo: Courtesy Chicago Tribune.

Our team just whipped together this little video--but the idea is that it's a constantly evolving work, waiting for everyone to add their voice to the video.  So check out the video, and then post your response--and think about ways to incorporate The Green Finger in your Step It Up Action.

If left unchecked, catastrophic climate change will threaten the things, people, and places we love most.  With the Green Finger video, we're asking the question: What Are You Voting to Protect?  Why are you committed to stopping global warming?  What do you really care about in this world?

We'd love to see what you come up with, so go to our page on YouTube and post your response--it won't take more than a couple minutes.  We need people to keep posting responses all the way up to Election Day 2008--even though our National Day of Climate Action will have come and gone by then, other initiatives will continue.  One particularly exciting venture is the 1 Sky Campaign, which aims to bring the climate movement together around a central vision and set of priorities. 

Just minutes ago, with your help, we blew by 2000 invitations.  You all are incredible, turning our map into a rich, beautiful shade of green. These invitations are pouring into our leaders offices from all over the country�and our politicians are beginning to sense that something is brewing.  Our phones at our headquarters are ringing off the hook as Congress is getting curious about exactly what is going on November 3rd.  But we�ve still only got just 5 confirmations from politicians who are definitely attending November 3rd events, so we�ve got to keep the pressure on.  Let�s keep those invitations flowing�be it an e-mail, a phone call, a fax, or handwritten letters.  It takes less time to invite your leaders than it does to brush your teeth, so Find an Action and Invite the Leaders!

Check out this great article from Mark Hertsgaard at The Nation--hot off the presses!

The Making of a Climate Movement
by Mark Hertsgaard

Public awareness of the climate crisis has grown enormously in the United States over the past two years, but the government's response lags far behind. Now, however, Washington's sluggish pace is calling forth a surge of activism aimed at persuading the next President and Congress to be far bolder--to advocate and deliver solutions as big as the problem.

"The general attitude in the country now and certainly in Congress is, 'Let's take some steps, make some progress and applaud ourselves.' That is not sufficient." So says Betsy Taylor, chair of 1 Sky, a new initiative that hopes to unite the broad array of groups focusing on climate change into a coherent national movement. "What has happened to the climate in the last twelve months has changed the game," Taylor argues, citing recent studies projecting that the Arctic will be free of summer ice by 2030. "That means we are thirty years ahead of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's worst- case scenario for Arctic melting. But on Capitol Hill, none of the proposals getting serious attention propose anything close to what science says we need--deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 and 80 percent cuts by 2050. Our side really needs to up the ante." 

Among 1 Sky's backers is Bill McKibben, who in 1989 published the first important book on global warming, The End of Nature. In January McKibben founded Step It Up, following a march across Vermont he organized with some of his students at Middlebury College. "Our slogan was, Screw in the new light bulb but then screw in the new federal policy," he recalls. At the march's closing rally, in front of 1,000 cheering demonstrators, all four candidates for national office from Vermont signed a pledge to support 80 percent cuts by 2050. 

Step It Up was founded to replicate that success on a national scale, and in April the group catalyzed 1,400 demonstrations in all fifty states. "A lot of students participated, but most of the actions were done by people with full-time jobs who told us, 'I want to do something besides writing a check,'" says May Boeve, a 2007 Middlebury graduate and the national coordinator of Step It Up. "Contrary to popular belief, asking people to do more actually resulted in a bigger response."

Step It Up plans another set of demonstrations November 3, exactly a year before the 2008 election. This time, the goal is to get elected representatives to respond to 1 Sky's three demands: (1) cut emissions 30 percent by 2020 (and 80 percent by 2050); (2) ban new coal-fired power plants (as part of a larger shift of federal subsidies from fossil fuels to clean energy); and (3) create 5 million "green-collar" jobs.

The same weekend, the Energy Action Coalition is promising to bring thousands of student activists to Washington. With member groups on 200 campuses, the coalition is the national hub of student organizing on climate change. After a weekend conference at the University of Maryland, the coalition hopes to unleash 5,000 students on Capitol Hill the following Monday to lobby for the 1 Sky demands.

1 Sky, which debuted at the Clinton Global Initiative in September, is not so much a new group as a point of convergence for the larger movement, says Taylor. The impetus came from state and local environmental groups and religious leaders frustrated by what was (not) happening in Washington. 1 Sky is reaching out not only to environmental groups but to labor, community development, Latino, African-American and green business organizations, and is having "positive conversations" with Al Gore's Alliance for Climate Protection. "1 Sky will have a lean campaign staff and primarily invest resources in existing groups," says Taylor. "And we will move into the electoral arena in a big way," with field operations in twelve key states and earned and paid media, i.e., news stories and ads.

The 5 million green-collar jobs 1 Sky is demanding are crucial to appealing beyond the traditional environmental constituency, says Van Jones, a veteran African-American activist and 1 Sky supporter whose new group, Green for All, "aims to spread the benefits of the green energy revolution to all parts of society. Now the implicit assumption is that green means white. When Vanity Fair does its green issues, you don't see many people who look like me in there. Green for All is demanding a $1 billion commitment from the government to lift 250,000 people out of poverty and into the new economy by training them for green-collar jobs."

The emerging climate movement's first skirmish will come in the next months, as Congress considers bills on energy and climate. McKibben says it would be better to pass nothing than to approve a weak bill that gives people the impression the problem has been solved: "Since Bush is going to veto it anyway, there is no reason to make [a climate bill] less ambitious than what science requires. Climate change isn't like other issues. It doesn't do any good to split the difference to reach a deal everyone can live with. Climate change is about the laws of physics and chemistry, and they don't give."

What gets accomplished in 2008, says Taylor, will frame the choices made in 2009 and beyond: "We want to raise the bar of what's possible for the next President and Congress. We want bold leadership commensurate with the scale of the problem." McKibben argues that "with every passing week it is more clear that climate change is the great issue of our time, just as civil rights was in the 1960s." Passing a bill that matches what science says and then securing a similar agreement at the international level "would be two of the hardest policy achievements we have ever had to do," he adds. "And I'm not sure we're going to succeed. But if we are to succeed, I am sure we're going to need a movement just as strong as the civil rights movement was. And that's what we're trying to build." 

Here's the latest dispatch in Grist: 

OK, now it's starting to get a little exciting.

With a month to go, people by the thousands have begun inviting presidential candidates and members of Congress to come speak about climate change at Step It Up events on Nov. 3 -- and we've started getting some RSVPs.

Some are planning to come: Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Paul Hodes (D-N.H.), and Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) from the U.S. House of Representatives; and from the Senate, Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). They have agreed to speak in Vermont, New Hampshire, and New York. (Rep. Weiner was a big hit at last spring's Sea of People rally in lower Manhattan.) Many more are checking their schedules and getting right back to us, including at least a couple of the presidential front-runners. It will be very useful to know who wants to take this issue on, to hear them speak and see if they plan on being politicians or are willing to be leaders instead.

Click here to continue reading this piece on Grist. 

As Thomas Homer-Dixon writes in todays New York Times, science is telling us that our window to do something serious about global warming is closing quickly. Now, more than ever, this country and world needs a movement, strong and united, to take on the challenge of building a clean energy future. He writes:

In response to the new dangers of climate change, we need a similar mobilization � of mothers, of students and of everyone with a stake in the future � now.

Take a moment to forward this article to friends, family, and colleagues and ask them to join you in taking action on November 3rd: 

A Swiftly Melting Planet
By Thomas Homer-Dixon

THE Arctic ice cap melted this summer at a shocking pace, disappearing at a far higher rate than predicted by even the most pessimistic experts in global warming. But we shouldn�t be shocked, because scientists have long known that major features of earth�s interlinked climate system of air and water can change abruptly.

A big reason such change happens is feedback � not the feedback that you�d like to give your boss, but the feedback that creates a vicious circle. This type of feedback in our global climate could determine humankind�s future prosperity and even survival.

The vast expanse of ice floating on the surface of the Arctic Ocean always recedes in the summer, reaching its lowest point sometime in September. Every winter it expands again, as the long Arctic night descends and temperatures plummet. Each summer over the past six years, global warming has trimmed this ice�s total area a little more, and each winter the ice�s recovery has been a little less robust. These trends alarmed climate scientists, but most thought that sea ice wouldn�t disappear completely in the Arctic summer before 2040 at the earliest.

But this past summer sent scientists scrambling to redo their estimates. Week by week, the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colo., reported the trend: from 2.23 million square miles of ice remaining on Aug. 8 to 1.6 million square miles on Sept. 16, an astonishing drop from the previous low of 2.05 million square miles, reached in 2005.

