We've got big plans for 2021. In this issue, read all about what our teams have in store for this year, what we hope to see from the new Biden-Harris administration, our theory of political change, and more.

1. Looking Ahead: SD350's Plans for 2021
   
2. What Should President Joe Biden Do?
   
3. How SanDiego350 Is Building a Movement
   
4. Youth4Climate Update
   
5. Member of the Month: Allison Tester
   
6. Upcoming Events
   
7. Exciting Volunteer Opportunities!
   
8. In the News
   

Midway through 2020 most of us were looking forward to the end of the COVID-19 pandemic by year’s end. Alas, it is not to be. If anything we are more restricted than we were before, but that is not stopping us. The various SD350 volunteer teams have adapted to this new reality and have plans to continue our mission to fight climate change and climate injustice in 2021. Here are a few of the things to look for in 2021.

The Youth 4 Climate (Y4C) team plans to develop trainings and skill-building for teens to give them the tools they need to take meaningful climate action. Additionally, Y4C will build on the success of the 2020 Youth Climate Action Summit and hold a 2021 Youth Climate Action Summit. Building relationships is key to our mission and the Y4C team will be reaching out to school Eco-Clubs and strengthening existing relationships through an Eco-Club Coalition.

The South Bay Eco Justice team will continue to grow their team and educate the community and elected officials on the climate issues facing the South Bay community. They will continue their work with the Sustainability Commission and work with the city of Chula Vista on their Climate Action Plan.

A monthly podcast/webcast is in the works for the Presentation team. They will work with the newly formed Communications and Marketing team to promote and grow listeners/watchers.  They plan to provide opportunities for youth involvement as well.  The team also plans to reach out to the Building Electrification, Transportation and Food and Soil teams to provide educational assistance. 

The newly formed Fundraising team will continue to grow their membership and cultivate team members to become leaders by offering more opportunities to take ownership of fundraisers/tasks/duties. They plan to establish a cadence and process for annual fundraisers and build relationships with major donors. The team will also foster inclusion by inviting donors and Fundraising team members to JEDI Team trainings and conversations. 

Another new and exciting team is the Building Electrification team. They will continue to build on the effort started in the later months of 2020 to develop an effective coalition (San Diego Building Electrification Coalition (SDBEC)) to advocate for building electrification in cities throughout the region and the County of San Diego. The BE team plans to engage SD350 members and Coalition members in BE education and advocacy efforts and will focus on the economic impact of the transition to clean energy to ensure that low-income households and communities of concern are not adversely affected and that the development of new green businesses and jobs directly benefits those communities.

The Transportation Committee plans to continue to keep an eye on San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) during the development of the 2021 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP – Five Big Moves) and push for increasing transit ridership, active transportation projects, electrification, quality of life, and equity. They will also continue to hold Transportation Climate Chats for SD City and County residents to educate and recruit new volunteers.

These are only half of the teams and only a few of their future goals. There is so much the various volunteer teams plan to accomplish in 2021. The pandemic has forced us to change our methods and come up with innovative ways to continue to advocate and campaign for climate and social justice, such as increasing visibility for our campaigns through social media and meeting with elected officials via Zoom. All the teams are planning to commit themselves towards social justice and anti-racism. 2021 is going to be an exciting year for SanDiego350.

Biden and Harris won the presidency in November—but the question remains, what should they prioritize? The first 100 days are often a significant legislative period for a new president, and in this case, they promise to be even more so. That’s because Democrats recently retook the Senate when Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff each won their runoff elections in Georgia, unseating two incumbent Republicans. They also kept the House after the November elections.

What’s more, the recent right-wing insurrection in the Capitol has heightened many Americans’ sense that some good must be done for the country soon. Democrats have a mandate and ample reason to use it fully.

At SanDiego350, we understand that one of the most pressing concerns the US (and the world) currently faces is the threat of unmitigated climate change. If the COVID-19 pandemic has been any indication of our ability to deal with a global collective action problem, it’s clear that there is a lot of room for improvement.

We’ve put together a list of demands that we hope the Biden administration will satisfy. Biden has campaigned firmly on a platform of climate action, and we shouldn’t settle for anything less than immediate and comprehensive dedication to addressing the dangers climate change poses.

We also strongly encourage our readers to use the graphics linked here to post their own demands on the Biden administration. Let us help you have your voice heard.

Here is what we demand:

Rejoin the Paris Agreement. Famously, Donald Trump exited from the Paris Agreement. Biden’s administration should prioritize rejoining it, and meeting or beating its goals. 

Stop new drilling on public lands and phase out all existing drilling. While ending drilling on private land may take more time, the federal government can put a stop to public lands drilling whenever it wants. 

Create a cabinet-level environmental justice position. Climate change isn’t just an ecological disaster; it’s a human justice catastrophe, too. Biden’s administration needs professionals working on this dimension. 

Buy only renewable energy for the federal government. The federal government should lead by example, powering its operations entirely through renewable energy. 

End fossil fuel subsidies. This is a no-brainer—the government should be subsidizing clean power, not fossil fuels. 

