SalvaEco

Posted by Page (in Amsterdam)

Let me introduce you to Senator Ted Stevens, who’s from Alaska. Like his fellow Republicans, Sen. Stevens is hardly a friend to the environment. He has repeatedly tried to circumvent the Endangered Species Act. He wants to open up the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling. He thinks increasing oil tanker traffic in Puget Sound is a great idea. I think you get the point.

So, you can imagine what I thought when I read that he’d met with the Japanese Prime Minister in Washington D.C. last week: “what does Stevens have up his sleave?” Being a terrible cynic about US politics, I figured it had something to do with whales, and of course, securing votes when he’s up for re-election next year.

I was right, but it turns out there’s a positive side. Seriously!

Continue reading Senator Ted Stevens: Here’s your chance to do the right thing!…

I recently attended a training held at the Leadership Conference for Civil Rights office, the first of the C-Team’s Third Thursday training. This training focused on the ins and outs of blogging and had some great tips on how to pitch your news to bloggers.

Adam Green fromMoveOn.org explained that bloggers should be seen as activists and strategic partners. Blogs are so effective because they band together as a community and are able to make news that way. George Allen’s “macaca” incident was picked up by the news because so many bloggers were writing about it. So when you are ready to pitch to blogs, think strategically. You need to target the right audiences. Who is your audience and what blogs target them? Secondly, don’t treat bloggers like reporters. Your goals need to be aligned and you should give them a heads up about your issues or campaign – let them know what you are working towards and how they can help. Finally, legitimize blogs. You can do this by helping them build credibility – bring them the hot news and the breaking news first.

People for the American Way suggested looking at Technorati.com and searching for blogs focused on your issues and see if any blogs have already covered your organization. Try pitching the influential bloggers in your issue field. Invite them to your events and who them you support them.

Jen Mosely of NARAL Pro-Choice America explained the experience they’ve had from their blog, Bush vs. Choice. She explained that when starting your own blog, it helps to have someone who is knowledgable and commited to your issue. Let your supporters know about your blog and encourage them to start commenting on the posts. Even add a post from your blog in your e-newsletter so your supports can learn more about it.

Tom McCann of the Ocean Conservancy suggested looking at your favorite blogs and figuring out why these are your favorite blogs. This can help you make yours even better. He also reinterated that you need a blogger how is passionate about the issue at hand and has the willingness to devote time to the blog – at least several times a week. Your blog should be quick and easy to read, and employing some humor can always help.

-Yvonne Archer

Widmeyer Communications recently held a really informative presentation about how to get measurable results from your communications through polling and research. Here are some of the key tips that were shared for doing just that.

Doug Meyer, who is the Senior Vice President and Director of Research and Polling, explained that you can still use the traditional ways of measuring media success, such as through media clips, click-through rates and television ad views. Yet these traditional ways leave certain questions unanswered; for example, is your message actually getting out there and who is hearing it?

You have to remember that effective measurement needs to evaluate the reach and penetration of your message. Before any outreach, do some planning and research. You are trying to increase the awareness and knowledge of your issue and to do so, you need some quantitative objectives that will illustrate that. You can increase your chances of succeeding if you pre-test your campaign. You can do this through polling your audience to see if they feel your message is compelling and credible to them. You can also conduct surveys, focus groups and interviews with your audience.

If you have a small communications effort, it may not be worth the time and money – it takes about 5-10% of your campaign budget to take on an endeavor like this. But if you have a larger communications effort, it is worth it to become more efficient with your messaging and targeting.

If you want to create an effective campaign, research needs to be a part of it from start to finish. Polling, surveying and testing helps you to learn more about your members and supporters, learn about potential members and even renew interest in your issues and help them gain visibility.

Here are a few examples of research you can do:

Qualitative: Focus groups by phone, email or in person. Small group or individual interviews.

Quantitative: Telephone interviews. Online surveys (SurveyMonkey is a great tool). Video and website testing.

Think about what would work best for your organization so that you can make the most of your campaign and have it work effectively for your group.

-Yvonne Archer

Beyond Pesticides is a national non-profit membership organization,
founded in 1981, dedicated to educating the public about the toxic
hazards of pesticides and safer alternatives. The organization
advocates for strong policy to protect public health and the
environment. Beyond Pesticides’ programs are focused on school
pesticide use, lawn care, insect-borne diseases, organic agriculture,
documenting pesticide poisoning incidents, and watchdogging federal,
state and local governments.

Responsibilities may include:
Producing materials, including factsheets, articles, report
contributions, and online materials.
Updating and developing webpages at www.beyondpesticides.org.
Assisting in fielding phone calls and emails from the public,
researching and answering information requests.
Assist the executive director and program staff with outreach,
research and administrative tasks on an as-needed basis.

Interns are given tasks that match their interests, skills and
background with Beyond Pesticides’ goals. In addition to working on
specific projects, interns will gain insight into the importance of
grassroots action, the complexities of environmental issues, and how
non-profits function. Internships are based on a small stipend and
vary in length from 3 months to 1 year.

