EcoWatch Journal Oct/Nov 2011 : Page 1

UNITING THE VOICE OF OHIO’S GRASSROOTS ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT oct. -nov. v 2011 04 Moving the U.S. Beyond Coal 05 Cleveland—14th Smoggiest City 06 1,253 Arrested at White House 07 No Tar Sands Oil on U.S. Soil! 13 Oakwood Debate Continues www.ecowatchohio.org ECOWATCH GOES NATIONAL EcoWatch, in partnership with Waterkeeper Alliance, is expanding its services nationally by launching a twenty-four-seven news service that works to unite the voice of the grassroots environmental movement and mobilize millions of Americans to take an active role in their democracy to protect human health and the environment. The website—www.ecowatch.org— goes live the morning of Oct. 27. The website will feature aggregated content from more than 700 grassroots environmental organizations in the U.S. and original content, Insights , from national leaders in the environmental movement, including advisory board members—Ed Begley, Jr., Lester Brown, Paul Hawken, Randy Hayes, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Phil Radford and Harvey Wasserman—that will generate dialogue on the most important issues of the day. “The current assault on America’s environmental laws, like the Clean Water Act, creates a pressing need to educate and engage people to protect our infrastructure, the air we breathe, the water we drink, to provide our children with the same opportunities for dignity and enrichment as our parents gave us,” said Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. founder and ECOWATCH CELEBRATION WITH ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR. OCT. 27 • WINDOWS ON THE RIVER 6 P.M. • VIP RECEPTION 7 P.M. • DINNER & KEYNOTE president of Waterkeeper Alliance. “This website will encourage people to be part of the solution and engage in democracy.” On Thursday, Oct. 27, EcoWatch and Waterkeeper Alliance will announce the launch of the news service website at 2:30 p.m. at Rivergate Park at 1785 Merwin Ave. in Cleveland, along the Cuyahoga River. The public event will feature brief remarks from dignitaries with Kennedy as the keynote speaker. Kennedy will also speak that evening to celebrate the launch of the website with a VIP reception at 6 p.m., followed by a dinner and keynote speech at 7 p.m., at Windows on the River at 2000 Sycamore St. in Cleve-land. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit www.ecowatchohio.org. In addition to commemo-rating the launch of the na-tional website, we’ll celebrate the role the Cuyahoga River played in the passage of the Clean Water Act and the birth of the grassroots envi-ronmental movement in the U.S. Also highlighted at the event will be water advocacy and stewardship, public access to our waterways, human-powered recreation on the water, collaboration on Come support the efforts of EcoWatch and Waterkeeper Alliance as they launch their national news service. To purchase tickets, visit www.ecowatchohio.org. OCT. 27 • 2:30 P.M. • RIVERGATE PARK Join EcoWatch and Waterkeeper Alliance as they announce the launch of their news service website. WEBSITE ANNOUNCEMENT For more information, visit www.ecowatchohio.org. solution-based projects and Cleveland’s commitment to sustainability. Immediately following the public event, participants can enjoy watching rowing, kayaking and paddleboarding on the river and tour Rivergate Park, home to the Cleveland Rowing Foundation. continued on page 9 ECOWATCH MEMBERSHIP DRIVE—JOIN TODAY Visit www.ecowatchohio.org or ﬁll out the form on page 3 to support the work of EcoWatch. Help us raise $10,000 before the end of the year. Donations are tax deductible.

