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STILL no Climate Emergency declaration, but are we shifting the tide?

By Scott Kelley, Raise the Alarm Team Leader On July 24th, 2023 , SanDiego350, led by Youth4Climate and the Raise the Alarm (RTA) team, joined with organizations around the country as part of the People vs. Fossil Fuels Coalition to demand President Biden declare a Climate Emergency. Rallying with our allies in front of San Diego’s biggest fossil fuel company, Sempra, we called for an end to fossil fuel expansion, an end to climate injustice, and an immediate transition to the green energy future we need to survive. Declaring a Climate Emergency will free up billions of dollars to tackle

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Honoring Latine Contributions in the Fight Against Climate Change

By Joshua Piedra, Board Member Hola! Did you know that September 15th-October 15th is Hispanic Heritage Month in the U.S. To be frank, not many do, especially in latine communities. But why does this month matter to the climate justice movement? Before we have a deeper conversation on local latine history and the climate justice movement, it is important to make some distinctions.  Firstly, people from Central and South America all have different identities, especially those residing in the U.S. Some consider themselves to be Chicano/a/x/e, Latino/a/x/e, Hispanic, or some other combination of various countries. For instance, I consider myself

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Compost bin

Pitch In – Pitch It In The Green Bin!

By Joel Martin, Climate Writer Here’s an easy way to fight climate change – put your food and yard waste in your green bin every week. The California legislature did us a favor by addressing the issue of organic waste by redistributing unused food, and recycling food waste. Yay, real legislative action that matters! To make it work though we need to do our part. Why is food waste bad? Food production and food waste create greenhouse gases, particularly methane. Methane is exceptionally nasty stuff because it is about 30 times more potent than carbon dioxide in warming the planet.

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Headshot of Joshua Piedra

Member of the Month: Joshua Piedra

This month, we interviewed SanDiego350 board member, Joshua Piedra to share about their climate activism. How did you first get involved with SD350, and when was that? Around 2ish years ago I was presented through an organizer friend an email by SD350 searching for candidates to join the board. I had never been involved with the organization before that email but after reading the description, I felt closely aligned with the mission, values, and people-centered efforts that SD350 emphasized. I applied to join the board and have been with SD350 ever since. What drives your activism? Coming from an immigrant

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Anne and Chad

Discussing Degrowth at SanDiego350’s Climate Chat

By Anne Sheridan, Co-Chair of the CAP Committee On August 29th, I, along with one of my colleagues, Chad Baron, gave a Climate Chat entitled Planned Degrowth for Sustainable Development. (If you missed it, you can watch the recording and access our slides.) When our Climate Chat was announced, there was some concern about whether it was wise for SanDiego350 to be seen supporting a topic that some feel might be unpopular or negative. So we decided it would be good to take some time both during our presentation and in this article to outline how degrowth – which we

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Reflections on 3 years of leading youth climate programs

By Megan Phelps, former Youth Program Coordinator Growing up, the start of a new school year came with a sense of excitement and possibility–plus nervousness and nostalgia. It meant sharpening my pencils, meeting new friends, learning new things about the world–and also missing my old classes and teachers.  As I transition out of my role as the Youth Program Coordinator, I once again feel in sync with this change of seasons: I’m excited for the next chapter of my life but nostalgic for the vibrant program that I’ve been lucky enough to build. Youth4Climate started as a small but mighty

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Statement from environmental justice coalition on Hasan Ikhrata’s resignation from SANDAG

Contact: Steve Gelb, SanDiego350, 619-851-7123, steve@sandiego350.org  Angelica Estrada, Environmental Health Coalition, 562-708-3093, angelicaE@environmentalhealth.org The environmental, health, and community organizations we represent are deeply grateful to Hasan Ikhrata for five years of visionary leadership at SANDAG that transformed our region’s thinking and progress on transportation and equity.  We are calling on the leadership of SANDAG and our region to hire another preeminent transportation planning expert to succeed Hasan, someone who will expand on his accomplishments and not only reach – but surpass – state mandates to achieve an equitable, sustainable future for all residents of San Diego County, with clean air, healthy

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Candidates sitting at a table

Our District 4 Candidate Forum + Make Sure to Vote Before August 15!