The loss of Arctic sea ice won�t be the last abrupt change in earth�s climate, because of feedbacks. One of the climate�s most important destabilizing feedbacks involves Arctic ice. It works like this: our release of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases around the planet causes some initial warming that melts some ice. Melting ice leaves behind open ocean water that has a much lower reflectivity (or albedo) than that of ice. Open ocean water absorbs about 80 percent more solar radiation than sea ice does. And so as the sun warms the ocean, even more ice melts, in a vicious circle. This ice-albedo feedback is one of the main reasons warming is happening far faster in the high north, where there are vast stretches of sea ice, than anywhere else on Earth.

There are other destabilizing feedbacks in the carbon cycle that involve the oceans. Each year, the oceans absorb about half the carbon dioxide that humans emit into the atmosphere. But as oceans warm, they will absorb less carbon dioxide, partly because the gas dissolves less readily in warmer water, and partly because warming will reduce the mixing between deep and surface waters that provides nutrients to plankton that absorb carbon dioxide. And when oceans take up less carbon dioxide, warming worsens.

Scientists have done a good job incorporating some feedbacks into their climate models, especially those, like the ice-albedo feedback, that operate directly on the temperature of air or water. But they haven�t incorporated as well feedbacks that operate on the atmosphere�s concentrations of greenhouse gases or that affect the cycle of carbon among air, land, oceans and organisms. Yet these may be the most important feedbacks of all.

Global warming is melting large areas of permafrost in Alaska, Canada and Siberia. As it melts, the organic matter in the permafrost starts to rot, releasing carbon dioxide and methane (molecule for molecule, methane traps far more heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide).

Warming is also affecting wetlands and forests around the world, helping to desiccate immense peat bogs in Indonesia, contributing to more frequent drought in the Amazon basin, and propelling a widening beetle infestation that�s killing enormous tracts of pine forest in Alaska and British Columbia. (This infestation is on the brink of crossing the Canadian Rockies into the boreal forest that extends east to Newfoundland.) Dried peat and dead and dying forests are vulnerable to wildfires that would emit huge quantities of carbon into the atmosphere.

This summer�s loss of Arctic sea ice indicates that at least one major destabilizing feedback is gaining force quickly. Scientists have also recently learned that the Southern Ocean, which encircles Antarctica, appears to be absorbing less carbon, while Greenland�s ice sheet is melting at an accelerating rate.

When warming becomes its own cause, we might not be able to stop extremely harmful climate change no matter how much we cut our greenhouse gas emissions. We need a far more aggressive global response to climate change. In the 1960s, mothers learned that the milk they were feeding their children was laced with radioactive material from atmospheric tests of nuclear weapons and that this contamination could increase the risk of childhood leukemia. Soon women organized themselves in the tens of thousands to demand that nuclear powers ban atmospheric testing. Their campaign largely succeeded.

In response to the new dangers of climate change, we need a similar mobilization � of mothers, of students and of everyone with a stake in the future � now.

Thomas Homer-Dixon, a professor of peace and conflict studies at the University of Toronto, is the author of �The Upside of Down: Catastrophe, Creativity and the Renewal of Civilization.�

Our friends down in New York City have their creative juices flowing again.  Echoing some of what they accomplished back in April, the NYC organizers have more than just a rally being planned for the Big Apple.  Art, action, history, and political leaders to boot.  Here's what organizer John Hunka has to share about their plans...

The marble arch dominating Washington Square is a powerful symbol of the kind of dynamic leadership we hope to inspire through our rally against global warming.  In fact, Washington Square Park itself shows what ordinary people can accomplish through a grassroots movement like Step It Up. 

When Robert Moses became the Parks Commissioner in 1934, he embarked on a crusade to fully redesign the park.  Local activists began an opposing fight that lasted three decades.  In 1952, Moses finalized plans to extend Fifth Avenue through the park.  He intended eventually to push it through the neighborhood south of the park, as part of an �urban renewal� project.  Area residents, including Eleanor Roosevelt, opposed the plans.  The urbanist Jane Jacobs became an activist and is credited with stopping the Moses plan and closing Washington Square Park to all auto traffic. 

The activists at our rally against global warming will display colorful flags, banners, signs and costumes.  An unusual element of our event will be �collective actions for restorative ecology� led by environmental educator Christopher Lee Kennedy.  The objective of Chris�s installations will be to engage bystanders and Step It Up attendees to actually aid in restoring the urban ecosystem of NYC in real-time through collective acts.  Chris calls one of his installations a �Terr(alter).� He describes it as a chance for participants �to plant a seed or create an urban terrarium with a message about how to live more simply or about current climate change legislation.  The installation will re-imagine the idea of an alter, usually situated within a religious context to be more inclusive of collective healing and restorative actions for the Earth.�

Click here to read more about what's happening in NYC.  There is more than one action being planned in NYC.  Contact the organizers (by visiting their action page descriptions on this website) for details regarding how these events are coordinating.

Things are starting to get interesting around here. The weeks of hard work by thousands of people around the country are already starting to pay off in a major way - and we've still got a month to go until our national day of action on November 3rd! 

We recently got the word that Rep. Paul Hodes is looking to attend an event in New Hampshire! We're not sure exactly which one yet, but we'll take his word that he'll be somewhere in the Granite State on November 3rd talking with his constituents about how he plans to be a leader on climate change. Maybe local organizers can convince Rep. Hodes to sing one of our Climate Tunes, as well. For those who didn't know already, the Rep. is a rocking musician!

Step It Up 2 is turning out to be better than any game show on television - we really don't know what exactly will happen on November 3rd, but with your help we'll turn out as many members of Congress and presidential candidates to Step It Up events as possible. Keep flooding Washington with invitations - our strategy is working!

We just got an e-mail from Roxie Pauline down in Scranton, PA saying that she personally invited Congressman Paul Kanjorski to her November 3rd event! She happened to be in DC for a peace demonstration, and decided to make an appointment with her congressman (after all, he is down there working for his constituents). Rep. Kanjorsky gladly entertained her questions and comments, which included an invitation to her recently registered November 3rd action in Scranton, PA. Way to go Roxie!

Congressman Kanjorski's has his priorities straight. Not only did he immediately honor the request of his constituents in Scranton, Kanjorsky runs on a platform of "working to clean up the scars of PA's coal mining legacy," and fostering "stable, family-sustaining jobs that create strong communities." Sounds like the perfect transition into a green economy to me. Thanks for RSVPing, congressman!

Now we know that traveling to Washington is a lot to ask, and we applaud Roxie for her efforts, but the most cost/carbon affective way to make sure your elected officials respond to your invitations is to pick up a phone and call them directly. Whether you're the one organizing the action or not, click here to invite the leaders, enter your zip, and then shoot your congressman or congresswoman a quick phone call. Ask to speak to the scheduler, tell them you're doing something exciting, and see what happens. After all, talking to a real person is more fun anyway. Let's keep those invites coming, and let's get more RSVPs!

Click Here For The Big List

Just when you thought Vermont might be the only state that would have politicians attending a Step It Up event on Nov. 3 we've just received a new confirmation in New York: Rep. Anthony Weiner will be joining the crew in Washington Square to share his plan on how to deal with global warming. Nice work y'all.  It just takes a little persistence, and our politicians will remember that, when asked, they have to come home and talk with us...their constituents. Congratulations New York, and congratulations Congressman for Stepping It Up! This will actually be Rep. Weiner's second time addressing concerned citizens in NYC. The picture above was taken at the epic April 14th event, Sea of People, where Rep Weiner was one of 40 congressmen who answered the call and joined actions across the country in support of "Cutting Carbon 80% by 2050."

But how about the rest of the country?  Let's keep that invite counter climbing.  Make sure everyone you know has sent invitations to politicians to come to events on November 3.  With your help, we can make this a truly historic event!

Click here to invite all the leaders.

Cesar Chavez,Farm Workers� Union Founder, Human Rights Activist

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Still having trouble thinking of a historic leader to commemorate?  Well don't get hung up on it, but be sure to check out artist Robert Shetterly's portraits of "Americans Who Tell The Truth" for some ideas and inspiration.   Rob paints great leaders of early American history to modern day Americans, who have stood up for what they know is right (including our own Bill McKibben), and includes a selected quote from the person in each acrylic portrait.

Read a portion from the artist's statement below to learn about his work:

"I began painting this series of portraits --- finding great Americans who spoke the truth and combining their images with their words --- nearly three years ago as a way of to channel my anger and grief. In the process my respect and love for these people and their courage helped to transform that anger into hope and pride and allowed me to draw strength from this community of truth tellers, finding in them the courage, honesty, tolerance, generosity, wisdom and compassion that have made our country strong. One lesson that can be learned from all of these Americans is that the greatness of our country frequently depends not on the letter of the law, but the insistence of a single person that we adhere to the spirit of the law."

