Join us for a day filled with social fun, meaningful conversations, and opportunities to connect with fellow activists who share your passion for preserving our planet. Whether you're a seasoned environmental advocate or just dipping your toes into the world of environmental activism, your presence will contribute to the vibrant energy of our gathering and enrich our future collaborative efforts.

We've got a fun lineup of Icebreakers and various networking activities designed to foster connections and collaboration. Additionally, there will be opportunities to hike along scenic trails, rent kayaks for a leisurely paddle, or simply relax and enjoy the tranquil waters of the beach. We'll provide Sandwiches for lunch, and light refreshments to keep you energized throughout the day. We would love to have you bring a potluck side to share if you’d like. Don’t forget, no single-use plastics! 

Please RSVP by May 9th to confirm your attendance and help us ensure we have adequate resources for everyone. Feel free to bring friends, family or colleagues who share our commitment to protecting the environment. Children are welcome, though you will be responsible for supervising them yourself. Together, we can make a difference. Let's come together, enjoy the beach, and strengthen our network of activists dedicated to creating positive change for our planet.

Thank you for your dedication to environmental causes, and we look forward to seeing you at Anastasia State Park.

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By Maryvonne Devensky, SSJ Executive Committe Chair
Here's an update on Next Steps as we make progress on our goals:

Together with regional water protectors we are combining forces to address the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's (FDEP) Rule Making for the Basin Management Action Plan (BMAP) for three regions: Rainbow/Silver Rivers, Santa Fe/Ichetucknee Rivers and the Suwannee River.  You can join us at the SSJ Conserves! meeting, "Protecting Florida Springs", on May 2 to learn more.
 

2. Increase Notification Requirements for Siting Special Use Permit from 500 feet to Half Mile 
 

Identify targeted counties: Alachua, Levy and Bradford.   More research is required. If you are interested, please contact Sarah Younger at youngersn@outlook.com.
 

3. Reduce Household Energy Burdens for Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) by 30% in 10 years
 

Our allies include Solar United Neighbors, Florida for All, Gainesville Residents United, the League of Women Voters, the Community Weatherization Coalition (CWC), the Alachua County Labor Coalition (ACLC), the City of Gainesville Commission.
First, we need to restore local democratic control of our municipal utility by putting this issue on the ballot in November where the voters can decide who makes decisions for their utility.  Join the Energy Committee, email David Hastings dwhastings@gmail.com.

By David Hastings
In the 2023 legislative session, a draconian bill (HB1645) was passed which transferred control of Gainesville’s local utility (GRU) from the City Commission to an Authority (GRUA) appointed by the Governor. The bill explicitly prevents GRUA from taking actions which address social, political or ideological issues. This is critically important because the Sierra Club worked with the city to establish a goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045. This goal to take action to mitigate the climate crisis is in stark contrast to the denialism of the current legislature and Governor. 

Knowing that the city charter can be changed by a vote by Gainesville residents, community activists, including Sierra Club, League of Women Voters and Alachua County Labor Council, proposed to the City Commission that control of GRU be decided by voters. All seven Commissioners recently voted that control of our utility be decided by Gainesville residents. This is a major victory for home rule; we do not want our local utility to be controlled by Gov. DeSantis and his anti-environmental policies. 

For this to proceed, six of seven Commissioners must vote in favor of putting the referendum on the November ballot on two different occasions. This is an important step forward to restoring democracy in our community and continuing to pursue our climate goals.  

What’s next?

First, please thank Mayor Ward and each of the commissioners (Eastman, Book, 
Willits, Chestnut, Duncan-Walker, and Saco) for supporting home rule. Encourage them to give voters a choice of who will govern Gainesville’s utility. 
Email them at: CityComm@cityofgainesville.org.
 
Please attend city commission meetings on May 16 and 23 to support two required readings of the ordinance, each at 1pm at City Hall. You can speak if you like, but just attending the commission meeting speaks for itself. 

Finally, stay tuned for a city-wide electoral campaign to restore democracy and home rule taking back control of our locally owned utility.