By Joshua Piedra, SanDiego350 Board Member Attention everyone who lives in County Supervisor District 4: make sure to cast your ballot by August 15. Read below about our nonpartisan candidate forum and watch the livestream.  Our Candidate Forum asked questions on climate and environmental justice  The Candidate Forum went really well! We had a packed auditorium with more than 150 folks participating, and according to one of the candidates it was the largest forum they had attended! The forum included 3 of the 4 candidates running for County District 4 in the Special Election. We partnered with more than a

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People holding up signs for better transit in San Diego.

Let’s Go! San Diego: A Crucial Initiative for the Nov 2024 Ballot

By Walter Miller, SanDiego350 Intern Let’s Go San Diego  Let’s Go San Diego is a measure that SanDiego350 is supporting for the November 2024 ballot. This ballot initiative aims to increase funding for transit related projects, make our existing roadways more sustainable, and reliable, as well as improving the quality, accessibility and affordability of existing transit.  Why is SanDiego350 supporting the measure?  This measure integral to future transportation and development in San Diego County, to meeting the needs of its residents, and to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to a rapidly changing climate. This ballot measure aims to bring

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Headshot of Jennifer Phelps

Member of the Month: Jennifer Phelps

This month, we interviewed SanDiego350 volunteer, Jennifer Phelps to share about their climate activism. Jennifer is a dedicated member of SD350’s Youth4Climate Adult Team. How did you first get involved with SD350, and when was that? I first became actively involved during 2018 when the youth program started gaining traction. I then volunteered for planning the first Youth Empowerment Summit in June 2019, which attracted over 50 high school students for an all-day, action-packed seminar on climate action. I found that experience so inspiring that I remained actively involved with the subsequent youth events, which grew into Youth4Climate. What drives

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Headshot of Annette Fritzsche

Meet our new HR & Operations Coordinator: Annette Fritzsche

By Annette Fritzsche I believe community organizing is one the most effective ways to bring about positive social change, and for this reason and many others, it’s a pleasure to join the team at SanDiego350 as the HR and Operations Coordinator. My work will be a lot of behind-scenes support to help move the vision forward. Human resources, reporting, compliance – all the things that, if done and done effectively, will go unnoticed by others and they’ll be able to do more effective work.   My passion for community, education, and partnerships have led me to work in the arts and

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Co2 on trees

Carbon Offsets: A Solution to Climate Change or More Green Washing

By Nicola Peill-Moelter If you’re like me, as someone who is trying to reduce my carbon footprint, you might be struggling with the fact that most everything we do has a carbon impact: driving, flying, living in a house or apartment, eating, buying things.  And while you’re doing your best to reduce that impact, it’s not going to zero anytime soon. So maybe you’re thinking of buying carbon offsets. But they seem sketchy; paying to pollute. Or perhaps they provide a needed revenue stream to accelerate carbon reduction projects. In this blog, I share my understanding and experience with carbon

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Member of the Month: Mariano Diaz

This month, we interviewed SanDiego350 volunteer, Mariano Diaz to share about their climate activism. Mariano is a dedicated member of SD350’s Marketing & Communications team.  How did you first get involved with SD350, and when was that? I originally ran into SD350 at rallies and actions while working with other grassroots organizations. I respected the passion and engagement from their team and volunteers. While there are several climate and environment oriented groups in San Diego doing great work, I felt like getting more hands on with my skill set as a content marketer and photographer. In January, I volunteered for

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headshot of Xavier Holmes

Meet our new Youth Program Coordinator: Xavier Holmes

By Xavier Holmes Hello, my name is Xavier Holmes and I am thrilled to be stepping into the Youth Program Coordinator role for SanDeigo350’s Youth4Climate program. This opportunity is a dream job for me not only since I have years of experience leading volunteer-based programs, but because climate activism has been a foundational part of my life. I graduated from the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) with a Bachelors of Arts in Sociology degree in 2021. My time there was filled with many wonderful opportunities where I could chase my passions for empowering disenfranchised communities and contributing to the climate movement.

