Below is the email blast that just went out to our USA supporters in the wake of the mid-term elections. The first part is our reaction to the election results, and the second section unveils a brand new project–350 EARTH.
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Dear USA Friends–
Election night was clearly rough in lots of ways—plenty of anti-science candidates managed to win victories, and the political climate in Washington will likely be as hot and difficult as the weather outside around the world.
However, there’s good news too. California was the one state where people really voted on the climate crisis—and they overwhelmingly repudiated big oil’s attempt to scrap the state’s landmark global warming law. The folks in the Golden State showed how it’s done, with a full-throated campaign against corporate interference in the planet’s future. We loved being a part of it—there were more than 400 work parties in California on 10/10/10, and nearly every one of them was tied into the fight against Prop. 23.
So: we’re probably not going to get good, comprehensive climate legislation out of Washington for the next two years, and that’s tough news. It means we'll need to rethink our political targets, and if Washington isn’t going to move, we’ll need to move everything around it.
Thanks to you, 350.org is uniquely equipped to help lead this work. Working with allies across the spectrum, we’re going to be redoubling our efforts to build power at the local level where we can implement climate solutions, fight polluters on our home turf, and pressure politicians where it matters most: in their districts. The networks you’ve helped build are going to be more vital than ever.
But for now, a big announcement: after the midterm elections, one thing we know for sure is that our movement needs to experiment with new tactics. That’s why, for the next month, we’re focusing much of our energy on pulling off a massive art project–so big it will be visible from space. We’re calling it “350 EARTH”.
At the end of November, during the week before the next round of UN climate talks in Cancun, we'll harness the power of artistic expression to re-inspire the world to act on climate change. The highlight of 350 EARTH will be more than a dozen large-scale aerial art pieces. We'll be gathering huge numbers of people—thousands at a time. Some will be in deserts, some on snowfields—any place with a good background. They will use their bodies to make giant pieces of art.
These massive artworks will be large enough to be seen (and photographed) from space, and will depict climate impacts and climate solutions in all corners of the globe. We’re working with our friends at Digital Globe, who have agreed to loan us one of their satellites to capture these images from space. 350 EARTH will serve as a reminder of the global nature of the climate challenge, and the fragility (and beauty!) of the planet.
Climate advocates have been appealing to our rational minds for years–perhaps now it's time to appeal to our passionate hearts.
We need your help to make this project work–click here to learn more and get involved: https://earth.350.org
Onwards,
Bill McKibben
P.S. Right now there's an understandable sense of gloom around much of the Internet — we expect it will pass soon, but maybe you can help spread a wave of fresh hope by sharing 350 EARTH with your friends on Facebook on Twitter?