Last Chance! Register today for Sierra Club Maine’s Annual Celebration on November 4th!
Please join us for our virtual annual celebration on Thursday, 11/4 at 6pm! Together we will raise a glass in celebration of our many successes from 2021 and take a closer look at Maine’s ocean waters. The Gulf of Maine, which we rely on for food and economic security, is also one of the fastest warming bodies of water in the world. Together, we will watch a series of short Maine films, learn from local experts, and hear personal stories on Maine’s changing coast.
Changing Seas: A film series by Riley Stevenson & Matilda Allen
The Gilded Trap: A film by Ashley Siana
The Sea Farmers: Tidal 9 Fisheries
Our panelists include:
Riley Stevenson, Climate Activist
Michèle LaVigne, Associate Professor of Earth and Oceanographic Science at Bowdoin College
Bri Warner, President & CEO of Atlantic Sea Farms
Bob Baines, Lobsterman & Kelp Farmer, Spruce Head
Jason Goldstein, PhD, Research Director at Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve
Interested in meeting up and continuing the discussions started at our annual celebration? We are hosting two walks in Falmouth and Kittery on November 6th. Come out and get to know us better!
Our Power is ramping up recruitment efforts for signature collections, and they need your help! Sign up now to join Mainers in gathering signatures this fall for the Citizen Initiative to put the Pine Tree Power proposal on the ballot. The goal is 80,000 signatures by this coming January.
Also, now is a great time for supporters to write a Letter to the Editor (LTE) about why you support a consumer-owned utility. These letters help raise awareness, recruit more volunteer signature collectors, and can also be a great activity for a supporter who is not interested or able to collect signatures themselves. To help guide you, check out Our Power's new LTE Guide!
Election Day Message
As always, it’s critical to vote on Election Day. Our government is accountable to us, but we need to participate in it. There are several important questions on the ballot this year. You can learn about them, polling places, and more here.
Please vote on Tuesday, November 2nd!
Final Thoughts on Federal Organizing Efforts
Congress continues to debate and compromise on the Build Back Better Act and voting rights legislation. We know the deal will be scaled back, and we are doing everything we can to ensure it advances our climate goals while also maintaining other important social policies. Meanwhile, the Senate is bumping up against the filibuster again in its efforts to reform our democracy, and it needs to go. Please contact our Senators today!
As of right now, our federal efforts have been hugely successful. For phone banking nationally, our staff and volunteers made 6,383 calls! That yielded 628 conversations—a 10% contact rate (which is great!). And, on average, 84% of the folks we talked to said they would take action—that's HUGE!
Crucially, we are continuing to plug these activists into ongoing work, including our Chapter’s state level advocacy and our Legislative Team. But, we also hope to continue to support this group around federal advocacy efforts over the long term. Stay tuned!
Interested in getting involved in ongoing organizing work? Please contact us at maine.chapter@sierraclub.org or 207-761-5616.
Maine Climate Action Plan - Nearing a Year of Climate Action
By Sarah Osorio, Sierra Club Maine Volunteer
“Unless there are immediate, rapid, and large scale reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, limiting warming to 1.5 degree Celsius will be beyond reach,” wrote the IPCC in its most recent report. The statement underscores the urgency behind our work at the Sierra Club and the work of the Maine Climate Council, which was created by Governor Mills in 2019. A year and a half later, the four-year plan for climate action, Maine Won’t Wait , was published, outlining the council’s goals and strategies for decreasing Maine’s greenhouse gas emissions by 45% by 2030 and 80% by 2050—and for achieving carbon neutrality by 2045. Now, as we approach the end of 2021, we’re reflecting on the progress made towards meeting this Plan’s ambitious goals and heeding the warning of the IPCC and so many other concerned scientists, environmentalists, and activists.
Work across all 8 strategic Plan areas is ongoing and impressive as stakeholders come together to create committees, write plans, launch pilots, create RFPs, support legislation, and engage with the community. You can watch the Climate Council’s most recent meeting to discuss progress in 2021 here. Continue reading this article by clicking here.
Fairness for the Wabanaki
On October 11th, 2021, Indigenous People’s Day, The Wabanaki Alliance and partner organizations, including Sierra Club Maine, held a press conference and virtual rally to highlight the importance of legislation that would restore the Wabanaki Tribes’ right to self-govern. You can watch the entire event here, which was attended by over 3,000 people!
