Hi, all.
It’s been a little while since I’ve gotten to regale you all with the latest in the climate movement, so forgive me if this feels like a laundry list of happenings, but sometimes you just gotta do laundry. Here we go:
As Lucy wrote about in her latest installment, the founder of the outdoor retail company Patagonia, Yvon Chouinard has essentially given away his company in the name of climate. Here are the details on that transition (from Patagonia’s website):
“100% of the company’s voting stock transfers to the Patagonia Purpose Trust, created to protect the company’s values; and 100% of the nonvoting stock had been given to the Holdfast Collective, a nonprofit dedicated to fighting the environmental crisis and defending nature. The funding will come from Patagonia: Each year, the money we make after reinvesting in the business will be distributed as a dividend to help fight the crisis.”
It’s not ideal to have to rely on the goodwill of billionaires to solve the climate crisis, but it’s certainly a win for movement. Three cheers for Chouinard and Patagonia!
Water, water everywhere: Pakistan is dealing with aftermath of catastrophic rainfall earlier this month; Puerto Rico just got slammed by another hurricane that took out electricity across the island (except for some spots with solar power); Nigerians are experiencing the worst flooding in the country in decades; and a huge storm hit Alaska, impacting an area bigger than the entire California coast (in case you forgot that Alaska is the size of Alaska).
Talks over Manchin’s “dirty deal” seem to be reaching a fever pitch as we’re entering into late September, with both sides of the aisle looking for more clarification on details. What’s clear from leaked version of the bill is that it could fast-track pipeline projects and disregard environmental review projects, and that’s enough to try to block it. Take action with People vs. Fossil Fuels and call your representative to stop the fossil fuel handouts.
It’s Climate Week in NYC, and the Hip Hop Caucus/Think 100% is putting on a Climate Justice Week filled with actions.
Looking ahead to later this week, Fridays For Future is putting on another Global Climate Strike this Friday, September 23rd. The theme this year is #PeopleNotProfit. Here’s a map of the actions happening around the world (including a strike in On the Level’s home base of Gallatin County).
Ok, I think that’s everything just about washed, dried, and folded for this week’s newsletter. Thanks for reading, and be sure to tune in next week when I unload the dishwasher…