It’s Getting Hot In Here

This past April 14th, something incredible happened: Moms with strollers, radical student activists, extreme sports fanatics, environmental justice organizers and concerned grandmothers gathered together. It wasn’t to watch Desperate Housewives on TV or grill up some burgers in the backyard.

What was their aim? All of these people joined together on village greens, on the tops of mountains, along threatened coastlines, in city streets, and even underwater, in what became the largest day of environmental protest since Earth Day 1970. They wanted to draw a line in the sand and take political action on climate change. It was part of the first Step It Up day of action, which coordinated more than 1,400 rallies, marches and flotillas under this umbrella message: “Step It Up, Congress: Cut Carbon 80% by 2050.”

Though everybody said the same thing and documented it in photos and video (check out the slide show here), the home-grown events let organizers creatively appeal to the concerns of their own communities. Not only did the April 14th event help lots of people around the country understand the need for a bold and comprehensive federal climate policy, but it garnered a good amount of local and national press.

Buoyed by the success of the April 14th day of action, and with a new congress, it seems like now–roughly one year before the general election–is the right time to ask our federal legislators to Step Up to the task of transforming our energy economy. That’s why Bill McKibben and the Step It Up team have decided to coordinate another day of action on November 3rd, this one entitled “Step It Up 2: Who’s a Leader?” As McKibben writes in his invitation, “Basically, we want to find out who is simply a politician, and who’s ready to be a leader.”

On November 3rd, communities around the country will hold rallies at places that commemorate great leaders of the past–those leaders that took their moment by the horns and made decisions that changed the course of history. At each of those spots–Mt. Washington in New Hampshire, Lincoln Park in Chicago or Martin Luther King Boulevard, for example–people will ask their leaders to take a stand on the four 1 Sky priorities that have been developed by climate organizers and scientists from across the country. They are:

• An 80% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050,
• A 10% reduction in three years (hit the ground running)
• A moratorium on new coal-fired power plants
• A Green Jobs Corps to help fix homes and businesses so those targets can be met.

These are the goals that will certainly require serious consideration and political support. With NASA’s Jim Hansen calling for a dirty coal moratorium and the recent swift passage of the Green Jobs Act of 2007 through the House of Representatives, there’s certainly enough momentum to propel these goals forward.

What we need now is real leadership, not just talking heads. Youth leaders know how critical it is to stand up and demand leadership, because it’s our future we’re fighting for. Step It Up 2 is an opportunity for regular folks to stand up and be leaders themselves, and hold candidates and elected officials to a high standard–nothing less will do.

On November 3rd, we’ll see who the real leaders are.

To get involved, start or join an action near you, check out www.stepitup2007.org.