Darell Newell, vice chief of the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Indian Township, shared the urgency in passing the legislation next session: “The state’s executive branch, Gov. Janet Mills, has been steadfast in maintaining the systemic norm of oppressing tribes, holding tribes hostage with her lack of interest in engaging us with real discussions of tribal-state relations in a substantive way,” Newell said. “Tribal-state relations are broken.”
Please join us this November, Native American Heritage Month, in calling on Governor Janet Mills to support LD 1626.Send her an email or give her a call at 207-287-3531. For more information about the rally or LD 1626, please visit wabanakialliance.com/indigenous-peoples-day-rally.
Take Control of What You Receive From the Sierra Club
Did you know that you have the ability to adjust or select exactly what you do and do not receive from the Sierra Club? Simply log in here and select “Update Communication Preferences,” then select “Manage email newsletters and email contact preferences” to select the exact type of emails you would like to receive. For first time users, you'll need to create an account with your member ID or simply tell us who you are by providing your name, email address, and zip code. Once you’re logged in you’ll not only be able to update your communication preferences, but you’ll be able to change your address, view your past giving donations, sign petitions, and more!
What we eat can have a big impact on our planet! Our current food system will take us past 1.5 degrees of warming by 2050, while also driving water shortages, deforestation, and species extinction.
Join us for a community conversation, “Sustainable Food, By Default” on November 9th at 12pm. This presentation will explore why food is actually one of the most hopeful areas of climate action. We will focus on solutions informed by behavioral economics—strategies to nudge both individuals and institutions towards more sustainable choices, without taking options completely off the menu. Register here!
Our guest speaker, Katie Cantrell, is the Director of Corporate Outreach for the Better Food Foundation, and the founder of the Factory Farming Awareness Coalition . For more than a decade, Katie has led workshops on the social and ecological hazards of industrial animal agriculture and consulted on food policy at universities, government agencies, and Fortune 500 corporations. Her materials have been used as a resource by food justice advocates around the world.
Do you have a green tip that you would like to have included in a future newsletter? Please share it with us here!
The Month Ahead
Here are some of the meetings and events we have coming up. We hope to see you soon!
In conjunction with our virtual Annual Celebration on November 4th, let’s get outside and enjoy autumn! Join us on a walk through Gilsland Farm for an hour or so, less than 2 miles. Gilsland Farm is the Maine Audubon Headquarters and is part woods, part meadows, overlooking Presumpscot River estuary. Jesse Baines, local Maine lobsterman and kelp farmer, will accompany us as we talk about Maine coastal ecology.
Join us for a two-mile group walk through the forest owned by Kittery Land Trust. Explore the headwaters area and observe plants and animals as they earnestly get ready for winter.
Our current food system will take us past 1.5 degrees of warming by 2050, while also driving water shortages, deforestation, and species extinction. This presentation will explore why food is actually one of the most hopeful areas of climate action.
Join us for a moderate loop hike up 1,200 foot Bald Rock Mountain. With nearly 1,000 feet of elevation gain, this 3.5 mile hike will take approximately 3 hours, with a half hour lunch break at the summit. Enjoy excellent views of Penobscot Bay, islands, and harbors from the summit!
What does a fully sustainable future actually look like? The book Bright Green Future offers a glimpse into that world through the inspiring stories of innovators and activists who are building it right now. Join author Trevor Decker Cohen in a discussion on the types of thinking that can help us envision and then create a regenerative, resilient, and just future in the places we love.
Equity, Inclusion and Justice (EIJ) Team
The EIJ Team does not have a meeting scheduled for this month, but please take a moment to read our new EIJ Plan and provide feedback!
Photo by Megan Steele Photography (megansteelephotography.com)
Take This 2 Question Survey
Do you want to save Maine’s environment while reducing your taxes?
Are you at least 70 ½ years or older?
If you answered YES to the questions above, consider a charitable IRA rollover!
Use your required minimum distribution (RMD) for the greater good. If you are at least 70½ years or older, you can satisfy your RMD and save on taxes by making a gift to support Sierra Club Maine’s charitable programs through the Sierra Club Foundation directly from your IRA.
With an IRA Charitable Rollover, you can see the impact your gift has in protecting Maine’s environment throughout your lifetime.
Funds remaining in retirement accounts after your lifetime are heavily taxed if left to someone other than a spouse. Many donors choose to use their IRA resources for charitable giving, while leaving other less tax burden assets to family and friends.
Designating your gift to “Sierra Club Maine” will protect Maine’s environment for generations to come. For more information, please contact us at maine.chapter@sierraclub.org or 207-761-5616.
