Massachusetts Sierra Club Activist Training

"Pretend you’re on a dare," suggested Emily Norton, Massachusetts Chapter Director of the Sierra Club. “You have 120 seconds to impart information for them to be tested on the next day.” In her July 12 Activist Training session in Quincy, she emphasized that state legislators are busy people, who may not know about an issue quite as much as you, so frame the information in a brief, compelling way.

Emily Norton leading the activist training session

Do not doubt that your input to your legislators matters. Emily gave a stark example: In November 2015, a bill was passed 150 to 2 to slash the reimbursement rate for municipal, low income, and community solar projects. The decrease was retroactive! If you had made an investment based on the reimbursement, you would be out of pocket. Emily was shocked and asked Reps she knew what happened. “You weren’t here. We didn’t hear from you.” Legislators hadn’t heard any opposition from the voters, they had heard nothing at all. Advocacy went into high swing on this issue resulting in 100 reps signing a letter to change the just-passed law. Advocacy works. Silence does not.

Emily provided very tangible suggestions for communicating with your Rep. Get a small group together, which can be made up of friends, neighbors, and colleagues. Schedule a meeting, preferably in their home district, not at the State House, and with the Rep, not an aide. The meeting can be part of their scheduled office hours in the district. You want the Rep meeting with constituents where they live, not where the Rep works.There is low voter turnout in local elections so a small number of people can have a big impact on their Rep. You can be an influencer.

Do your homework first. The more you know about your Rep, the better you can establish common ground and build rapport. What is their professional background? What are their committee assignments? What bills have they filed? (Go to MALegislature.gov for information about legislators.) Prepare with your group. Print out concise materials to present to them which describe your issue and the reason for your position. You can cover several issues, but keep your scope limited.

Your approach in the meeting is that you want to work together to understand the issue. Be friendly. Ask how you can help your Rep understand the issue. Share your story, your reason for being interested in the issue. You can quote studies and facts but your own story is more compelling. After your conversation, ask to take a picture with the group and the Rep. Post it to social media. Thank the Rep for their time in the meeting and in a follow up email.

A presenter at activist training

Of course, prior to meeting with a Rep, you need to understand your issue. The activist training also discussed key state level clean energy bills under consideration, with necessary background information. To understand the bills, first you need to understand the Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS). Joel Wool from MA Power Forward and Larry Chretien from MA Energy described the history of the RPS policy, and why it’s doable and beneficial. As of 2015, New England gets 51% of its energy from natural gas. Stopping the use of coal in electricity production was a big win, but natural gas also produces greenhouse gas emissions. To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Massachusetts needs to get more of its power from renewable sources. RPS mandates the level of energy that must be provided by renewables. In 1997, the MA Electric Utility Restructuring Act established the RPS. The Act was amended in 2008 with the Green Communities Act, setting an annual increase of 1%. In 2017, the legally mandated RPS is 12%. However, MA set goals with the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2008 to have a 25% reduction in emissions by 2020 and an 80% reduction by 2050. (Currently, there are no interim targets.) An RPS increase of 1% a year will not lead to those reductions. In addition, further progress requires that demand for renewables keeps pace with supply.

"The more you know and talk to your legislators, the better we are," Emily recommended. The MA Sierra Club will be conducting more Activist Training sessions this summer. Refer to the < a href="https://www.sierraclub.org/massachusetts/meeting-events>Meetings/Events page for the schedule. Refer to the Issues > Climate/Clean Energy page for more information on clean energy.