“It took me a long time to realize that the scientists had won the argument but were going to lose the fight, because it isn’t about data and science, it’s about power. The most powerful industry is fossil fuel, because it is the richest. At a certain point, it became clear that our only hope of matching that money was with the currencies of movement: passion, spirit, creativity — and warm bodies.”
Bill McKibben, author and founder of 350.org
We see and hear about threats to our environment every day. Another year sets a new global temperature record. Another scientist warns we’re experiencing massive species extinction. Another report documents the declining health and biodiversity of ecosystems from boreal forests to coral reefs.
Fortunately, we also have plenty of solutions: Energy conservation and renewable power; public lands dedicated to protecting wilderness and wildlife, not extracting fossil fuels; smarter, greener ways of living that leave a lighter footprint on the planet.
What we need more of — what any social movement always needs more of — is people who know how to organize: to build and run effective organizations and campaigns that inspire the popular support and political action we need to save our planet.
THERE'S NO SUBSTITUTE FOR ORGANIZING
Organizing wins over hearts and minds for new possibilities. Organizing builds the public support that changes the political and economic equations for people in power. So doing the right thing becomes no longer just a matter of principle for people in power — it becomes a matter of survival for them. If our leaders want to win the public’s vote, they have to vote the right way on the environment. If companies want consumers to buy their products, they have to do right by the environment.
As crises such as climate change and species extinction unfold before our eyes, we have an opportunity to shift our world in a greener, healthier direction. It’s a pivotal moment in the history of both our country and our planet, and we need people who know how to organize to steer us onto the right path.
If you can see yourself as an environmental organizer — someone who gets up every day to win hearts and minds for new ideas and new possibilities, to inspire the hope and support we need to save the planet, and to build the organizations required to sustain action and progress for the future — apply to the Green Corps program today.