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map of district 4

Candidate Forum and Upcoming Special Election for County Supervisor in District 4

Keeping Climate Change and Environmental Justice front and center in this key election By Joshua Piedra, SD350 Board Member When is the Special election and why is it happening?  County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher resigned on May 15th due to a sexual harassment scandal. This has left a vacancy for District 4 and a politically divided Board of Supervisors. The Board of Supervisors discussed their options and decided to hold a special election to fill the vacancy.  The special election to fill the vacancy in D4 is scheduled for Tuesday, August 15th. If no candidate receives a majority of the votes

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Youth holding protest signs

San Diego Unified School District: Trying to Go Green

By Marilyn Bruno, Climate Writer The April 25th vote of the San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD) to pass a Resolution to cut CO2 emissions was a major step towards achieving net zero by 2035. The Resolution calls for the electrification of the SDUSD fleet of buses and maintenance vehicles and the replacement of water heaters, gas stoves, etc. in the 226 educational facilities in the District. In this article, I’m spotlighting two high school leaders who led the Climate Action campaign that helped to make this happen: Emma Weibel (Sophomore at La Jolla H.S., age 15) and Theo Martien

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Three volunteers at the carnival

SanDiego350 Kicks Off Earth Week with Our First Carnival for Climate

By Deanna Alderson, Climate Writer The sun was shining and the crowds were full of enthusiasm at SD350’s first Carnival for Climate, held on Saturday, April 15th in Balboa Park. It was a fantastic way to kick off Earth Week, with hundreds of guests enjoying games, entertainment and the festive atmosphere, all while learning about the importance of climate action. Thanks to our generous sponsors, we were able to make this event free and open to the public, and we ended up raising over $11,000(!). But this event wasn’t just a fundraiser—it was a way to bring our community together

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Three people holding up a sign

We’re Taking Transit to the Ballot with Let’s Go! San Diego!

By Steve Gelb, Transportation Team Co-leader “Let’s Go! San Diego” is a campaign to put an initiative in front of voters on the November 2024 ballot that would fund transit infrastructure and operations in San Diego County, prioritizing investment in communities of concern. This initiative is crucial to achieving our goals of climate justice, environmental health, and a connected, equitable future for all San Diegans.   SanDiego350 and the Environmental Health Coalition are launching a coordinated grassroots effort that brings together a coalition of community-based organizations and hundreds of volunteers in order to collect thousands of signatures from June to November,

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Earth Day

Earth Day – We need to act now!

By Marilyn Bruno, Climate Writer Last year, I wrote an article about the first Earth Day on April 22, 1970 and how it was created to divert the attention of young voters from the Viet Nam War.  In 2015, most countries of the world signed the Paris Agreement, pledging to meet UN emission reduction targets to ensure that 2030 temperatures do not exceed 1.5 degrees Centigrade above 1997 levels, they have failed.   Despite some progress (replacing fossil fuels with biofuels, building wind farms, installing solar panels, and transitioning to electric vehicles), Earth Day 2023 looks gloomy. Most countries have failed

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People in front of a microtransit vehicle.

Transportation for All – Lifting Up Communities with Microtransit

More than fifty community participants, panelists, advocates, and experts participated in a community workshop on microtransit organized by SanDiego350 on Saturday, March 4, at the Malcolm X Library in southeast San Diego.  Barry Pollard of the Urban Collaborative Project welcomed the participants and laid out the challenge to decision-makers to stop speaking of equity and start doing something to address transportation inequities in communities south of Route 8. Microtransit refers to pooled rides in shared vans running on fixed or on-demand routes and schedules serving locations within a zone that is underserved by last-mile connections to transit. John Niles, a

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