A (projected) group of thousands of people representing 45 environmental and other organizations will be convening in Washington, D.C., next Tuesday to tell our reps on Capital Hill that we want action on climate change now — before it’s too late for polar bears the Arctic. According to their website:
Action day will begin at 11 a.m. with an inspiring lineup of speakers including celebrities, well known US representatives and senators, and leaders from faith organizations, labor groups, sporting and business organizations, and conservation groups. Alaska Natives and members of the Gwich’in Nation will also share their firsthand experiences about the challenges of global warming and the threat of oil drilling in the arctic. Following this inspirational two hour program, attendees will have the opportunity to meet with their members of Congress and urge them to support the Arctic Wilderness Act and legislation that will combat global warming and support clean energy.
And:
Perhaps nowhere is the evidence for global warming more evident today than in the arctic where permafrost and sea ice is melting at an alarming rate. Polar Bears live exclusively in the Arctic and are totally dependent on arctic sea ice for their survival. If current global warming trends continue, it is likely that the Arctic will be ice-free in summer as early as the middle of this century, and in the next 20 years all Arctic sea ice will likely diminish by 80 percent. This is not good news for the threatened polar bear population.
Speakers will include Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), and leaders from national environmental organizations. Some celebs and plenty of concerned citizens will also be on hand. The event is sponsored by the Wilderness Society, the Sierra Club, Earth Justice, and NRDC, among many others. If you’re on the hill, stop on by. Sign up here.