In the process, we want to emphasize changes in our utility that need to occur, including reducing energy burdens for those that need it most. We know that the poorest citizens in Gainesville spend 22 percent of their income on utilities, which is far too high. We need to include reforms in energy billing that will reduce this energy burden.

Climate change is the defining crisis of our age. Each day brings more news about flooding, extreme heat, and climate change-fueled disasters. But the outcome for our planet is not baked in. Don't despair! We can still prevent the worst impacts of climate change.

The Energy and Climate Action Team is currently working on three campaigns:

1) Restore democracy and home rule by taking back control of our locally owned utility;

2) Reduce energy burdens for those who are disproportionately impacted by high energy costs;

3) An alternative plan on how to meet electricity demand in coming decades. Will we continue to burn fossil gas or instead rely on energy efficiency upgrades, solar power and battery storage?

Sound interesting? It is! Come get local answers to a global question as we create and expand on solutions in N. Central Florida.

Our meetings are on Zoom 5:30pm Mondays: May 6, 13, 27. SIGN UP for the Zoom link at: https://bit.ly/EnergyTeamMeeting24

Register for the meeting and we'll send you a zoom invite. Or reach out to Jyoti Parmar at jyoti.parmar@sierraclub.org or (908) 720-6584.

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By Maryvonne Devensky
On April 6, 2024, we visited the Community Dunnellon Garden at the Boys and Girls Club. A group of 12 Sierra Club members are meeting every week to maintain their plots and grow food. Every Wednesday, some members also work there with children from the Boys & Girls Club. Every child has a plot and works hard to grow vegetables, herbs and has fun doing it. It is important to teach kids that food is not produced in the supermarket, and the time spent outside is beneficial to their health.

Since the beginning, the Sierra Club Suwannee St Johns has supported the garden. Whitey Markle, Jon Brainard and Harriett Jones initiated the project. There is a memory plot for Whitey who passed in 2018.

I was impressed by the beauty of the space they created, they have trees to provide shade, the plots are neat and healthy food is growing. See for yourself in the photos provided.

Photo Credit: Maryvonne Devensky

This summer promises to be yet another sizzler in north central Florida and with a record-breaking number of hurricanes predicted, we should all be spending a bit more time inside until the first whispers of Fall offer some reprieve. Having said that, what better way to spend time inside than to join the SSJ Summer Book Club.  

The Book Club, organized by SSJ members, is open to all and will be held monthly from June-September. The time and location for the June event is firm but please visit our Web site and read our newsletters and social media posts for the dates/times/locations for subsequent months.  

Here’s what we will be reading (note: titles are final) and please join us for as many as you like throughout the summer:  

June
Book: Walkaway by Cory Doctorow
Where:  Rum 138, 2070 SW County Rd 138, Fort White 32038
When: Wednesday, Jun 26 at 12PM
Organizer: Sarah Younger

July
Book: Kiss the Ground: How the Food You Eat Can Reverse Climate Change, Heal Your Body & Ultimately Save Our World by Josh Tickell (there’s also a documentary of the same name you can watch instead!)
Where:  4th Ave Food Park, 409 SW 4th Ave, Gainesville 32601
When: Wednesday, July 24 at 7PM
Organizer: David Vaina

August
Book: The Home Place: Memoirs of a Colored Man's Love Affair with Nature by J. Drew Latham
Where: TBD
When:  TBD
Organizer:  Jyoti Parmar

September
Book: The Hidden Life of Trees - What They Feel and How They Communicate by Peter Wohlleben
Where: Alfred A. Ring Park, 1801 NW 23rd Blvd., Gainesville 32605
When (TENTATIVE):  Saturday, Sept 21 at 10-11:30 or from 5-6:30 pm
Organizer:  Maryvonne Devensky

We encourage you to rent a book from the library or purchase a used copy from an independent bookstore. Please don’t forget to support our local farmers’ markets which will be open all summer long.  Happy reading! 

Photo Credit: Carol Mosley
By Carol Mosley
The Science Bus of the Cultural Arts Coalition (CAC) made a visit to the Brooker Community Elementary School in Bradford, County. It was an Earth Day gift from a collaboration of individuals and environmentally focused groups who donated the funds to make it happen.

