Legislative Coordinator
My name is Cory Ray and I’m Sierra Club Hoosier Chapter’s new Legislative Coordinator. Ever since I was young, I’ve always had a passion for history. Something about learning about the old world, great leaders from the past, and how events that once transpired still impact us to this day inspired and fascinated me like nothing else. These old stories and records of times long passed instilled in me a passion to never just be content, but to strive to change the world around me and make an impact in the best way I could. As a young person, I didn’t know what exactly this would mean, but as I got older, it became clear that to make the difference in the world I wanted to see, I would need to learn all I could, never stop organizing, and help empower as many people as possible along the way. As a professional, I have made it my life’s work to fight for the issues that matter most such as access to healthcare, public education, a clean and bountiful environment, economic opportunity, racial and social justice, and protected rights for workers in all industries.
Last year, I managed a staff of Field Organizers in West Michigan for Progressive Turnout Project and would go on to coordinate hundreds of volunteers across the Southern and Midwest regions of the US. Before that, I was the Southern Indiana Regional Labor Council’s Field Coordinator covering 42 counties, and have nearly a decade of experience working for state, local, and congressional political campaigns and issue-based advocacy organizations. I look forward to putting my knowledge and experience to good use fighting to protect, promote, and expand protections for our state’s environment and natural beauty.
Being a Hoosier has always meant more to me than just another word to describe where I’m from. To me, being a Hoosier means we look out for and help one another, appreciate what we have, and always do our best to do what we can for our local communities. Rural areas like where I grew up didn’t always have much, but one thing we did have was an abundance of green fields, lush forests, and a wide variety of places in nature to experience the world around us in a natural and wholesome way. Having this made me into the person I am today and instilled in me a passion for protecting what we have in our great state so others for generations to come can experience it too.
As a Legislative Coordinator for Sierra Club, I will primarily focus on tracking, lobbying, and organizing around targeted legislation in the Indiana Statehouse. In the off-season, my time will be spent building teams, developing organizational structures, and preparing our chapter for future legislative efforts in the upcoming session. I look forward to building something that creates lasting change in Indiana and gives our chapter a cutting-edge advantage in affecting legislation.
I can be contacted at cory.ray@sierraclub.org and a one-on-one meeting can be scheduled with me using this link.