EcoWatch Goes National

EcoWatch, in partnership with Water keeper Alliance, is expanding its services nationally by launching a twenty-four-seven news service that works to unite the voice of the grassroots environmental movement and mobilize millions of Americans to take an active role in their democracy to protect human health and the environment. The website—www.ecowatch.org— goes live the morning of Oct. 27. The website will feature aggregated content from more than 700 grassroots environmental organizations in the U.S. and original content, Insights, from national leaders in the environmental movement, including advisory board members—Ed Begley, Jr., Lester Brown, Paul Hawken, Randy Hayes, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Phil Radford and Harvey Wasserman—that will generate dialogue on the most important issues of the day. “The current assault on America’s environmental laws, like the Clean Water Act, creates a pressing need to educate and engage people to protect our infrastructure, the air we breathe, the water we drink, to provide our children with the same opportunities for dignity and enrichment as our parents gave us,” said Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Founder and president of Water keeper Alliance. “This website will encourage people to be part of the solution and engage in democracy.” On Thursday, Oct. 27, EcoWatch and Water keeper Alliance will announce the launch of the news service website at 2:30 p.m. at River gate Park at 1785 Merwin Ave. In Cleveland, along the Cuyahoga River. The public event will feature brief remarks from dignitaries with Kennedy as the keynote speaker. Kennedy will also speak that evening to celebrate the launch of the website with a VIP reception at 6 p.m., followed by a dinner and keynote speech at 7 p.m., at Windows on the River at 2000 Sycamore St. in Cleveland. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit www.ecowatchohio.org. In addition to commemorating the launch of the national website, we’ll celebrate the role the Cuyahoga River played in the passage of the Clean Water Act and the birth of the grassroots environmental movement in the U. S. Also highlighted at the event will be water advocacy and stewardship, public access to our waterways, human-powered recreation on the water, collaboration on solution-based projects and Cleveland’s commitment to sustainability. Immediately following the public event, participants can enjoy watching rowing, kayaking and paddle boarding on the river and tour River gate Park, home to the Cleveland Rowing Foundation. “Northeast Ohio is a national leader in sustainability. EcoWatch is proud to call Cleveland its home,” said Stefanie Penn Spear, founder and executive director of EcoWatch. “This national website follows the model we developed in Ohio over the last five years and expands on my more than 20 years of publishing environmental news.” EcoWatch’s partnership with Water keeper Alliance is a great example of how organizations can combine efforts to help realize each group’s mission. “Waterkeeper Alliance is excited to work with EcoWatch to help strengthen environmental policy, motivate people to take action in protecting our natural resources, and make the world’s waterways swimmable, drinkable and fishable,” said Marc Yaggi, executive director of Waterkeeper Alliance. Thanks to the support from the George Gund Foundation, Cleveland Foundation, corporate sponsors, advertisers, major donors and members, EcoWatch is able to expand its services. The website is a dedicated and neutral platform for grassroots environmental organizations that will help transform the ability of individuals to learn about environmental issues and take action. The news service will provide timely access to relevant information that will motivate individuals to become engaged in their community, adopt sustainable practices and support strong environmental policy. The website will create lasting and visible change by increasing the number of people educated on environmental issues that impact human health and the environment. As more people are connected to these issues and have the tools to implement change in their lifestyles and community, transformation will occur. The site focuses on five critical issue areas—water, air, food, energy and biodiversity—and has a clean and intuitive design. The daily action of the day encourages community engagement on the most pressing issues impacting the Earth. In addition to providing national news of the day, the website will connect users to news in their backyard. The local button on the site will ultimately allow users to click on their state, county, city and neighborhood to engage with issues and solution-based sustainability projects happening right at home, giving individuals a strong sense of belonging and caring for their community. EcoWatch is a forum for the exchange of ideas including complex topics such as transitioning to a sustainable energy supply. The combination of aggregated news and original content will provide the proper context to ask the difficult questions to help solve these multifaceted problems and find common ground to work from that will ultimately transform our society. The grassroots environmental movement is at a tipping point. More Americans are concerned about their impact on the Earth and how it affects human health and the environment than ever before. The need to rebuild the economy offers exciting opportunities for job creation that will help solve some of the most daunting environmental problems. News concerning change in weather patterns, increase in energy costs, excessive use of finite resources, increased energy use of developing nations, higher food costs, droughts, wild fires, oil spills and flooding are just a handful of topics you hear about every day. The site will consolidate the environmental issues impacting these concerns to educate and motivate readers. The news service will build on the momentum of the environmental movement and provide the necessary venue for organizations to promote their work and engage their communities. The launching of this project is a game-changer for EcoWatch. Two additional full-time staffers were hired this summer. EcoWatch is working toward taking this project to scale. For this project to have its greatest impact, we need a team of aggregators and curators, and support staff working on this project. Water keeper Alliance is a global environmental organization uniting more than 190 Water keeper organizations around the world and focusing citizen advocacy on the issues that affect our waterways, from pollution to climate change. Water keepers patrol more than 1.5 million square miles of rivers, streams and coastlines in the Americas, Europe, Australia, Asia and Africa. Part scientist, teacher and legal advocate, Water keepers combine firsthand knowledge of their waterways with an unwavering commitment to the rights of communities and to the rule of law. Whether on the water, in a classroom or in a courtroom, Water keepers speak for the waters they defend—with the backing of their local communities and the collective strength of Water keeper Alliance. Water keeper Alliance ensures that the world’s Water keepers are as connected to each other as they are to their local waters, organizing the fight for clean water into a coordinated global movement. For more information, visit www.waterkeeper.org. Consider joining EcoWatch and Water keeper Alliance in this effort by supporting our work through membership, advertising or sponsoring the Green Gala fundraiser this spring. For more information, visit www.ecowatch.org or call 216-387-1609.

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