February update from Uplands Network, connecting Monroe and surrounding counties
February 4, 2026
Join us this month!
What a whirlwind is happening at the Statehouse! Hoosier Chapter folks showed up last week at Renewable Energy Day to hear speakers and meet with our legislators. At the Sierra Club table we shared a poster for all to sign to express gratitude to Senator Greg Walker, who authored SB 196, which supports community energy and enables it to connect to the grid.
Strong turnout at the Statehouse sends a message to our legislators that Hoosiers care about energy, water, soil and air quality. Many bills this session contain provisions to decrease regulations and the ability of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. Members of the Uplands Network, Hoosier Chapter and our partners spoke to committees to share our concerns. Even though we may not stop a bill in committee, we are able to strengthen relationships with legislators who consider our views going forward. Please consider attending Water Stewardship Day, Monday, February 9, 2026.
Hoosiers came from all over Indiana to protest mid-cycle redistricting that would have left many constituents without representation. Photo: Marilyn Bauchat.
Upcoming Outings and Events
Mon 2/9/26 9:00 AM Water Stewardship Day at the Statehouse
Fri 2/20/26 1:00 PM Winter Hike at Paynetown SRA/Monroe Lake
Sun 2/22/2611:00 AM Let's Move Beyond Coal Walk! USI-Burdette Park Trail walk with the Sierra Club
Tue 2/24/26 6:00 PM đź“š Hoosier Chapter Book Club: When Trees Testify by Beronda L. Montgomery
Help Us Keep Moving Toward Clean Energy in Indiana
“Two days before Christmas, the Trump administration made a reckless decision that will drive up bills for Hoosiers: Ordering the fragile Culley and Schahfer coal power plants to stay open past their scheduled closure through what Sierra Club believes to be an illegal use of a Federal Power Act “emergency” order.”
Interested in Moving your Home toward High-Impact Climate Action?
Please join Madi Hirschland and the Climate Action Task Force Sunday, February 8, 1:30 pm at Beth Shalom for an Electrification Workshop!
As renewables increasingly out-compete fossil fuels on price, the electricity grid will go green. The question is, will we? With households accounting for 42% of U.S. carbon emissions, it’s crucial that every Hoosier household understand that when our gas-powered furnaces, water heaters and cars break down, switching to electric is smart financially and otherwise. Bloomington is modelling how to get the word out. Learn about what electrifying your home means and its benefits - and how you can help low-income and other B-town households cut their energy bills through the City’s Energy Navigator! program. The Energy Navigator! program is led by Electrify Indiana, a local volunteer-driven nonprofit, in partnership with the City of Bloomington’s Energy Works Program.
Please come and learn at this workshop. There will be discussion and refreshments following. We look forward to making a difference together.
Protecting Indiana Forests
State Forests
Hoosier Chapter and partners celebrated the demise of House Bill 1414, which mandates rigid forest age targets that would, in practice, incentivize increased logging to maintain required ratios—regardless of ecological conditions. Requiring that forest age percentages be met “at all times” removes flexibility from professional foresters and replaces sound management with inflexible numerical quotas. We must remain vigilant as the Hardwood Lumbermans’ Association will attempt to slip this destructive language through in another bill. If this language becomes law, the DoF would be allowed to legally cut down 18% of the forest that is approaching older growth. This bill does NOT protect the notion of leaving nature alone. In fact, it turns our state forests into a tree farm.
National Forests
The National Climate Forests Coalition continues to partner with the Sierra Club to fight the “Fix Our Forests” Bill in Washington. Watch for actions in March. A logging bill masquerading as wildfire protection.
Share Your Voice to Rise for Clean Water
Join us at the Statehouse: Monday, February 9, 2026, 9 AM - 3PM, for Indiana Water Stewardship Day .
Indiana Conservation Voters organizes this day to address all issues related to water. With recent decreases in regulation and increases in development (including data centers), our water is endangered. The state Water Allies group plans to meet weekly during the legislative session in order to act swiftly.
Another opportunity to show up for water:
The Indiana Department of Natural Resources is inviting stakeholders to participate in a series of water planning workshops across the state. The purpose of the workshops is to collect stakeholder input, ideas, and information to help inform the development of a statewide water inventory and management plan under Governor Braun’s Executive Order 25-63: Statewide water inventory and management plan. Attendees will be updated on the progress of the effort and will be asked for input on developing a regional water planning framework, enhancing Indiana’s water monitoring networks, and creating an online water data and management platform.
See below for dates and times.
Join us to Celebrate Black History
Annual Black Market on Saturday, February 14 from 10am-2pm at the Bloomington City Hall.
Black History Month is around the corner, and we are excited to celebrate the 100th anniversary of nationally recognized Black history commemorations.
The original Bloomington Black Market was a marketplace of culture and creativity.
Opportunities for Learning at Indiana University
O’Neill School Environmental Policy Seminar Series All seminars are on Thursdays 1-2pm at SPEA A225.
February 12 - Floods and Fairness: How Politics Drives Unequal Exposure to Climate Change–Mark Buntaine, Bren School of Environmental Science & Management, UC Santa Barbara
February 26 - Decarbonizing the Energy System for a Cleaner, Healthier Future Wei Peng, Princeton School of Public and International Affairs and the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment, Princeton University
March 5 - It’s a Zoo Beneath our Feet! Soil biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in a changing planet Andre Franco, O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University Bloomington
Your Invite to Get Involved!
Our next Uplands Network Meeting will be at 6:30 PM, Monday, February 9, 2026.
Please join us for updates on legislation, outings, forests and energy. Register at sc.org/hcevents for a Zoom link.
Join us in calling on Congress to leverage their powers over funding for the Department of Homeland Security to hold Kristi Noem and the Trump administration accountable for their unconstitutional and deadly actions.
Our leadership team includes dedicated people who plan meetings and outings, table at events, and connect with other groups. We welcome anyone who wishes to volunteer with our network.
Open volunteer positions are: co-chair, treasurer, social media coordinator, conservation committee members and outings leaders.
Shorter volunteer opportunities include tabling at events and at local farmers’ markets. If you know of an event that includes tabling, please let us know- marilynbauchat@gmail.com
We hope you’re finding community and purpose in the Uplands Network and Hoosier Chapter.
If you have time to volunteer this year, we can use your help to create a lasting and sustainable network.
Sierra Club Hoosier Chapter Director Robyn Skuya-Boss, and Uplands Network and Winding Waters Group members Marilyn Bauchat, Greg Grant, Jennifer Ehara, Eric Riddle, and Dave Wildemann hold up a thank you poster with signatures from RED attendees for State Senator Walker who authored pro renewable energy legislation this session at the Indiana Statehouse. Photo: Colleen Curtin.
"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." - Martin Luther King, Jr.