To Rob, these incredible people, "form the well from which we must draw our future".  Who do you draw inspiration from?  How will they help form the vision of a brighter future? Sign up an action to honor them on November 3rd, and tell us why we need leaders like them on global warming. No place in your town named after one of these great folks?  No problem! Unofficially name your action site after them for the day.

To learn more about the artist, and where you can see his portraits, visit his website: http://www.americanswhotellthetruth.org/

It's October 3rd everybody, which means there is one month to go until Step It Up's big national day of action . . .  And things are looking amazing!

Thanks to the hard work of hundreds of organizers all across the country, actions are being planned in almost all 50 states (come on North Dakota, we're counting on you). And, especially exciting, is that confirmations are starting to come in from politicians around the country! Our strategy is working - thanks to your leadership, we're able to challenge our politicians to show some leadership on global warming themselves.

With a month still to go, there is plenty of time to organize an action in your community and get your leaders to attend. Jump into the movement today and join us in making history on November 3rd.  

On Sept 27th-28th, Bush called a meeting of the world’s biggest polluters to talk about voluntary caps on carbon emissions. Climate groups were on hand to proclaim their own message: “George Bush does not speak for us. We want clean energy now!�

Check out this video of climate activists confronting Bush as he convened this sham climate conference...and then let's get back to inviting all the leaders to November 3rd events and spreading the word.

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If you watched the movie, you may notice that some of the activists were arrested. This tactic is not one that we advocate for Step It Up actions. Our actions on November 3rd will be respectful and moving. We're not out to grill our leaders, or get police involved, we just want our priorities addressed in the context of a joyful community celebration.

Miss Martha, Local Environmental Hero

Today we hear from Frank and Anne Watson who are organizing an action in their small town of Cheraw, South Carolina.  For their action, they are commemorating early carbon reduction hero, "Miss Martha" from Cheraw.  Tell us who your local environmental hero is, and honor them with an action this November 3rd!

Cheraw is a small town (10,000) located on the SC/NC border just South of Rockingham, NC and about 50 miles South of Pinehurst, NC.  We live in a cottage that is located in a 4-5 acre nature preserve located within the city limits of Cheraw.  The women that started the preserve and owned the house, "Miss Martha", was the "tree and garden lady" of Cheraw who made Cheraw a city of trees and was also the first "recycler" in town. On November 3rd, we will celebrate Miss Martha (Martha Duvall of Cherew) as an early leader (1960's) in lowering the carbon foot print! We will invite young and old friends to the nature preserve she developed and discuss the question- "What would Miss Martha do about the carbon situation?" Ideas have started to flow and we e-mailed some folks in Cheraw to see if they were interested in gathering for an afternoon. Since the e-mail we have started conversations with several folks about getting  a group together to discuss local actions that we might take. 

Thanks for your great work, Anne and Frank! 

P.S. For those of you looking for your mayor's contact information to send them Salt Lake City mayor Rocky Anderson's Challenge from last week, try this website: http://usmayors.org/USCM/cgi-bin/database_search4.asp.

Independent network LinkTV is currently airing a special on climate change and the role of independent media in fighting the energy industry's propaganda machine. Check out this excerpt where journalist and author Mark Hertsgaard and Van Jones of the Ella Baker Center talk about green jobs, 1Sky, and give a special shout-out to Step It Up!

 

The LinkTV Climate for Change special also includes a screening of Out of Balance: ExxonMobil�s Impact on Climate Change and footage from Everything's Cool, Blue Vinyl, and Bush's Climate of Fear.  Click here to find out when to watch.

This past weekend, Step It Up joined a coalition of organizations lead by the Chesapeake Climate Action Network to protest Bush's "Meeting of the Big Polluters" in Washington, D.C. Hundreds of people gathered in a park near where the meeting was taking place to listen to speakers, talk with th�e media, and hold sign after sign that said "Bush: Wrong Way on Warming." Along with a non-violent direct action the day before, the event helped raise awareness that Bush's meeting was nothing but a farce - as Van Jones, director of the new Green For All campaign, said, "No, Bush does not get a cookie for admitting global warming is real."

But among the criticism was a bold vision for change and talk about the growing movement for real action on global warming in this country. You're taking part in that movement by joining Step It Up on November 3rd, working with local and regional climate groups in your area, or, if your a student, registering for Power Shift 07, a major youth conference in D.C. from November 2-5.

Both Power Shift and Step It Up are uniting around a single vision for a new path on global warming - 1Sky - a policy platform that represents not only a reaction to the misdirection of the past but a bold new direction towards a clean energy economy that creates millions of new jobs and helps create green pathways out of poverty.

You can learn more about 1Sky right here on our website. We'll be writing more about this ambitious new call for action and how to incorporate it into your action on November 3rd. We want every politician in the country to be exposed to this platform, and then ask them what their plan is to be a climate leader. It's not our place to make comparisons or give a thumbs up or thumbs down - but by stimulating debate about the different ways forward, we hope to emerge with a genuine plan for change from each of our politicians.

The things we'll do to help spread the word about Step It Up and November 3rd . . .

We've been doing our best here at Step It Up headquarters to take advantage of our unique home-base location here in Manchester, NH. As you know, New Hampshire is pulsing with primary pizazz this time of year, with presidential candidates sweeping through the state every few days. When we're not behind our computers helping organizers with actions, bringing on partner organizations, or spreading the word - - well, we're dressing up in snowman suits, I guess, and doing whatever else it takes to make November 3rd a big success!

Check out the latest adventures, with a new video featuring Frosty and George Washington spreading the word at the recent Democratic Debates:

 

And then check out this stellar news coverage of our stunt from CNN - talk about good reporting.

Want to make a video to help promote Step It Up? Go for it! And make sure to send us an email at [email protected]  when you're done.

Fort Tyron Park, NY

Today, our spotlight focuses in on Bill Goldschein and the Cloisters Community Climate Change Coalition, an ad hoc association with an awe-inspiring ability of alliteration, coming together to organize a Step It Up rally in their community.  Read on to hear about the great action they are planning in New York, and for some Revolutionary War history lessons:

Our hope is to gather environmentally aware members of the Cloisters Community (Inwood, Fort Washington, Fort Tryon Park and the Heights) and the greater New York Area in support of the Step It Up Initiative on November 3. The Battle of Fort Washington was fought on November 16, 1776, between 2,900 American Colonial Soldiers and 8,000 Hessian mercenaries. Overwhelmed, the American troops were forced to retreat. The British renamed the fort for William Tryon, the last British governor of colonial New York. The name stuck. The British didn't. Washington and his men lost the battle but won the War.  Significantly, the battle included Margaret Corbin, the first American woman to fight and be wounded in the Revolutionary War.

It is impossible to imagine a more perfect or appropriate place for a Step It Up Rally. It serves to demonstrate great leadership and the need to struggle against overwhelming odds and early defeats. Fort Washington/Fort Tryon Park towers above the Hudson River and offers magnificent views of the City, the Palisades and the George Washington Bridge. The Park is one of New York�s great undiscovered treasures. The gardens and terraces are an experience in themselves and should not be missed. We hope to raise awareness in our diverse community of the impact of Global Warming and Climate Change and join other communities in demonstrating our support for Step It Up. We are a small ad hoc committee of concerned citizens and NEED HELP. We plan to begin with a publicity campaign and organizing a series of community meetings culminating in a Rally in the Park on November 3rd.   You can contact us by going to our website, www.cloisterscommunity.org.

Thanks Bill and the members of CCCCC for all the great work you're doing to bring together the diverse members of your community to send a strong message to our leaders on November 3rd.

Almost every day in our countdown to November 3rd there is another reminder of why this is such a crucial  time to take action on global warming. The latest news comes out of Illinois, where Gov. Rod Blagojevich is giving a green light to at least five new coal fired power plants. Lincoln would not be happy. Blagojevich's announcement comes in the midst of a series of energy saving measures, including a proposal to rid the state of the incandescent light bulb, but none of those steps will matter in the long run if these coal fired power plants are built.

Even if every household in the US changed a 60-watt incandescent light bulb to a compact fluorescent . . . the carbon emissions from just two medium sized coal-fired power plants each year would negate this effort.

Take a second to write the Governor and let him know how you feel - or better yet, get cracking on an action for November 3rd, wherever you are, you can help Illinois and the whole country say no to new coal.  

Lucky for us and Illinois, people across the state are busy planning Step It Up 2 actions for this November 3rd and have already invited almost all of their members of Congress (where's the love for Rep. Shimkus people?) In Chicago, you can join a Lead through Education and Action rally at a local high school. Or "Paint Your World Green" at an art exhibit to celebrate the public library in Elgin. Want something a little more historical? Try the rally in Geneva, where citizens will gather on the historic courthouse lawn where JFK once spoke, or the action at Washington Square in Ottawa where Stephen Douglas debated Abraham Lincoln.

