Green Corps organizers helped turn out more than 5,000 citizens to our nation’s capital on Sept. 20 for the Arctic Refuge Action Day, one of the largest environmental lobby days ever organized. (Photo by Heather Smith.)

In order to tackle the United States’ growing environmental problems, environmental organizations need trained and talented leaders who will combat the dismantling of environmental regulations, re-engage the volunteer constituency that will carry the movement, and renew the movement’s leadership. Thanks to your support, Green Corps is helping to meet these challenges by recruiting and training a new generation of leaders. In this newsletter, I am proud to report on a few recent campaign achievements of our trainees and graduates.

On Sept. 20, thousands of Americans gathered in front of the U.S. Capitol to voice their opposition to oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The Arctic Refuge Action Day was one of the largest environmental lobby days organized in U.S. history and served as a testament to the grassroots organizing that harnessed overwhelming public outcry on this issue.

Working on behalf of the Alaska Coalition, Green Corps organizers served as the grassroots field team for the effort. They recruited volunteer bus captains and citizen activists in important districts to make the trip to Washington, D.C. They organized busloads of citizens from Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, New Hampshire, Illinois, New Jersey and New York.

“Capitol Hill was a sea of blue Save the Arctic Refuge shirts today,” said Cindy Shogan of the Alaska Wilderness League. “The sheer numbers of citizens and the level of commitment today were unlike anything we’ve ever seen in this campaign to protect the Refuge. It was an inspirational day.”

The Action Day brought together 5,000 citizens to hear political, religious and Native American leaders speak about the importance of protecting the Arctic Refuge. Speakers included attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Rhode Island Republican Sen. Lincoln Chafee, and Senate Democrats John Kerry (Mass.), Joseph Lieberman (Conn.) and Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.).

Following the rally, Arctic Refuge Action Day participants visited House and Senate office buildings to persuade their congressional representatives not to vote yes on the upcoming budget resolution that included Arctic Refuge drilling. Green Corps Organizer Dan Favre brought 70 Michigan residents to visit the offices of Reps. Joe Schwarz (R–Battle Creek) and Vernon Ehlers (R–Grand Rapids).

“When we entered the office, each citizen handed over a personal letter about why they decided to ride the bus from Michigan to Washington, D.C. in support of the Arctic Refuge,” said Dan Favre. “Our group made such an impact that later in the day, Rep. Schwarz spoke with two of his constituents and vowed that he would never vote for drilling in the Arctic Refuge.”

When Oceana, a leading international organization dedicated to protecting the world’s oceans, was preparing to launch the North American Seafood Contamination Campaign, they sought out Green Corps organizers for help.

Oceana’s campaign focused on the most widespread and dangerous contaminant in the world’s oceans—mercury. Mercury pollution is a serious public health problem in the United States. One of the most poisonous toxic chemicals, mercury adversely affects the nervous system and the brain. Behavior, memory and learning processes can be compromised by mercury contamination, and new studies show that the cardiovascular and reproductive systems can also be harmed.

Mercury exposure in humans results primarily from eating contaminated fish. Nearly 85 percent of adults in the United States consume seafood at least once a month, and 40 percent eat it on a weekly basis. They ingest mercury with every serving. Mercury is a contaminant that hits developing children the hardest. Mercury can travel from a mother’s bloodstream to a fetus, meaning exposure to the poison often begins in the womb.

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