Deny new fossil fuel infrastructure permits and rescind those for Keystone XL and Line 3. The destruction of sacred Indigenous lands and precious ecosystems for the sake of oil company profits must end. 

Investigate and prosecute fossil fuel polluters. Fossil fuel polluters have known about the effects of their industry for decades. They should be held accountable. 

Adopt and exceed California’s emissions standards. Trump eliminated federal emissions standards that had been built to mirror California’s. It’s time to readopt them and exceed them. 

Create a national renewable energy standard that reaches 100% renewables by 2035. The time for incremental transitions is long past. We need an aggressive transition to renewables if we want to avoid the worst of climate change. 

Establish a carbon tax to fund renewable infrastructure, transit, and green affordable housing. A carbon tax could be one of the most effective ways to incentivize and fund a transition from fossil fuels to clean power across the board. 

These changes won’t totally end our reliance on fossil fuel—much less end the threat of climate change—but they can significantly improve our course, and Biden and Harris can get started on them on day 1. You can start by signing 350.org’s online petition demanding these changes. Then, use our cards to make your own set of demands to share on social media. 

By Pia Piscitelli, Public Policy Team Co-Leader

I’m proud to be part of an organization that learns from successful historical movements, such as the civil rights movement and the women’s suffrage movement, to develop its own theory of political change. These movements brought widespread change by concentrating on three main drivers: grassroots organizing, local action and policy, and connection to a larger movement.

These components are the principles guiding SanDiego350’s mission to build a movement to prevent the worst impacts of climate change and climate injustice.

Grassroots organizing

Governments and fossil fuel companies bank on the status quo. It’s so much easier for them to keep things the way they are. Fossil fuel companies deploy massive profits created off the exploitation of our planet to lobby governments, advertise their “commitment” to renewables (greenwashing alert!), and control our politicians. It creates an endless cycle centered around fossil fuel use.

In order to break the cycle and create a fossil free world, we need all hands on deck demanding change. When we turn out en masse, we put pressure on the system so people in power can’t ignore us. SanDiego350 is building a grassroots movement by continually growing our volunteer base, working in coalition with a diverse range of groups and organizations, and fostering leaders within our volunteer base. 

Local action and policy

SanDiego350 has been effective advocating for policy change on the local level. There are more opportunities to affect change on the local level, plus there’s more ability to influence local officials and decision makers. It takes far fewer numbers and resources to influence local policy, and local action can prompt larger national and global actions and policy changes. 

Connection to a larger movement

SanDiego350’s connection to the larger 350.org global movement helps motivate folks to take action and better leverages everyone’s efforts. 350 groups around the world build widespread awareness for 350 efforts, which drives new volunteers to join the movement. Through shared resources, branding, training, and more, SanDiego350 benefits from collective knowledge and can build on resources to best affect change in the region.

SanDiego350’s theory of change in action

This is all great in theory, but what does it look like in practice?

This past fall, SanDiego350 started a building electrification campaign. To date, there are 40 cities in California that have some form of building electrification ordnance in place, but most are located in Northern California. It’s vital that San Diego electrifies our buildings to reach our climate goals. If we don’t start working on this now, we’ll be married to natural gas and fossil fuels for years to come. 

Fossil fuel companies like SDG&E don’t want to see building electrification happen in San Diego despite study after study showing we must do this for public health and our planet. Why? SDG&E is a fracked gas company and makes their profits off polluting our planet. They wield a lot of power locally and have a history of breaking agreements and funding political campaigns to buy influence.

If we want to electrify our buildings and achieve our climate action goals, we must come together to escalate the pressure on elected officials and cities.

We’re building a coalition of individuals, groups, and organizations to work on our common goal together. We’re leading educational programs, events, trainings, and more to bring more San Diegans into the movement and demanding change. We’re countering propaganda and backdoor meetings between elected officials and power-hungry companies like SDG&E. 

To be most effective at electrifying our buildings, we need you. 

We have building electrification resources and educational webinars coming soon--make sure you’re signed up for the newsletter to hear about all upcoming events and activities. 

We’re looking for volunteers! We have volunteer working groups that always welcome new members. Additionally, we have calls to action to advocate for building electrification in cities throughout the region. Make sure you’re signed up for our newsletter to get monthly alerts or join the Public Policy Team for regular updates and action items. 

SanDiego350 is building a movement to prevent the worst impacts of climate change and climate injustice. To do that, we need everyone. Will you join us?

Kathryn Chen, Intern & Co-Coordinator of Youth4Climate Fellowship

This past September, the Youth4Climate Team began the first term of its Youth Climate Fellowship Program. As the Youth4Climate Intern this term, I worked for the past 4 months largely behind-the-scenes in planning, developing, and running this program. Now, at the end of this tumultuous year with the second term of the fellowship only a few weeks ahead, I am so pleased to look back on how much Y4C has grown.