Illinois is showing exactly the spirit we're hoping to see on November 3rd. Keep up the great work, Land of Lincoln!

Our November 3rd national day of action is fast approaching - only 36 days left. But as Bill writes in a column in today's Washington Post, we are right on pace with the urgency of this issue. We simply must take action now. There is plenty of time to still organize an action in your community and invite your politicians to join you there on November 3rd.  Don't wait, sign up today. The race is on.

The Race Against Warming
by Bill McKibben

It's the oldest and most cliched of metaphors, but when it comes to global warming, it's the only one that really works: We're in a desperate race. Politics is chasing reality, and the gap between them isn't closing nearly fast enough.

Consider the news from the real world, the one where change is measured with satellites and thermometers, not focus groups: Arctic ice is melting on an unbelievable scale -- an area the size of Britain disappeared each week in late summer as the record for minimum ice cover, set in 2005, was shattered by more than 400,000 square miles, meaning about a 27 percent loss. Forget the Petraeus report -- what historians will note about September 2007 is that the Northwest Passage was free of ice for the first time since humans started keeping track. Shaken scientists see every prediction about the future surpassed by events. As Martin Parry, co-chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, told reporters this month, "We are all used to talking about these impacts coming in the lifetimes of our children and grandchildren. Now we know that it's us."

On Capitol Hill, the situation is a little more interesting. The Democratic majority is finally beginning to move legislation that would commit the United States to long-term reductions in carbon dioxide emissions -- the first law Congress might actually pass in the years since global warming became an issue. But here, too, the legislative process is backing away from what science demands -- a strong bill put forward by Sens. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is in danger of being supplanted by half-measures proposed by Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.).

The problem lies in how one defines reality. Physics and chemistry demand swift and deep cuts in carbon emissions; political realism says to move slowly. In that fight, there's really only one choice. The tax code can be amended, but the laws of nature can't.

The only real hope is for decisive legislation from Congress; activists are calling for a law that commits the United States to early cuts, closes all coal-fired power plants and auctions the right to pollute so that we can raise the revenue to fund the transformation of our energy system. President Bush won't sign such a law, so it doesn't have to pass this fall; we're working to set the stage for 2009, when a new leader takes over.

It will take a movement to force that kind of change -- a movement as urgent, and one to which people are as morally committed and willing to sacrifice, as the civil rights movement was a generation ago. Last spring, I worked with six college students to put together StepItUp07.org. In the course of 12 weeks, with almost no money, we helped put together 1,400 rallies in all 50 states demanding action.

This fall we're trying again. People across the nation are holding demonstrations in places that honor great Americans -- the top of Mount Washington; Teddy Roosevelt's birthplace; the center named for civil rights pioneer Ella Baker in Oakland, Calif. Local organizers are inviting not just the presidential contenders but also every member of the House, every senator -- and every candidate for their jobs.

What we need to know, and soon, is: What does reality look like to you? Can you close the gap between science and politics? Who will lead on the great issue of our day?

After 20 years of inaction the race is finally underway. Global warming has a huge head start; the sprint to catch up is the story of our time.

The writer, a scholar in residence at Middlebury College, is co-founder ofStepItUp07.organd one of seven co-authors of "Fight Global Warming Now."

So you know how a lot of Step It Up actions on November 3rd have a big theme of history and leadership?  How we're asking people to rally at places of historical significance?  Well, a new AP article suggests that American historical landmarks might be wiped out by the very thing we're rallying against: global warming and it's associated rising sea levels.  It's seriously disturbing stuff--the map they produced shows large areas of Louisiana, California, and New York underwater.  And it's all the more scary when you consider that this is based on a 1 meter sea level rise, a fairly conservative estimate that doesn't take into account the potential collapse of ice sheets in Greenland and West Antarctica.  It's articles like this that reinforce the importance and necessity of swift action on global warming--the kind of action we can catalyze on November 3rd with all of your help! 

Rising Seas Likely to Flood U.S. History

By SETH BORENSTEIN
AP Science Writer

Ultimately, rising seas will likely swamp the first American settlement in Jamestown, Va., as well as the Florida launch pad that sent the first American into orbit, many climate scientists are predicting.

In about a century, some of the places that make America what it is may be slowly erased.

Global warming - through a combination of melting glaciers, disappearing ice sheets and warmer waters expanding - is expected to cause oceans to rise by one meter, or about 39 inches. It will happen regardless of any future actions to curb greenhouse gases, several leading scientists say. And it will reshape the nation.

Click here to read on.

We've topped 1,000 invitations sent to politicians and candidates for federal office.  Many thanks to everyone that's working to put the pressure on our elected officials.  And now we have a way to watch that number of invitations rise.  Let's keep it going!

It's easy...so long as there is an action in your area (if there isn't click here to start an action), you can invite your federal delegation and all the presidential candidates to events in your area by using the invite tools on our website:

Click here to invite the leaders.

To all the fearless Step It Up organizers gearing up for November 3, we've recently posted the new 9-Step Plan to help walk you through how to best prepare for your action.

Click here to see the 9-Step Plan.

And if you've never organized any sort of rally before -- great!  And we're hear to help.  So don't be afraid to email us with questions or ideas: [email protected]

Also, we've generally bulked up the Organizer Headquarters with some new resources: a custom media advisory, new printable materials, and new grant opportunities for youth organizers through Youth Ventures.

And don't miss the new Step It Up store -- click here.

 

Rocky Anderson, mayor of Salt Lake City, is issuing a challenge to every mayor in America: "Who will step it up and put on the biggest and grandest event in the country?"  Rocky helped put together one of the biggest Step It Up rallies back in April featuring Los Lobos and now he's back in action to organize a huge rally this November 3rd.  Which city or town is going to meet his challenge? 

Watch the video and then send it to your mayor to let them know the heat is on to see who can step highest on November 3rd!  Many thanks to our friends from Y.E.R.T. (Your Environmental Road Trip) for meeting with Rocky to get the challenge on tape. 

In Brooklyn, creative organizers have decided to combine their dreams of a clean energy future with their passion for the stage. They�re bringing on a new economy, while bringing back burlesque! The event will combine satire, humor, performance art, education, and of course, direct climate action. Check out what they have to say about the event:

�On November 3rd 2007, as communities across the nation gather to host climate change awareness events exactly one year before the next presidential election, the Brooklyn-based burlesque dance trio Suspicious Package invites guests to a gritty bar on the Williamsburg waterfront to revel in the depravity, carnality and shocking awe of the changing climate in our decadent lifetime. The doors will open at 9:00 p.m. to a world in which the full space of the bar is an immersive experience of impending environmental doom. Installations in the venue will be as important as the show itself, weaving together environmentally shocking art - on and offstage.�

This event is a testament to the breadth and depth of November 3rd actions being planned � people with a wide range of interests are throwing every bit of creativity they�ve got into this uniquely historic day. Way to Step It Up Brooklyn! Interested in performing? Check out their event description for more details.

Joining us in the call for Green Jobs Now is a new friend and ally that just launched yesterday: Green For All.

The Green For All campaign, focused on bringing �green collar� jobs to urban areas, launched yesterday at the Clinton Global Initiative in New York, NY. The group, created by Van Jones, co-Founder of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, seeks to capitalize on the exploding green economy while ensuring that the coming green economic wave lifts all boats.

�It�s time the African American community had a part in the discussion on climate change,� said Jones. �We�re not going to solve global warming just with expensive consumer choices like buying hybrid cars and shopping for organic food. People need to realize that you don�t have to be white or wealthy to benefit from going green.�

The Green For All campaign is a bold effort to harness the growing power of the green economic revolution to fight the war on poverty. By securing job training for 250,000 workers from urban communities for the emerging green job market, the program will provide new avenues of opportunity for those who have traditionally been left behind by the nation's economic growth. It will also give the crusade against global warming a broader social base, extending the green revolution to the neglected streets of cities like Oakland, Detroit, Baltimore and New Orleans.

You can also read more about the launch of Green For All on It's Getting Hot In Here -- the youth climate movement blog.

We couldn't be happier to see the Green For All campaign take off.  And real momentum is building around the 1 Sky priorities...get ready for some exciting times in the weeks and months ahead.

It's no midnight ride on horseback, but what better way to step up this movement than a revolutionary bike ride retracing the famous route of Paul Revere.  Among the several actions taking place in the Boston area on November 3, Kalman Gacs is organizing a bike ride from Boston to Lexington.  Invoking the revolutionary spirit, this ride is a great example of how folks are connecting their November 3 Step It Up efforts to models of historic leadership while calling for climate leaders today.

Actually, their final stop of the day won't be until Concord, MA, where the riders will be joining up with the folks from the Global Warming Education Network (GWEN) for a "revolutionary energy rally."   Let's be sure some Massachusetts politicians join in this revolutionary action and step up as climate leaders -- click here to invite federal politicians in MA.  And then, just like every other action around the country, let's invite all the presidential candidates so they'll know America demands that they attend an event on November 3.

