Can you remember the moment you decided to really fight for climate action? It probably wasn’t a Facebook post or a cynical tweet. More likely you had startling conversation, formed a new relationship, or discovered a new community and a way to get involved.
Real social change requires face-to-face interactions. That’s why we need you to help us reach out to our communities this summer and build a powerful base to support our campaign to put a price on carbon pollution once and for all.
In her new book, “Twitter and Tear Gas,” writer and social scientist Zeynep Tufekci reminds us of life before social media. Mobilizations like the March on Washington once grew out of years of painstaking recruiting, training, and coordination. Paradoxically, it was the very difficulty of face-to-face organizing that forged leaders and decision-making structures strong enough to weather storms of the opposition.
Today we are faced with the intense challenge of transitioning to a clean and efficient energy economy before we fry ourselves alive. The speed of online communication suits the urgency of climate change. However, the strength of the fossil fuel empire demands an unprecedented depth of commitment and relationships among us. That means smiles, high-fives, and conversations with – gasp! – eye contact. (Which is what we all really want, right?)
To win a solution so powerfully scalable as a carbon fee and rebate in Washington, D.C., our movement must be made of a living web of trusting relationships that can flex, focus, and keep growing through the ups and downs of this ambitious campaign. That’s why the 30+ organizations in our coalition have spent the past two years getting to know one another. Now we want to know every neighborhood in our city.
Mark your calendars for a community outreach event in YOUR neighborhood. Read on for the schedule and details!
Find the community outreach event in your neighborhood:
- Tuesday, July 4 at 9:30 am: Palisades Parades
- Wednesday, July 12 from 3:00 – 7:00 pm: Foggy Bottom Farmers’ Market
- Thursday, July 13 at 9:00 am: Play-in For Climate Action with Mom’s Clean Air Force
- Sunday, July 16 at 10:30 am: Bloomingdale Farmers’ Market
- Friday, July 21 at 4:00 pm: Truckeroo at Navy Yard
- Friday, July 28 from 11:00 am – 3:00 pm: Capital Harvest on the Plaza (CHoP)
- Saturday, August 5 at 10:30 am: H Street Farmers Market
- Sunday, August 13 at 10:30 am: Dorothy Heights Library
- Sunday, August 20 at 10:30 am: Hillcrest Recreation Center
- Saturday, August 26 at 12:00 pm: 17th Street Festival
Why be part of the action? Allow me to testify: there’s nothing quite so fulfilling to offer other concerned people a chance to really DO something about the climate crisis. It’s weighing on all of our hearts and minds, and by getting out there to recruit new people to the campaign, you’re doing them a favor of empowerment.
So let’s hit the streets this summer!
PS: Sierra Club will be hosting a volunteer training on Monday, July 10. You’ll get all your questions answered, and receive top-notch training on how to win the support of DC council members, ANCs, Civic and Citizen Associations, businesses, and your neighbors at the farmers market. We want to be sure you’re fully trained and ready for these opportunities to build an unstoppable power base for climate action in DC. Click HERE to RSVP!