Announcements

Grassroots Funds Webinar

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Tomorrow, January 9th at 12pm, the New England Grassroots Environment Fund is hosting a webinar on community organizing, hosted by their Executive Director Julia Dundorf.
Learn about our Guiding Principles for strong community organizing that increases your impact and revenue. Julia will be joined by Program Director, Nakia Navarro and Program Manager, Ally Philip, who will share available opportunities for support from the Grassroots Fund, from grants to stipends to sponsorship.

What will you learn from this webinar? 

  • What we define as fundable community projects
  • How the Grassroots Fund supports grassroots trainers and community events
  • How to receive a grant from the Grassroots Fund
  • How the Grassroots Fund can serve as your fiscal sponsor
  • How the Grassroots Fund can help you market your upcoming even

BCAN 2017 Holiday Party

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It was a long year full of victories and defeats. This past month, members of BCAN got together to mark the end of the year, sing songs, and get ourselves ready for 2018. This is us singing Woody Guthrie’s This Land is Your Land together.

 

We hope your holidays have been bright, and are ready to re-commit with us to fighting for the environment in 2018!

Our next big gathering is a celebration of getting CCE signed.  Join us to help keep the pressure on the City to implement it before the Mayor’s Climate Summit this summer.

Back Bay Pipeline Hearing Tomorrow!

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As we have reported, National Grid has proposed to construct a new, mile-long gas pipeline through Boston’s Back Bay and South End. The line would carry “fracked” gas to service new buildings. On Thursday, December 7, the City of Boston’s Public Improvement Commission (PIC) will hold a public hearing to discuss this proposal. Located within Boston’s Public Works Department, PIC has the authority to grant or deny permits for projects which use public space for business ventures. Like the previous PIC hearing on November 2, this is a strategic opportunity for citizens to speak out against the pipeline.

Boston Public Improvement Commission – Back Bay Pipeline Hearings
Thursday, December 7th, at 10:00 AM
Boston City Hall, Room 801

Opposition to the pipeline is being spearheaded by the Boston Clean Energy Coalition (BCEC), a grassroots group with eleven member environmental organizations, including the Boston Climate Action Network. According to its website, BCEC’s mission is accelerate Boston’s “transition to a clean, green economy,” and its current focus is “on halting the expansion of fracked gas and other fossil-fuel infrastructure while promoting net-zero carbon standards for the built environment.”
BCEC hopes to pack the house for the hearing, which takes place this Thursday at 10:00 AM, Boston City Hall, Room 801. To request more information, or to sign a petition against the pipeline, go to BCEC’s site.

Climate Ready Boston is Hiring

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Climate Ready Boston has announced a grant-funded job opportunity with the City of Boston.  Details below:

The Climate Ready Boston Coordinator will be a key player in helping the City build resilient solutions to prepare Boston for the impacts of climate change.

Part of the workload will include supporting neighborhood climate resilience planning, developing specific plans to address risks from longer and more frequent heat waves, and leading innovative community outreach pilots. They will work in the City’s Environment Department alongside the Director of Climate and Environmental Planning and Climate Ready Boston Program Manager.

The position will support our City’s mission to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, prepare for the effects of climate change, and make Boston’s communities greener, healthier, and more resilient.

Learn more about the position here.
Applications are due by Friday, November 17, 2017.

CCE Authorized Unanimously!

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Boston City Council voted unanimously today to authorize Marty Walsh to implement Community Choice Energy. This is a huge step forward toward our goal of having a citywide green electricity purchasing program!

Continue reading →

CCE City Council Hearing Announced!

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Join us to attend the hearing!

Climate change is already affecting the world, including the City of Boston. Record-high temperatures and rising sea levels are serious issues that will only get worse unless we do something now.  Fortunately, the Boston City Council is taking steps in this direction.

On August 2nd, City Councilors Michelle Wu and Matt O’Malley introduced an order to initiate Community Choice Energy (CCE) in Boston.  CCE will add at least 5% more renewable energy to the Eversource default available to Boston consumers.

The Boston City Council will hold a public hearing on CCE to listen to constituents’ input. Please come and tell our councilors that Bostonians are eager to fight climate change, and that we support CCE as a means of achieving this goal.

Boston City Council Hearing
Tuesday, October 3, 2017 at 2:00pm

Boston City Hall
Ianella Chamber, 5th Floor
1 City Hall Square
Boston

Closest subway stop: Government Center
Closest parking garage: Government Center Garage, 50 New Sudbury Street

The fight against climate change starts with us here in Boston. Let’s fill the Ianella Chamber to capacity!

Join us to attend the hearing!

CCE Before the City Council

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During the Boston City Council meeting on August 2, Council President Michelle Wu and Councilor Matt O’Malley introduced an order authorizing the City of Boston to research and develop a community choice energy (CCE) contract and to solicit bids from alternative electricity suppliers. The order stipulates a default offering with at least 5% more renewables than is currently required by state law, with an option to opt up to 100% renewables.

In her remarks, Councilor Wu thanked Mayor Walsh for his advocacy on climate change issues. “Minutes after [President Trump’s] decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord,” she said, “Boston was in the national news announcing that we would proceed no matter what.” However, she went on to stress the importance of adding CCE to the portfolio of climate measures already planned by the Walsh administration. “For the safety of our neighborhoods with heat island effects, and so many other ways that climate change disproportionately hurts low income residents and the seniors and those medically vulnerable, we have to do more to reverse climate change,” Wu said.

Councilor O’Malley echoed the need to do more. “I wanted to let you in on a little secret,” he said. “The City of Boston has won a number of awards for being environmentally courageous and showing leadership. The secret is that we don’t deserve it yet. But we can. A great first step to do that will be passing community choice energy.”

Eight other city councilors – Campbell, Ciommo, Essaibi George, Flaherty, Jackson, LaMattina, McCarthy, and Zakim – have co-sponsored the order, indicating their interest in studying it further. As the next step in the process, the City Council will hold a hearing, anticipated this fall. Stay tuned for the date, and go to the Community Choice Energy website to sign our petition!