If you're thinking about starting up an action yourself but you're not sure about ways to invoke these sorts of historical connections don't worry.  Connecting Step It Up actions to historic leadership is just a starting point for ways to be involved on November 3.  Check out the Organizer Headquarters of the website for more tips and suggestions for how to organize effective, fun, and powerful Step It Up actions.

November 3 is shaping up to be a historic day (in more ways than one).  Let's keep the momentum building.  Be sure to spread the word and ask everyone you know to help with organizing and inviting the leaders to events.  Thanks all.

Here's Bill's latest piece on Grist:

"Backs against the wall" is not a scientific measurement, but it's right where we are on global warming.

It's the vernacular translation for when the National Snow and Ice Data Center reports that this year the summer Arctic sea ice shrunk to the smallest area ever recorded, about 460,000 square miles less than the previous low point recorded in September 2005. It's what it means when the chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change tells reporters, as he did last week, "Wheat production in India is already in decline, for no other reason than climate change. Everyone thought we didn't have to worry about Indian agriculture for several decades. Now we know it's being affected now." He added that a similar shift seems to be underway in China.

And when your back is against the wall, that's when you've got to fight, and fight like you mean it. That's why we're launching Step It Up 2. On Nov. 3, people all across the country are holding rallies to demand action on global warming. Find out if there's one scheduled for your vicinity; if there isn't, then sign up to start one. We can help make it easy -- you're not organizing a March on Washington, just a gathering of your neighbors.

Click here to continue reading this piece in Grist. 

Today on the blog we are joined by our new friends, the filmmakers of "Ghosts of Appalachia".  Ghosts of Appalachia is a film in progress that bears witness to the effects of mountaintop removal mining on the f�amilies and communities of Appalachia.  Watch the trailer and read the description below, then add your voice to the national call for No New Coal.  Help stop �the need for this destructive mining practice, by joining the movement on November 3rd. 

"Ghosts of Appalachia" is a feature-length documentary in production about the Appalachian community and its fight against mountaintop removal mining. Through the eyes of one family facing pending mining in the mountains surrounding their home, we learn about the "chain of power," where energy comes from, where it goes, and what the effects of such a drastic rate of energy consumption can be on the people, streams, and mountains of Appalachia. To be in action or to contact the filmmakers, please visit www.ghostsofappalachia.org and their contact page at�http://ghostsofappalachia.org/index.php?option=com_contact&Itemid=3.

Our November 3rd national day of action is shaping up to be an incredibly powerful event. When we came up with our theme for this day of action, "leadership," it was our hope that we would hear stories of individual and community leadership from around the country. And that is exactly what's happening. While much of the focus of November 3rd is on getting leadership out of Washington (because that's where we desperately need action), it will also be a celebration of local leadership as well. 

There are many different ways people are taking action in their own communities - from churches improving their efficiency to schools lowers their emissions to individuals cutting their carbon footprint. You can connect with a number of great local campaigns our friends and allies section. I want to take the time to highlight one campaign in particular in this post.

I had the privilege of listening and participating in a call this evening with people all across the country who are taking part in Sierra Club's Cool Cities campaign. These are the people who are working day after day to implement the changes we are fighting for - literally rewiring their cities to become more efficient, pushing for the creation of new jobs in the clean energy economy, and through their work, strengthening their communities. Thank you to everyone who is taking part in this campaign - and thank you for stepping it up on November 3rd. We want Step It Up to be a celebration of your work and a challenge to members of Congress and presidential candidates to follow your example.

If you haven't had a chance to take a look at the Cool Cities website, visit it now. There you'll find information about the hundreds of Mayors who have signed on to U.S. Mayors' Climate Protection Agreement and learn how you can get involved in this dynamic campaign.

And, if you're already involved in Cool Cities, please organize a Step It Up event for November 3rd. There are few better opportunities to draw attention to the work you are doing and build momentum for the fight ahead. Let's continue to strengthen this grassroots movement that is building to take on the greatest challenge of our time. Together, united and loud, we can win.

For those of you with lots of time on your hands (ha!), or just interested in reading some important books, here's an interesting discussion between Paul Hawken, author of Blessed Unrest, Bill McKibben, and Jon Lebkowsky of worldchanging.org about some of their recent books:

Creating sustainable systems means transforming how we think about the world and its different economies -- of money, nature, agriculture, and more. Essentially it means rethinking our priorities. But how do we create these new frameworks, and translate them into community action?

These urgent questions are at the centers of two inspiring recent books: "Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Movement in the World Came into Being and Why No One Saw It Coming" (Viking, May 2007) by Paul Hawken, and "Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future" (Times Books, March 2007) by Bill McKibben. These authors have an obvious synergy, so I asked them to join me, along with Randy Jewart (of Austin Green Art), in a discussion to share with Worldchanging's readers.

This conversation took place in email over the first half of September, 2007. If you find it compelling, take action: buy both books in case lots, read them together, and organize groups for discussion and action.

Jon: In comparing your recent books, "Outside" Magazine, referred to you both as "two of sustainability's most visionary champions." Do you see an inherent connection with each other's work? Do you have any formal joint projects?

Bill: Over the years I've followed many of the intellectual paths that Paul has blazed � "Deep Economy," my most recent book, builds on the foundation of thinking that Paul erected years ago. His most recent, and perhaps most important, book, "Blessed Unrest," gives voice to the rising worldwide movement for a planet that's just and durable and worth living on.

My own activist work in recent years, on one issue (global warming) in one country (this one) is a tiny part of that huge movement he's helped to chronicle and build. He's been a great assist with our Step It Up project, and I think his database may prove absolutely essential if we're ever able to take this fight around the world, which is where it needs to go.

Click here to continue reading the interview on worldchanging.org.

Hey everyone! It's only Tuesday and we can already feel the big momentum building this week for Step It Up. Events are being planned all across the country with many more in the works. We're getting reports from California to Maine, Minnesota down to Texas. From an action honoring Sojourner Truth to a celebration in front of Mt. Rushmore, people are rallying in places that highlight the kind of leadership we need our politicians to take on global warming.

And just as exciting - we're hearing back from politicians that they are beginning to receive invite after invite to Step It Up events. Remember: the more invitations a politician receives, the more likely he or she will attend a Step It Up rally. So keep flooding their mail boxes and phone lines - and then email your friends, relatives, co-workers, and anyone else you can think of and encourage them to do the same. We want to send hundreds of invitations to every member of Congress and presidential candidate.

Last April, we shifted the debate in Washington and put a 80% by 2050 cut in carbon firmly in the spotlight. But as Bill McKibben says, a movement has to keep moving and calling for leadership is the logical next step. Now, we're letting politicians know that foot dragging and empty promises are no longer acceptable - it's time for climate leaders!

But to call for leadership, we have to show some ourselves. Step up today and follow the three steps to success: organize an event, invite your leaders,  then show them our plan to stop global warming and ask to hear theirs.

We're on pace to make November 3rd a huge success - keep up the great work!

All summer, and now this fall (happy belated equinox!), we've heard countless stories and reports of local communities continuing and intensifying their efforts to fight global warming.  In Indianapolis, IN, the April 14 Step It Up organizer, Ed Cohen, is leading the charge to take further action by surveying local candidates for office on their approach to climate change:

Their new website reads: " We, [the Indianapolis Climate Action Network], came into existence on April 14, 2007.  Following that event, the big question was, "What do we do next?"   It took about 6 weeks, but the decision was made to focus on learning where candidates for the upcoming local election stood on matters of sustainability, stewardship and climate change.  With Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson having recently signed the U.S.Conference of Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, it seemed obvious to use that as a spring board for our our next effort."

And survey the candidates they did.  You can visit their website to view the results.

Now, along with our friends in Indianapolis and everywhere, we're gearing up to put the pressure on our federal officials this November 3.  Let's keep the numbers on the big list rising and invite all the leaders.  Thanks all.

Momentum is picking up for November 3 -- but we still need your help.

First of all check to see if there is an action near you, and if there isn't be sure to register an action today.  Then, once an action is started in your area, help us invite every politician and candidate for federal office to come to Step It Up actions on November 3.  Even if they've been invited before, let's flood them with invitations and make sure they hear our call to action -- Step It Up: It's Time for Climate Leaders!

We have all the tools here on the website to assist you with phoning, emailing, and writing to politicians, but you can always do it in person as well.  Check out our very own Kelly Blynn inviting presidential candidate John McCain:

Happen to see the lead article on the New York Times website today?  Click here to check it out.  The international community's efforts to seriously take on climate change are promising, but the Bush administration's response is, well, frustrating, to say the least.  If you're in the D.C. area here's a chance speak out and call for real leadership:

Visit the Climate Emergency Council website to read more about the action.

