Speaking Up for Our Children
Mothers Out Front pioneers new model of activism on climate change
Mothers Out Front pioneers new model of activism on climate change
In 2014, the Commonwealth’s groundbreaking climate change law, the Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA), was gathering dust as the State missed key deadlines for putting in place required regulations to cut its greenhouse gas emissions. CLF decided to fight for full implementation.
When the Northeast Regional Ocean Plan was approved for New England’s federal waters last year, it capped off a journey for CLF that began nearly two decades ago.
A wave of luxury development threatens to wall off the experience of Boston Harbor from the people who paid to clean it up, just as the waterfront was once literally walled off behind the city’s Central Artery expressway. CLF Senior Counsel Peter Shelley remembers the original campaign to clean up the Boston Harbor, and continues to work on current issues of equity and fairness.
For the past four years, Tom Irwin has talked to countless people about the tragedy of childhood lead poisoning. Especially before the Flint crisis put lead issues back in the headlines, he often would be met with the incredulous response, “But haven’t we solved that problem already?” It’s a fair question, says Irwin, director of… Continue reading Stopping Childhood Lead Poisoning
If there’s one thing that most Vermonters can agree on, it’s that Lake Champlain is in trouble. The iconic lake is central to Vermont’s identity and its tourism economy. It provides drinking water and feeds thirsty farms throughout its large watershed. It’s also dying a slow death due to unchecked pollution. How to stop that… Continue reading Saving Lake Champlain
Completing a new neighborhood development is just the beginning of the story. The true success of such targeted investment will come with the changes it brings to a community over time. That’s where Vedette Gavin, CLF’s Director of Research, comes in. “The reality is that the relationship between development and health is extremely complex,” she says.
The story of North Atlantic right whales is a sadly familiar one. Historically, they were targeted by whalers because they were commercially lucrative and easy to kill. Today, with barely 500 North Atlantic right whales left on the planet, they face threats from warming waters, which push their food sources north, as well as fishing net entanglements and ship collisions.
As Director of Agriculture and Environment for Nuestras Raíces, a Holyoke-based community organization, Rafael Herrero is overseeing an ambitious effort to train 100 new farmers in earth-friendly practices over the next two years.
When it comes to the future of Vermont’s Lake Champlain, Crea Lintilhac is optimistic. “We’re going to clean up our waters,” declares the long-time CLF Vermont Board member (and now chair), who has lived on the shores of the iconic lake for nearly 30 years.