Archive - Sep 22, 2009

First post by 1Sky Communications Fellow Stefanie Zaenker. -- Luis

This morning, President Obama addressed an eager crowd at the United Nations Climate Change Summit in New York City, where he talked about the challenges that we face in our efforts to combat climate change. He also touched on what the U.S. is doing to show that we are ready to make a real commitment to combating global warming, such as the climate and clean energy bill passed by the House in June, and our investments in renewable energy.

Obama is a powerful speaker, but we're convinced he needs to show more personal engagement with this issue if we are to reach a strong global agreement at the Copenhagen negotiations this December. What we need is urgent domestic political action to show that we are ready to be a world leader in climate policy. As our campaign director Gillian Caldwell said,

Real action means using real political capital to push a clean energy jobs bill through the United States Senate in the coming months. That, more than any speech at the United Nations, will show the world that this time we are serious, and that the United States will lead once again on the global stage.

From Lauren Schuster, the Environmental Campaign Coordinator and 1Sky organizer at the New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG). -- Luis

Thanks to everyone who came out to Central Park this passed Sunday to be part of the Human Countdown, the kick off event for Climate Week NY°C. With close to 2,000 people in attendance, the event was an enormous success and is sure to send a resounding and visually arresting message to President Obama and other world leaders that New Yorkers want a global climate treaty.

Though timing remains fairly ambiguous, the climate bill continues to float along in the wake of healthcare, with still lingering hopes for consideration this fall. 1Sky is pushing hard to keep it on the roster given the climate emergency we confront.