Flag of the Iroquois Confederacy

As we've been calling folks and reaching out to friends and allies, we've realized what we thought might be true: the commemorating a historical leader theme can be a bit challenging.  At the same time, many local organizers out there are finding inspiring leaders and places in their communities for their rallies--- we'll continue to spotlight these in order to give other organizers out there ideas and inspiration as they brainstorm for their actions for November 3rd.  Check out this bit of history from an exciting Step It Up action registered by Krys Cail in Ithaca, NY:

We will be holding our action in the Ithaca area, at Tutelo Park. In addition to having two of the oldest trees in the County, the park also commemorates a Native American village, Coreogonal, that was maintained on or near the spot by the Cayugas in the eighteenth century. In the Haudenosaune language, Coreogonal means "where we keep the pipe of peace," and it was here that the Haudenosaune (Iroquois) welcomed the Tutelo tribe to join them, after the Tutelo were driven from their lands further South by the European settlers. Haudenosaune people gather at Tutelo Park for ceremonies at least annually. This is an historical example of the leadership of a people (the Cayuga) in recognizing that we live under 1 sky with all peoples, and should live in peace. With the help of native peoples in the area, I would hope to have this event serve as an example of how we can care for our brothers and sisters who are in danger of displacement from the effects of climate change.

Thanks for Stepping it Up, Krys! Keep the history lessons coming, we learn something new about the great leaders of our past every day.  Just remember - don't worry if there isn't the perfect place in your community to honor your favorite historic leader.  Just by registering a Step It Up action, your community is taking a leadership stance, and putting itself in the perfect position to ask your politicians, "Who's a Leader?" on  November 3rd.

One of the many exciting Step It Up communities up in Massachusetts is celebrating the life of Sojourner Truth, the prominent abolitionist, author, and slave. Sojourner led a challenging life: she was forbidden to marry the one she loved, forced instead to have 4 children with an older man, and then once she was freed, could only keep one of her children. After leading a tough life as a slave, Sojourner took up the call to preach about abolition � building community, and challenging oppression. Traveling all over the Northeast, she used her religious conviction as an avenue for change, appealing to moral conscious in order to get results.

The citizens of Florence Mass are deriving courage from Sojourner, whose bronze replica decorates their central green. Given Sojourner�s devout Christian approach to human rights, it is very fitting that the organizers (several of which are members of the clergy) chose her as their model leader:

"Drawing strength from this former slave who became one of the leading speakers and preachers for abolition, we will call our leaders � and ourselves � to face a task that is even more difficult than the abolition of slavery: the protection of this planet�s capacity to support life.�

Florence Mass organizers are building upon their rich local (and national) history to create one meaningful day of action in the heart of their town. Sojourner would be proud!

Speaking of proud . . . Check out our Big List and Map! We had over 100 invites today - nice job guys! 

On September 4, 2007, our crew here at Step It Up headquarter joined more than 1,200 people across the country and around the world who fasted as part of an effort to pressure Congress to take action on climate change.

Two weeks later, 5 are still continuing the fast.  Watch the video below to hear Ted Glick's remarks and call to action as he fasts.  Our prayers are with you, Ted...

Click here to read more about the fast on the Climate Emergency Council website.

There is momentum building in the movement against new coal fired power plants, but there is still an incredible amount of work to be done. This November, Step It Up is promoting a moratorium on new coal fired power plants as one of the three 1 Sky principles. We've received a few questions about why we have staked out this ambitious stance - for many people and communities, the struggle against coal is not at the top of the agenda and can feel a bit unrelated to the important work of greening one's home, business, or school.

But if we want to make progress on global warming, we must take a stand against new coal development. Take this statistic from a recent advertisement by Architecture 2030:

If every household in the US changed a 60-watt incandescent light bulb to a compact fluorescent . . . The CO2 emissions from just two medium-sized coal-fired power plants each year would negate this entire effort.

There are 151 new conventional coal-fired power plants in various stages of development in the US today. On November 3rd, we hope to give a resounding "No!" to the development of each one and a even more resounding "Yes!" to a clean energy future that will create millions of new, green jobs.

Some of the latest news on coal is out of Utah, where the EPA has granted Deseret Power a permit for a 110 megawatt coal plant in Uintah County. Building a new coal plant in Utah is the wrong move. US Rep. Henry Waxman (CA) is calling the EPA's decision "both illegal under the Clean Air Act and an enormous missed opportunity." (click here to invite Rep. Waxman to a Step It Up event in California). 

The picture in this blog post is from a Step It Up action last April in Park City, Utah. The ski industry is one of the many things in the West threatened by continued global warming. This November, we hope to have hundreds of more pictures and videos from across the country of people standing up against coal and for a cleaner, safer, and more prosperous future.

Talk about pretty in pink.

The gals over at Code Pink have had their way with our logo and given it a distinctly rosy new hue! With an emphasis on joy and humor, the women at Code Pink have been on the front lines of the fight for peace, justice, and a better world for us all. Now, not everyone may agree with their rabble rousing approach, but we admire their energy and commitment - its going to take a loud, creative, and diverse movement to take on global warming and Code Pink is a great ally to have on board. You can learn more about Code Pink at their website, read about their participation in Step It Up 1, or find out more about their "extreme politics" in The Nation.

We salute you, pink warriors, and hope to see you out in communities nationwide on November 3rd!

Want to try your hand at our logo as well? Feel free to download it from our site, give it a creative twist, and send a copy to [email protected] - we'd love to see what you come up with.�

Jacob Ruff of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights provides us with a bit of background on all this "Green Jobs" business you see around our website and as part of 1 Sky:

Under low white clouds and an uncharacteristically blue Bay Area sky, a team of local twenty-somethings stood on a roof, raising solar panels.  A Raiders sticker on one hardhat and flopping dreadlocks under another gave clues that this group was not a typical construction team.  The youth who connected these clean energy panels were benefiting from the green economy -- benefits usually reserved for those putting sacks stuffed with fair trade coffee and organic soymilk into the trunks of their Priuses.  

These builders got their know-how from a job training program they completed this summer, the joint effort of a local solar company and a local job development organization.  Did you see that �Green Jobs Now� pillar of the 1 Sky campaign and the Energy Action Coalition?  This program brings green-collar jobs to life.  

Folks whose employment searches face the stiffest systemic difficulties, like low-income youth and the formerly incarcerated, are eligible for the program.  Participants learn job skills � everything from traditional construction to interviewing, as well as skills applied to new trades in the emerging green economy:  installing solar panels, maintaining wind turbines, growing agriculture organically, and more.  An important final step connects local green employers to program graduates through a job fair, lining up real jobs for participants!

A Green Jobs program in Richmond, CA takes the �green pathways out of poverty� concept a step further, identifying low-income homeowners whose homes are used as training sites.  A special city loan lets the homeowner borrow money for the solar panels, and doesn�t require  full repayment until the house is sold.  In the meantime, homeowners who may have never had the chance to invest in solar power get to enjoy watching their electric meters run backwards.  How sweet an incentive to choose clean energy!

All communities want more jobs.  The green-collar jobs solution not only brings opportunities for work, but also creates cleaner air for our kids to breathe.  The green wave is coming -- if cities don�t prepare local workforces to enter the burgeoning green industries, those communities will watch green profits fly overhead toward non-local destinations.  

Richmond�s program is not an isolated one.  The Ella Baker Center for Human Rights helped win $250,000 to fund the Oakland Green Jobs Corps, making Oakland the first city in the nation to invest in a program designed specifically to create green �pathways out of poverty.�  And Green For All is pushing the federal government to grant the cash for a national Clean Energy Jobs Corps by passing the Green Jobs Act.

It�s time to invest in solutions that fight poverty and pollution at the same time.  Climate change policy should serve the polar bears grasping at ice floes � but it must also serve cities� youth looking for jobs.

Here is a piece that appeared on Jim Wallis's blog God's Politics:

 Here's the word from the physical world: On Sept. 10, scientists studying satellite images of the Arctic reported that sea ice covered 4.32 million square kilometers of the north. The old record, set two years before: 5.34 million square kilometers. Mark Serreze, an Arctic specialist at the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Center at Colorado University in Denver, said, "It's amazing. It's simply fallen off a cliff and we're still losing ice." The Arctic has now lost about a third of its ice since satellite measurements began 30 years ago. At the moment, an area of ice the size of the United Kingdom melts each week.

And here's the word from the political world, as it appeared in The New York Times last Thursday: "The prospect of a comprehensive energy package's emerging from Congress this fall is rapidly receding, held up by technical hurdles and policy disputes between the House and the Senate and within the parties."

