Complete list of press releases

“Today, tens of thousands of Americans gathered in New York City to show the world how much we care about the problem of climate change, and to demand action from the world leaders meeting this week at the United Nations. I was honored to march alongside hundreds of members of our EDF family to add our voice to the growing chorus of those who are tired of the politics of denial and delay.

“We are in the race of our lives against climate change. It already affects all of us – every person, in every country. It is having an impact on our health, our safety, our economy, our food supply, and those impacts will surely grow exponentially if we do not reduce climate pollution dramatically, starting now. And yet today’s march made me more optimistic than ever that we can meet this challenge.

“The determination, the strength, and especially the hope that I saw today were inspiring. They renewed my faith in the work we do every day at EDF to protect our environment. Now that I have marched with all of you, I look forward even more to working with all of you, until the goals we set for ourselves today are met and we turn the corner to a safe and stable climate.” 

                -  Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund  

(TRENTON – September 18, 2014) As a result of a highly-competitive grant process, New Jersey Transit today received $1.3 billion in federal funds to improve the resilience of the state’s transportation system in the event of devastating future storms like Hurricane Sandy. The funds include $410 million that will go toward developing the NJ TransitGrid into a first-of-its-kind microgrid capable of keeping the power running when the electric grid goes down.  

“This new funding gives New Jersey an opportunity to lead the nation on energy resiliency. The groundbreaking NJ TransitGrid could serve as a national model for transportation systems across the U.S. as our country seeks cost-effective, clean energy solutions to address extreme weather events in the face of climate change.”

• Mary Barber, Director, New Jersey Clean Energy

(WASHINGTON – September 17, 2014) In a setback for efforts to ensure clean energy resources are properly incentivized in the nation’s electricity markets, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit declined, today, to grant rehearing of its May 23, 2014 divided 2-1 panel decision vacating Order 745 of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Order 745 would have ensured demand response – a voluntary and cost-effective tool that relies on people and technology, not power plants, to meet our country’s rising electricity needs – was fairly valued and able to participate in wholesale electricity markets. The court’s ruling makes it more difficult for demand response to help strengthen our nation’s outdated power grid, reduce harmful air emissions from fossil fuel plants, and keep electricity prices lower. Although the court accepted an amicus brief by Environmental Defense Fund, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), and the Citizen’s Utility Board (CUB), which argued that FERC had clear authority to adopt Order 745 and advocated for rehearing of the court’s decision invalidating Order 745, a majority of judges ultimately voted against rehearing the order itself.

“Demand response is a critical tool that cost-effectively helps balance our power grid, especially when it is stressed and needs it most during periods of high energy demand. Steps should be taken to encourage, not discourage, demand response by giving it equal opportunity to participate in electricity markets. Today’s court decision comes as a disappointment to clean energy advocates as well as families and businesses looking to lower their electricity bills.” 

FERC should consider next steps to provide the vital grid reliability, cost savings, and clean energy benefits demand response programs can provide our nation, including evaluating further appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court and taking administrative action.  

• Michael Panfil, Attorney, US Climate and Energy Program

(Denver – September 17, 2014) Defend Our Future, a project of the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), announced today it is launching a $450,000 all-digital ad buy in Colorado to support its effort to drive young voters to the ballot box to show their support for action on climate change.

“Millennials consume information online and our all-digital ad buy is designed to meet them there,” said Dr. Alicia Kolar Prevost, who is running the non-partisan effort for EDF. “These online ads support our on-the-ground efforts to mobilize young voters and show politicians from all parties that this age group wants them to address climate change now.” 

“The ads are specifically designed to attract the attention of Millenials,” Prevost said. “It’s no longer good enough to put your TV commercials on the web and say you’re doing a digital campaign.

The video ads will appear on thousands of local and national sites that reach voters in Colorado, including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. 

Defend Our Future’s get-out-the-vote effort in Colorado launched Aug. 26 and is part a test run for a larger national effort going forward. Defend Our Future combines on-the-ground organizing with a mix of new and proven technologies in digital, social and data targeting honed in the 2012 campaign. The effort aims to collect 100,000 pledges to vote in Colorado this election. The campaign’s website is defendourfuture.org.

The message of Defend Our Future focuses on empowerment for voters under 35. Younger voters represent the leading edge of a growing demographic wave that is far more supportive of climate action than older cohorts of voters. Organizers are on the ground at Colorado State University and University of Colorado, Boulder. 

“It’s going to take all of us working together to solve the climate crisis,” Prevost said. “Millennials now outnumber baby boomers and this age group cares about climate. They’re sending a strong message to all elected leaders, candidates and policymakers.”

You can see the new ads here.

(Washington, D.C. – September 16, 2014) Today’s announcement that the White House will work towards phasing out a particularly potent greenhouse gas called R-134a is a good step in the fight against climate change, according to Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).  