During the fall term, we hired 5 inspiring high-school fellows for 12 weeks to train as climate activists, lead volunteer teams with a total of 28 youth volunteers, and enact specific projects to advance Y4C’s goals of educating, supporting, and inspiring youth to take climate action. Our Strategic Campaigns team laid the groundwork for an impressive California anti-fracking campaign. Our Volunteer Coordination team met with new volunteers, funneled them into teams and projects that interested them, and hosted engaging weekly community calls with roughly 20 regular attendees. Our Actions team developed weekly challenges for youth to take climate action, as well as organized and hosted events such as a voting walkout and a career webinar. Throughout, our Communications team kept everyone updated through social media posts, graphics, and a stylish weekly newsletter. Finally, our Education & Outreach team gave impactful presentations on climate change at our weekly calls and to local schools.

I am so proud of all our fellows and youth volunteers—the hard work they put in, the skills they have gained, and the stirring change they have made in our community. Every one of them teaches me, inspires me, and gives me such joy and hope for our future. Our adult volunteers, interns, and various staff at SD350 have also given us so much support throughout this learning process, and I am so grateful for all of their work in shaping what this program has become.

This first fellowship term taught the Youth4Climate Team so much about our capacity to organize, train, and support our passionate local youth. As we now plan and develop programming for the spring term, I’m excited to apply what we learned from every success, every roadblock, every memorable moment from this past year. In the spring, we are looking forward to hiring a new set of high-school fellows to build on all of the work done in the fall, and we are so thrilled at this opportunity to train and support more youth climate leaders, increase the reach of our movement, and continue making meaningful change in our community.

This month, SD350 has decided to honor our Communications Team lead, Allison Tester. Between managing social media, contributing to the creation of this newsletter, and overseeing a team of volunteers, there’s plenty to be proud of. Here’s what she has to say about her experience working with SD350.

How did you first get involved with SD350, and when was that?

I first got involved with SD350 this past summer; I was inspired by my younger sister's work on sustainable fashion to do something more to help my community. I did a lot of research and SanDiego350's comprehensive approach and successful track record made it seem like the best way to create real change.

What drives your activism?

People are absolutely at the core of this work for me. Both because I hope to help people, and because I'm so inspired by the people working hard to prevent climate injustice. It's been a joy to work with so many passionate people who go above and beyond to fight for our future.

What do you recommend to people who want to have a larger impact through the environmental movement? What do you prioritize in your own activism?

In my own activism, I prioritize actually reducing my plastic use, recycling, eating plant based, not supporting fast fashion brands (see The True Cost, 2015), and supporting SD350's policy efforts! Most of these actions are immediate and anyone can do them starting today. The results of the policy work take a little longer to see but are equally as important!

Is there anything else you would like people to know about you?  

I'm the chair for the SD350 Marketing and Communications Team and we're always looking for more members! We work on a variety of projects and all levels of experience are welcome. Fill out the volunteer interest form today!

Tuesday, January 19, 7:00pm - 8:30pm (virtual)

How Veganism Combats Climate Change 

Join SanDiego350 for our Veganuary 2021 monthly meeting which will be held virtually on January 19th from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm. 

This meeting will be focused on the Veganuary movement and will dive into how plant-based eating and regenerative farming can help reduce carbon emissions. More details to come. 

Thursday, January 21, 7:00pm - 8:15pm (virtual)

Want to become a more active climate action supporter in San Diego? Are you interested in building a social network of climate activists? Join SD350's Orientation Chat on Thursday, January 21 from 7:00 – 8:15pm for a new member mixer. The Orientation Chat is a great way to meet other volunteers and learn more about SD350. This event is highly recommended for all newer SD350 members. Register TODAY! Join the movement NOW as we continue to work on climate action initiatives in 2021.

Saturday, January 23, 11:00am - 12:15pm (virtual)

Friday, January 22, 4:00pm - 5:15pm (virtual)

The Youth v. Oil campaign is hosting a webinar centered around educating the issue of oil drilling in California! We will discuss climate justice and the environmental impacts that are caused by fracking. 

Come to hear from multiple panelists speak about their personal experiences with living near fracking sites, how they are aiding the movement and mobilizing people to stand up against the fossil fuel industry.

Thursday, January 28, 7:00pm - 8:45pm (virtual)

The SD350 Food and Soil Committee and special South Bay guests will talk about how the food we eat, the food we waste, and how we grow our food can either contribute to or reduce global warming. Come join us for a discussion on how each of us can lower our carbon footprint through smart choices in our food and how we care for the soil in agriculture and in our yards.

If you enjoy creating a welcoming environment for others and connecting about Climate Action—contact us to volunteer with our Member Engagement Team. You will help:

• Reach out to new members of SanDiego350 and help them feel welcomed into our community
  
• Assist with planning the content and activities of Monthly Membership Meetings
  
• Develop content that helps new members learn more about SanDiego350
  

For all volunteer opportunities, please email Nicole at Nicole@SanDiego350.org.

• Pandemic Causes Historic — But Fleeting— Drop In U.S. Climate Emissions (NPR)
  
• County Supervisors OK Developing New Climate Action Plan (KPBS)
  
• Who Owns the Tijuana River – and Who Needs Its Water Most (Voice of San Diego)
  
• “Bipartisanship” Is Climate Poison (The New Republic)
  
• 2020 Ties for the Hottest Year on Record (Vox)
• The Wreckage of the Last Energy Epoch: Abandoned Wells and Workers (Current Affairs)