***Internship dates are flexible and may start as early as May 1st***

Please send a resume and cover letter outlining what type of
internship interests you, what you hope to gain from the experience
and what time frame you are available to:

Aviva Glaser
Research Associate
Beyond Pesticides
701 E Street, S.E., Suite 200
Washington, DC 20003,
202-543-5450 phone
202-543-4791 fax
aglaser@beyondpesticides.org

Even as the Bush government continues its criminal climate change obstruction [search], yet another U.S. institution has entered the fray regarding the seriousness of dramatically reducing carbon emissions to mitigate against the worst possible impacts of sudden or abrupt climate change. This time is is eleven former high-ranking U.S. military and international security issue specialists warning that “climate change threatens to prolong the war on terrorism and foster political instability that some governments will be unable to cope with… it has the potential to create sustained natural and humanitarian disasters on a scale far beyond those we see today.” In the United States this is likely to play itself out with severe fluctuations in water from drought to flooding. These are the sort of fighting words of apocalyptic warning that have gotten me in trouble for years in my personal writings. Through its disruption of ecological systems, economies and societies; climate change has the potential to gravely impact international security [search]. This is why on the spurring of the UK, climate change will shortly be taken up by the Security Council of the United Nation. People from Al Gore to Military personnel can see the threat to our very being, yet from 1990-2005 U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions Up 16%. What a myopic, slovenly country that can know all the implications of inaction, studying them with weekly new reports of ever more detail and certainly, and yet fail so utterly to make the changes in energy sources, conservation and efficiency necessary to avert global crisis. Yet a nascent protest movement is emerging in the U.S. [more] that by taking to the streets just may be enough to stop the U.S. from hindering efforts to save the Planet.

Ugandan police have opened fire at hundreds of Mabira rainforest protection campaigners in Uganda protesting against government plans to allocate forest land to a sugar company. Ecological Internet is sad to report that two local rainforest conservationists, protesting to save the Mabira protected rainforest from being 1/3 cleared for sugar cane have, were shot dead when protesting according to BBC. Stopping the “Great Mabira Rainforest Give-Away” has been something the Ecological Internet Earth Action Network has been deeply involved with internationally. This in support of one of Africa’s first grassroots modern ecological protest campaigns – with local peoples organizing boycotts against the sugar company involved, setting up cyber-petitions and text messaging via cell phones to organize protests. Efforts to save Mabira rainforest [search] is a spontaneous, home-grown rainforest conservation protest that deserves our continued support. Please take action now.

Here is my latest missive from my personal essays entitled “Earth Meanders“:

Climate change is the collapse of the global atmospheric system’s processes and patterns and represents a massive environmental challenge to maintaining a habitable Earth. Yet climate is but one of several planetary scale ecological crises that threaten existence and are occurring now concurrently.

While climate change is so omnipresent that it interacts with and exacerbates virtually every other environmental crisis, it remains but one symptom of a much more malignant systematic breakdown in the global ecological system. Global heating could stop being a major issue tomorrow (it will not) and there are at least half a dozen ongoing ecological catastrophes that could still destroy the Earth and civilization such as it is.

It is critical in a post-natural ecological world that these global crises are understood to be connected and addressed holistically if there is to be even a sliver of hope of a human future… Global heating and all the attendant changes in ocean currents, atmospheric circulation and temperature and precipitation patterns may well kill us off by itself. But sadly, climate change is not the only or perhaps even the major global ecological issue threatening global ecological sustainability, sustainable development, equity, justice and international security. [entire essay].

UPDATE: Our hopes have been dashed as China has announced it has no plans to cap their carbon emissions but will instead seek to lower the carbon intensity [search] of its economy. This is the same lame U.S. policy. The number 1 and number 2 carbon polluters in the world are increasingly international pariah states.

Japanese media reports that China will soon commit to “participate proactively in talks on an international framework to fight global warming from 2013”. This could include negotiated participation in mandatory greenhouse gas emission cuts including carbon dioxide. China will soon be the largest producer of greenhouse gases, yet China has not been obligated under Kyoto [search] to make carbon cuts. This was negotiated as a matter of equity, acknowledging that developed countries were responsible historically for most emissions and developing nations deserved more time to lift living standards before also capping their emissions. Despite major disparities in per capita emissions [search] between the U.S. and China, President Bush has used this as justification for America’s refusal to participate in Kyoto. Well maybe, just maybe things will change as China now appears set to bear “its share of responsibility in fighting global warming”. The formal announcement may come as part of broader agreement between China and Japan, who are expected to reach a 10-point environment preservation and energy-saving agreement. As recently as November, China rejected proposals to revise Kyoto that would have obligated it to reduce its output of greenhouse gases. China’s policy turn around indicates its increasing concern with the serious deterioration of its environment that has accompanied its economic growth. Should China indeed agree to carbon and other greenhouse emissions cuts, the United States’ and Australia’s refusal to participate in Kyoto, and engage in good faith in ongoing climate negotiations, will be revealed to be the selfish, self-serving and deadly policy it is. The Earth’s future depends upon China following through on this pledge.

Global climate change will drastically reshape grain, oilseed and other crop production, but exactly how that will happen remains unclear.