R-134a is a type of hydrofluorocarbon (HFC), one of the substances that traps heat in the atmosphere and contributes to climate change. It is used as a coolant in refrigerators and air conditioners. The White House today announced a series of steps toward reducing R-134a, including voluntary commitments from U.S. companies to move toward safer chemicals.

“This effort to move toward safer chemicals is a good step toward a healthier planet,” said Peter Zalzal, EDF’s Senior Attorney. “These chemicals are extremely potent greenhouse gases, and they can severely damage our climate. Switching to less harmful chemicals will help protect all Americans from the dangers of climate change.”   

HFCs can be up to 10,000 times more potent than carbon dioxide in causing climate change, although there is a vastly larger amount of carbon pollution in the atmosphere.

The White House today announced agreements with 22 of the country’s biggest companies to phase out the use of HFCs and switch to more climate-friendly coolants. Those commitments will reduce global consumption of HFCs by the equivalent of 700 million metric tons of carbon dioxide through 2025 – the same as taking almost 15 million cars off the road for 10 years. 

The Obama Administration will use today’s announcement to help build momentum for an international effort to phase out HFCs at next week’s United Nations Climate Summit. The Administration has already reached an agreement with China to work together to phase down the use of HFCs.

This is the latest step in the President’s Climate Action Plan, which also included Administration’s Clean Power Plan – which would put the first-ever national limits on carbon pollution from power plants – on June 2, 2014.

WASHINGTON (September 16, 2014) – Climate change could take a serious toll on the U.S. economy by expanding the area that wildfires burn 50 percent—and raising projected damages by tens of billions of dollars a year by 2050, according to a new economic study released today.

The study, “Flammable Planet: Wildfires and the Social Cost of Carbon”—by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), the Institute for Policy Integrity at NYU School of Law (Policy Integrity), and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)—provides the first estimate of the future economic costs of wildfires that will be magnified by climate change.  

The study shows that wildfires already cost the U.S. between $20 billion and $125 billion a year. With climate change that number could climb drastically, adding an additional $10 billion to $60 billion per year to the cost of wildfires within just four decades. In today’s economy, that’s about $80 to $500 per household.

“Climate change is here now and its toll on our health and economy is rising every day,” said Laurie Johnson, chief economist at NRDC. “Wildfires that already destroy millions of acres of forests and thousands of homes will cause much more damage if we don’t take strong steps to reduce the carbon pollution driving climate change. We’re losing time but not solutions to this grave threat, and we must act now.”

President Obama has taken steps to do just that, using his authority under the Clean Air Act to propose carbon pollution limits on power plants built in the future and the first-ever limits on carbon pollution from plants operating now.

The standards, set to be in place by 2015, will address nearly 40 percent of the nation’s carbon pollution.

This pollution imposes economic costs by damaging public health and driving destructive climate change. Working together, the White House and key federal agencies have put a dollar value on those damages, a figure known as the “social cost of carbon.” The administration’s best estimate is $40 per ton of carbon pollution.

The social cost of carbon incorporates economic costs of factors such as climate impacts on health and agriculture, but omits many extreme weather events including wildfires. Today’s new report shows that wildfires should be incorporated as well.

Given the future outlook for wildfires, that makes sense. Scientists predict that climate change will intensify, and with it wildfires will become more frequent and intense, and fire seasons will get longer. Acres burned could surge by 50 to 100 percent in four decades, some studies suggest, with the heaviest damage in America’s Western states.

“It’s clear that climate change-driven wildfires pose a serious economic risk, and should eventually be part of the administration’s assessment of the cost of carbon pollution. Wildfire risks are yet one more reason we must address climate change now, as we’re putting future generations in jeopardy the longer we delay,” said Richard Revesz, director of the Institute for Policy Integrity.

The social cost of carbon is a powerful tool that has guided development of the carbon pollution standards for new and existing power plants, and for standards to improve vehicle fuel efficiency. Recently, the Government Accountability Office, the independent investigative arm of Congress, endorsed the administration’s methodology in a report that also noted some experts contend that the dollar figure may be low because it leaves out the cost of damages from factors such as certain catastrophic events.

“Increasing bills for wildfire damage are just one example of how much climate inaction will cost us,” said Gernot Wagner, Lead Senior Economist at EDF. “The public has to pick up the tab after the weather disasters that we’ll see more frequently because of climate change. We need to fully assess climate risks so we can make good public policy decisions.”

Earlier this year, NRDC, EDF and Policy Integrity launched the Cost of Carbon Pollution project to focus on the social cost of carbon and how it is used to develop federal standards. Their first report addressed costs missing from the administration’s current calculation: “Omitted Damages: What’s Missing from the Social Cost of Carbon.”

The new report, authored by Peter Howard, an economics fellow at Policy Integrity, analyzed the types of damage from wildfires such as loss of timber, health effects, loss of ecological services, and costs for fire prevention, suppression and rehabilitation, both in the U.S. and globally. The report is the first of a series planned to put dollar figures on damages partially and fully left out of the social cost of carbon.

