Big Plans for Jan 20, 2023 To Take Action for Climate Change Needs. See 350.org info shared here and Join An Event/ Donate!
Catherine -
As we begin the new year with a divided Congress, the only path forward for climate action is through executive action.
Our movement has put pressure on President Biden to use his executive powers to stop fossil fuels — and two years ago, we celebrated a huge win when Biden pulled the plug on the Keystone XL pipeline.
But since then, Biden’s only executive orders on climate have focused on ramping up renewable energy at a time when we also need to be ramping down fossil fuels.
The person who knew this best and the impact of fossil fuels on communities — especially Indigenous communities — was activist Joye Braun. Last year, our movement and our world lost Joye. This January 20, in honor of her birthday and her legacy, we’re joining with our partners and 350 local groups across the country to take action.
If there’s not an action near you, you can sign up to host an action instead. All the info you need is in the toolkit here.
Joye was a fierce defender of Indigenous sovereignty, human rights, and environmental and climate justice. Here are just a few examples:
- In 2016 when the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe became the epicenter of a global climate justice movement, Joye was the first camper at what became the Sacred Stone and Oceti Sakowin camps. These camps became the largest mobilization of Indigenous nations in over 140 years and successfully won a major victory when President Obama listened to the demands of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and rejected the final permit for the Dakota Access pipeline.1
- In 2017, after Trump tried to resurrect Keystone XL, Joye played a major role in Solar XL: a first-of-its-kind community effort that successfully built solar directly in the path of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline. 350 was proud to work on this project with Joye and frontline partners across Nebraska and South Dakota. We defeated Keystone XL, and Solar XL still remains. To learn more, you can watch this 8-minute film featuring Joye that takes you to the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation in South Dakota and beyond.
These are just a few of the hundreds of examples highlighting Joye’s lasting impact on the climate and Indigenous rights movements.
Joye dedicated her life to our movement and would want us to keep fighting, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.
It is our job to continue Joye’s legacy and hold Biden accountable to end the era of fossil fuels.
In solidarity,
– Team 350