The technical word for this situation is "gap." As in, there's a slight gap between how much we need to do and how much we are doing. A gap at least as wide as the Northwest Passage, which as of early September was fully navigable.
There's one thing that can close that gap, and it's called leadership.

Which is why, on Nov. 3, Americans will gather at hundreds of sites around the country, places named for great leaders of the past: the top of Mt. Washington, the place where Teddy Roosevelt was inaugurated, the birthplace of Rachel Carson, the site of the Lincoln-Douglas debates, and many, many more.

Click here to continue reading this post on God's Politics blog.

We just put up some new tools on our website--you can check them out to the right of this blog post. The "Invite the Leaders" tool is just a few days old, and already two elected officials have committed to attend November 3 rallies! Congratulations to event organizers in Burlington, Vermont for inviting Representative Peter Welch and Senator Bernie Sanders to their event.

This week both Welch and Sanders committed to attend the Burlington action! Burlington's a beloved town around here--it's the home of Step It Up's old headquarters, it's a buzzing hub of activism, and it's home to webmaster Jon Warnow's crepe restaurant.

We are glad to see that the invitations are making an impact!

This is a great reminder to everyone vising the website today--if you're reading this now, please visit our "Invite the Leaders" page and invite your elected officials to an event in your area. And heck, if there isn't one, please sign up an action today. As always, we'll guide you through the organizing if you need help.

The listing of a public appearance by an elected official or candidate is solely for information purposes. The information is not intended to suggest that such public official or candidate holds viewpoints consistent with or inconsistent with those held by Step It Up 2007 or affiliated organizations. Step It Up 2007 does not rate or track the positions of elected officials or candidates for office.

In our last blog post, Kelly repeated the need to make this movement an artistic one. The most successful movements in history have been singing ones, and we're no exception. Check back to our website as we get our "Climate Songs" section back in action. Leading the charge of musicians for the climate is our friend Raffi, read on to learn about "Cool It" his global warming anthem: 

COOL IT: The Global Cooling Song 

How did this chilling toe-tapper happen? �

Ever since David Suzuki�s 1989 reference to Global Warming as �a matter of survival�, GW�s been on my radar. I�ve been a longtime ecology advocate, even recorded an ecology album in 1991 (Evergreen Everblue). The recent Al Gore film reminded me that David, Al and I took part in the Ri�o Earth Summit in 1992. In the wave of my current Child Honoring focus, I felt the need to do something new.

I set out to write a rollicking call to action, an anthem to urge business, government and citizens to join the great global cool rush. So when the guitar riff suggested rockabilly, the simple singable chorus took form. The song came together quickly. So Into the studio we went�electric guitar, drums, bass, keyboards, harmony vocals and me, on lead and guitar�working fast with live �off the floor� vocals.

For group vocals, how fitting to record the staff of David Suzuki Foundation at their Vancouver offices, with David and Tara among the singers! You can see us rockin� out in the video below:

Your part? Why not download the song�MP3 and lyrics (both free)�sing it, and pass it on to friends?

Bonus: the free music chart download makes it easy learning for school choirs.

This November 3�for Step it Up 2�let�s make some noise! Sing with me,
sing it loud, have a ball, dance it up. And spread the word: �COOL IT�.
Like the song says, �Do it for the children, do it for yourself�.

Carbon-free: it�s the new COOL. All together now!

After reading the great piece from Alex Steffen that Jon posted a few days ago, I want to follow up to talk about an important part of any social movement or political action: art. In the face of the possibilities of mass destruction and ecological failure Steffen spoke of, we'll need inspiration through art, music, theater, and creative writing in order to express the feelings those possibilities evoke, and to convey a meaningful vision of what's possible, if we do it right. We talk a lot about numbers and percentages and policy points here, but when it gets down to it, these things are not typically what truly inspires political action or sustains the fight within. It is the artists and musicians that often tell the stories of the times in ways that reach to us most deeply and movingly.

Bill McKibben wrote about the need for art in this movement on the Grist a few years ago - now people all over the world are answering. What sparked this blog post was the awesome artwork from the winners of this year's UN Children's Painting Competition on the Environment. Some of the kids are only 6 years old! Crazy. This year's theme was climate change and you can see the winners' works, from all over the world, here: http://www.unep.org/Tunza/paintcomp/

There are many ways to incorporate art into your action- involve local artists, host a silent auction to raise money for local efficiency projects, hold a children's art competition, see if a professional photographer will donate their time, paint a mural, hold a film festival� the ideas go on and on, but we want to hear yours. On April 14th, we were able to turn a wonky number-filled call to action, into beautiful aerial photography, banners, and more that spoke powerfully to the media and people all across the country. How can we get the message across visually this time? Write us, we'd love to hear your ideas!

Also, stay tuned for ideas about incorporating music into your action...

What do we do fighting warming every day, are we sad because we're on our own? No! We get by with a little help from our friends.

Actually, Step It Up gets by with a lot of help from our friends. Our open source model means that the success of November 3rd rests on the shoulders of individuals and groups nationwide who are stepping it up to help spread the word and organize actions. You can always find a list of friends and allies on our website - we encourage you to explore their work and think about connecting with them, both for November 3rd and ongoing work in your community. Many groups have local chapters in your area, or who knows, maybe they're based in your home town!

We'll periodically be featuring friends and allies on the blog to share the work they are doing with all of you. Today, we want to feature Coal River Mountain Watch, a group fighting mountain top removal coal mining in Appalachia. A recent ruling from the Bush Administration is attempting to enshrine the practice of mountain top removal, blasting off the tops of mountains to get at the coal underneath and CRMW is on the front-lines of a fight to stop it. We stand in solidarity with them and encourage you to take action with them to protect the mountains, streams, and communities of Appalachia. Here are two ways to help:

1. Right now, email the Office of Surface mining opposing the new rulings - a form makes it easy to do: Click here to take action.

2. On November 3rd, take up the call of "No New Coal" in your Step It Up rally. Take the time to learn more about the issue and share what you learn with your friends, family and neighbors. Together, we can build the movement against coal and for a clean energy future in this country.

A big thanks to all of friends and allies for keeping up the fight!

While we're working away at inspiring real political action on global warming here in the United States, it's also good to keep in mind the global significance climate change.  Bill McKibben helps us think through the global situation in an article in National Geographic:

The CO2 from fossil fuels lingers in the atmosphere, so global warming can't be undone. But catastrophe can still be averted.

Here's how it works. Before the industrial revolution, the Earth's atmosphere contained about 280 parts per million of carbon dioxide. That was a good amount�"good" defined as "what we were used to." Since the molecular structure of carbon dioxide traps heat near the planet's surface that would otherwise radiate back out to space, civilization grew up in a world whose thermostat was set by that number. It equated to a global average temperature of about 57 degrees Fahrenheit (about 14 degrees Celsius), which in turn equated to all the places we built our cities, all the crops we learned to grow and eat, all the water supplies we learned to depend on, even the passage of the seasons that, at higher latitudes, set our psychological calendars.

Once we started burning coal and gas and oil to power our lives, that 280 number started to rise. When we began measuring in the late 1950s, it had already reached the 315 level. Now it's at 380, and increasing by roughly two parts per million annually. That doesn't sound like very much, but it turns out that the extra heat that CO2 traps, a couple of watts per square meter of the Earth's surface, is enough to warm the planet considerably. We've raised the temperature more than a degree Fahrenheit (0.56 degrees Celsius) already. It's impossible to precisely predict the consequences of any further increase in CO2 in the atmosphere. But the warming we've seen so far has started almost everything frozen on Earth to melting; it has changed seasons and rainfall patterns; it's set the sea to rising.

Click here to continue reading this article in National Geographic.

Conservation hero David Brower once said, "People have alleged that I have inspired many young people over the years, but I say, it was just the opposite. In this spirit of inspiration, we present the first of a series of blog posts about the Powershift 2007 conference. Taking place at the University of Maryland the same weekend as Step It Up, organizers of both events are committed to making the weekend of November 3 truly momentous!

Power Shift 2007 is the first-ever national youth summit to solve the climate crisis. Youth of all backgrounds will use their experience from local and state level climate change movements to create a fresh, positive, and inspiring vision of the future, one focused on our potential to overcome the challenges of the 21st century, build a clean energy economy, achieve energy independence, create millions of green jobs, increase global equity, and revitalize the American economy.

Power Shift will take the climate movement to new levels. At this conference, young leaders will share ideas, learn new skills, make new connections, establish a national voice for our generation, and send a united message to our national leaders: we are moving beyond the same old special interests, empty promises, and inadequate results to embrace a new paradigm that leverages our strengths and achieves what is possible for our future.

Another major goal for the conference is bringing a diverse group of youth from different races, religions, incomes, genders, and abilities.  In order for this to happen, conference organizers are asking for donations to cover travel scholarships for students who would be under-represented at the conference without aid to attend. If you can help with this, please do so here. Thanks, and stay tuned for more updates!