The Science Bus is a big yellow school bus painted with a Florida scene on the outside. The interior has been stripped of seats and outfitted with cabinets along the side walls. Demonstration items are placed on the counters for the students to explore. The Cultural Arts Coalition that “powers” the bus, visits Alachua County after-school science clubs, partially funded through grants. So, this special cross-county visit needed its own funding to make it possible.

Many of the groups and individuals involved in bringing the Science Bus had shared concerns over a proposed 10,000-acre phosphate mine straddling the New River, which feeds into the Santa Fe River. For seven years they attended Bradford County Commission meetings, wrote letters, did research, held teach ins... and finally put the plan to rest in 2023. The groups felt it was important not be “won and done” so they wanted to offer this gift to the newly formed school in the town where the mining would have taken place. “We were there because we care.”

Donations were gathered from Bradford Environmental Forum, Bradford County Soil and Water Conservation Board, Suwanee/St. Johns Chapter of the Sierra Club, Our Santa Fe River, and Bridges Across Borders. Carol Mosley and Michelle Marcotte each donated their award from writings submitted to Flash Friday, an online event of the Writer's Alliance of Gainesville.

The classes rotated through so that every child got the hands-on experience. Marvin Wilson, CAC's science director, guided the students in their exploration. At the end of the session, each child took home their choice of a book, and each class got an Earth balloon to hang in the classroom, along with maps of Florida and the world. The Earth Day gift of a visit from the Science Bus was a big hit.

According to the official description by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, “Refuges provide essential homes for thousands of species and access to world-class outdoor adventure, from fishing, hunting and hiking to nature watching, photography and environmental education. They ease the impact of storms and flooding and give back to local economies”. 

Since 2006, funding to accomplish this has remained the same in actual value even with an increase $60.8 million for refuge funding in the 2025 proposed budget. Yet the system has increased from 500 refuges to 570-588 refuges and a total of 859 million acres (compared to National Park of just 85 million acres).

Of course, in order to accomplish these lofty goals, management is essential. Clearly, law enforcement is a must. But a policy change made in 2018 during Secretary Ryan Zinke’s reign, the refuge law enforcement system was redefined. Before the change, there were an estimated 350 certified law officers in the Southeast district. Now, the region may have 40 officers with none directly associated with a particular refuge. Not only is the wildlife not being protected but with an estimated 65 million visitors to the National Refuges there is a critical safety issue for humans including refuge staff.

For more information, please contact Jay at  djbushne@bellsouth.net.

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New GRU Authority Board Should Represent Community, Embrace Key Values, Sierra Club Tells DeSantis

April 16, 2024
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Today, noting the need to bring transparency and accountability to the Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) Authority board, the Sierra Club’s Suwannee St. Johns (SSJ) Group urged Governor Ron DeSantis to follow key criteria when appointing new board members. 

The criteria, written by the SSJ’s Energy and Climate Action Team and outlined in a letter to DeSantis, are based on community representation, values, and expertise. The group is calling for board members to reflect the range of incomes, ages, educational levels, and cultural backgrounds in the GRU service area, to adhere to values of transparency, integrity, and energy justice, and to have expertise in such areas as energy generation and distribution, renewable energy, and economic justice. 

The newly created state-appointed GRU Authority board resigned in mid-March to settle a lawsuit over their eligibility to serve as board members. The state is accepting nominations for new board members until April 16.

Sierra Club’s Suwannee St. Johns Group said, “We offer the following in the spirit of stabilizing a volatile situation and establishing transparent, accountable, and representative governance. We trust that you share those values and would like to see such governance as well.”

Jyoti Parmar, Sierra Club Florida Organizing Representative said, “Affordable energy is foundational to a healthy and productive life in our society, and we must ensure that all segments of our community have their energy needs met. We call on Governor DeSantis to appoint a GRU Authority board that represents and reflects the diverse communities it serves.”  

To read the letter, click here.

Suwannee St. Johns Group | Sierra Club