Here at Step It Up headquarters, we love compact fluorescent light bulbs--they are a perfect representation of the easy, sensible, affordable changes we can make in our day to day lives to chip away at the problem global warming.  But we are all too aware that this kind of change isn't enough--not by a long shot.  The scope of global warming is so massive, so deeply entrenched in our systems of energy and commerce, that we need to be thinking far bigger than light bulbs and personal actions.  We like to say that screwing in a new lightbulb is good, but screwing in a new federal energy policy is far more important.  It seems that Alex Steffen of the blog Worldchanging is thinking along the same lines: in his new essay, he argues that it is vital to find ways to go beyond Ghandi's recommendation to "Be the change", that to tackle our most pressing crises we must figure out how to  "mass-produce change." His essay is a clarion call for the environmental movement, and it should be an inspiration to the Step It Up organizers around the country are going to use November 3rd to catalyze the mass-production of change in our country.  So take a few minutes to read the essay, and take a few more to let its implications sink in.  It's good to be reminded that the time has truly come to think massively.

Don't Just Be the Change, Mass-Produce It

Alex Steffen
September 12, 2007 3:50 PM

"If our world is really looking down the barrel of environmental catastrophe, how do I live my life right now?� asked an email I got recently.

I know the standard answer: Be the change.

This motto -- shorthand for Gandhi's instruction that "We must be the change we wish to see in the world" -- has become ubiquitous. And while a sensible person will appreciate the essential wisdom behind Gandhi's words, in the context of sustainability, this shorthand has become associated as well with another idea: that the being the change is a lifestyle choice.

In this context, Be the change in fact usually means Buy the change. It means living a standard consumerist lifestyle, but varying the products one consumes to include "green" clothes, cars and furniture... or at best going without a few things you didn't need anyways.

Here we crash headlong into one of the most painful, difficult and confusing realities of life today: varying our lifestyles will not create the kind of change the world needs to see. Ensnared in huge systems whose major by-product is destruction, it is nearly impossible -- if we're looking at the problem with clear eyes -- to truly be the change.

 

It is essentially impossible for an average person with an average income to live an average North American lifestyle sustainably. It is only somewhat less difficult for an average European. Personal sustainability certainly can't be achieved simply by shopping at a different set of stores.

But that's not the half of it. The very idea that changing our own lives into models of sustainability will transform the world is wrongheaded -- in part because it is almost impossible to do without great wealth or great sacrifice, in part because even when we do it, it encourages us to believe that problems which demand systemic solutions can be fixed by personal virtue.

At its worst, making saving the world a personal responsibility drives green posturing that's both meaningless and annoying. But even at it's best -- even when we focus on taking the personal actions that are both actually within our power and at least somewhat effective -- it is woefully insufficient. As Bill Rees (the inventor of the ecological footprint measurement) says, "We're all on the same ship and what we do in our individual cabins is of almost no consequence in terms of the direction the ship is going."

The privatization of responsibility for the crises we face is entirely understandable. Making planet-saving a consumer choice helps sell products. Making it a lifestyle choice mutes political pressure for change. Making it an individual responsibility helps deflect attention away from the massive impact, ethical bankruptcy and extreme profitability of the unsustainable production, transportation, energy, food and construction systems upon which we depend and over which we currently have essentially no direct control.

Why do good people keep advocating lifestyle change? Well, the hope is that small steps will lead to a big change of heart: that a tipping point will occur when the crucial can falls into the critical recycling bin, and people all around the world will awaken to the sustainability imperative, and then that, in some vague-but-direly-hoped-for way, this awakening will change everything and all will be well (and everyone gets a pony!). I think of this theory as betting the farm on the arrival of a Mythological Universal Conversion Event.

Here's the biggest problem with this theory of social change: we've been at it for decades, it hasn't worked and it probably never will. Things are demonstrably worse than they were when we began advocating recycling and such, and they're getting much worse far faster than any lifestyle choices can make them better. In the absence of an unlikely change in the nature of humanity, buying bamboo shirts or sustainable furniture is like spitting at a forest fire.

Regular people get this. Edward Abbey wrote that "Sentiment without action is the ruin of the soul." And almost every day we ask those around us engage in the ruination of their souls. We tell them the truth -- that an ecological collapse is on its way, and that avoiding it demands widespread transformation -- and then we suggest that they take some small steps whose meaninglessness in the face of massive crisis is self-evident. We ask them to care about everything, and do almost nothing.

We ought instead to ask from them, and demand from ourselves, action commensurate to the crisis, which is to say heroic action. The world has never more needed a generation of heroes, and, in the absence of a better generation, we'd better step up and fight like hell for the future we want.

I am not really in the business of giving individuals advice. But it does seem to me that there is one step which applies to everyone: Dream big. Dream about living your one-planet life in a bright green city on a sustainable and thriving planet, and dream about it in the near term.

In dreams begin responsibility, as the man said. I think that vision places on us a burden, that to be able to see the gap between the world as it is and the world as it must become is to be tasked with trying to imagine ways of bridging that gap. But in dreams also begin transformation: having imagined a better future, we gain the ability to work towards designing, building and spreading it.

We don't need more people living marginally greener lifestyles. We need thousands of people, millions of people, swarming out of their lifestyles and leading worldchanging lives: practicing strategic consumption, sure, but also inventing new answers, changing their companies (or quitting their jobs and starting better companies), running for office, writing books and shooting films, teaching, protesting, investing in change, mobilizing their communities, redesigning their cities, getting up off the couch and going to the meeting, and in every other way making it happen. It is time to live as though the day has come, because it has: tomorrow is too late. One planet, three decades.

Put another way: Don't just be the change, mass-produce it. We need, through brilliant innovations, bold enterprise and political willpower, to make sustainability an obligatory and universal characteristic of our society, not an ethical choice. We need to remake the systems in which live. We need to redesign civilization.

Anything less is failure.

Hey friends � I�ve been told it's time to introduce myself, so here goes! My name is Kelly Blynn, one of the newcomers to the Step It Up Organizing Team and I am quite excited to join some of my great friends to work on this exciting campaign for the fall. After graduating from college in VT in the spring, I hopped over to NH to begin work on Climate Summer, a student-led effort to organize a 5 day march across New Hampshire in order to call for national action on climate change in the key primary state. It was great fun, and had quite an impact for all those involved. Now with the long hours of canvassing, permitting, and logistics behind me, I am now ready to hand over my illustrious title of �logistics lackey� or �permit princess� that I earned during the march in order to lace up my organizing boots once again and put on my Step It Up �organizing crown� (see photo).

But I couldn�t be content any other way at this time in my life. With the 2008 election fast approaching, I know we need to be light on our toes (and heavy on the huge wave of grassroots support developing on this issue) in order to make sure we don�t miss our window to address global warming in some meaningful and serious way. As a kid from the unwalkable, highly consumptive burbs o� Philly, I�ve felt that something was wrong with the way we�re living for quite a while, and hearing from all you inspiring leaders every day through the calls and emails we get makes me feel for the first time like we just may be able to change some things. So keep on Stepping It Up! I�ll be here in the office waiting to hear about all you�re doing, and help out however I can.

Oh, and one more thing then. So I�m working on tapping into this on-line network of some, oh, 7.5 million progressive folks, called Care2, in order to spread the word about Step It Up. Is anyone else a part of this thing? I have 3 friends right now, so its not going all that well, so if you�re a part of the Care2 network, be my friend and join the Step It Up group! Thanks, and nice to meet you all.

Need a little extra inspiration to put in the time to organize a Step It Up event for this November 3rd? Look no further than this new video from our friends over at YERT (or the Your Environmental Road Trip). Remember, Step It Up doesn't support any particular candidates for office and the views expressed in this video don't represent those of our campaign - - except for those voiced by Bill McKibben, we tend to agree with what he says. Watch him and other climate all-stars in the video below:

What is this YERT thing anyway? We'll let them explain: 

YERT (Your Environmental Road Trip) is a year-long eco-expedition through all 50 United States. With video camera in hand and tongue in cheek, we're exploring the landscape of America's unique approach to environmental sustainability. We believe that Americans want to do the right thing - they just don't want to look strange doing it, and they don't have the time or the means to explore all the options. That's where the YERT team comes in. Follow us each week as we shamelessly bathe ourselves in the best (and weirdest) of America's ecological progress with a mix of outrageous antics, provocative examples, and thoughtful reporting. Got an idea? Want a clue? Let's get rolling!

Thanks for the video guys, and good luck on the road!  

One organizer found a way to combine rich history, past leaders, climate disasters, and current progress into a great community event. Check out what Dr. David Kowalski in Buffalo, NY has to say about it:

"In 1901, Buffalo hosted the Pan American Exposition and people f