To read the “Flammable Planet” report, click here: http://costofcarbon.org/files/Flammable_Planet__Wildfires_and_Social_Cost_of_Carbon.pdf

To read the “Omitted Damages” report, click here: http://costofcarbon.org/reports/entry/omitted-damages-whats-missing-from-the-social-cost-of-carbon

For more on the Cost of Carbon Pollution project, click here: http://costofcarbon.org/

(AUSTIN, TX– Sept.15, 2014) A study of natural gas wells in Texas and Pennsylvania released today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences concluded that cases of groundwater contamination tend to be caused by poor well construction rather than hydraulic fracturing. Researchers from Duke, Ohio State, Stanford, Dartmouth and the University of Rochester conducted this study.

“The study’s conclusion is yet another reason why more attention must be focused on well integrity issues. While we have not had time to review the study in detail, our understanding of its initial findings demonstrates a greater need for more stringent rules and enforcement that protect communities and their water quality from the risks associated with natural gas development.

“Many states have been updating their well integrity regulations in recent years, but this research is a call for increased action. EDF has and will continue to work with state officials to develop effective regulatory frameworks that will help ensure that wells are constructed and maintained properly – minimizing the number of incidents reported of contaminated groundwater.” 

Scott Anderson, Senior Policy Advisor, US Climate and Energy Program

Contact:
Shira Silver, ssilver@edf.org, 202-572-3254

“Governor Schwarzenegger is not the only action hero in the room at today’s event “Global Climate Negotiations: Lessons from California” co-hosted by the USC Schwarzenegger Institute and the California Air Resources Board, which convenes some of the world’s leading actors in the serious reality show that is climate change. The crowd of government, business, finance, and non-profit leaders underscores the fact that climate change is a multidisciplinary issue that requires collective brainpower and concerted action. As California has shown, there is no silver bullet for fighting climate change but we have an arsenal of proven solutions for cutting pollution and building a cleaner, healthier future. 

Climate change is not waiting for the ideological battles in Washington to play out, and thankfully neither is California or so many other states, from New England to the Great Lakes to the Pacific Northwest. As today’s bipartisan event shows, it takes action at the local, state, and regional level to prove environmental solutions can work to stimulate economic growth.

Perhaps California’s biggest lesson for our partners and peers around the globe is that a healthy economy and a healthy environment are not an either/or proposition. California has helped lead America’s economic recovery over the past few years, and our GDP has increased dramatically while pollution has decreased. We can stimulate economic growth and innovation and create a better quality of life for our citizens while cutting pollution and cleaning up the air.

To echo the most famous person in the room today, the air is not a Democratic or Republican resource, clean air is about everybody. The solutions to this existential challenge must include everybody and benefit everybody, and California’s story contains chapter after chapter illustrating how you can do just that.”

-Derek Walker, Associate Vice President, Environmental Defense Fund

National and local organizations working on Mississippi River Delta restoration – Environmental Defense Fund, National Wildlife Federation, National Audubon Society and the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation – released the following statement:

“More than 4 years after the BP oil disaster, today’s ruling brings hope and justice for the people, wildlife and ecosystems of Louisiana and the Gulf Coast. For 87 days, the Deepwater Horizon well spewed more than 4.1 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico – because of BP’s egregious conduct. A court of law has confirmed that risky and reckless behavior has consequences. The areas most damaged by the spill cannot wait any longer for restoration to begin. Today’s ruling is a vital step toward holding BP and other parties responsible for the largest oil spill in our nation’s history.”

“Today’s ruling of gross negligence is an historic win for the Gulf Coast ecosystems and economies that were damaged by the BP oil spill. Deepwater drilling comes with enormous risks, and it is vital that companies be held responsible for behavior – as in this case – that the Judge ruled to be ‘egregious’ and ‘reckless.’

“This ruling is a key criterion to be used in determining the size of BP’s fine. Under the federal RESTORE Act, 80% of the multi-billion dollar penalties that will result from this case will be used to support restoration of the Gulf. That is how BP will finally ‘make it right.’”

     - Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund  

(SAN FRANCISCO – September 2, 2014) In an unprecedented change in the ratings for such a large number of species from avoid to a sustainable rating, the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program is moving 21 species of West Coast fish to sustainable status, due in large part to the success of a fisheries management program begun in 2011 and championed by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).

The Monterey program, a sustainability program used by millions of Americans and corporate seafood buyers, is declaring nearly 40 species of West Coast rockfish, flounder, sole and other species as either a “Best Choice” or “Good Alternative.” The fishery was declared a federal disaster in 2000 and many of these species had long been rated as fish to “Avoid.” The replacement of ineffective fishing regulations with the management program that EDF championed, known as catch shares, has been cited by many as a primary reason the fishery has turned around.

Through the cooperation of fishermen, fishery managers, EDF and others, the catch share was designed to rebuild and manage stocks to ensure long-term sustainability. Now all groundfish caught on the West Coast assessed by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program are recommended as sustainable options.

“People can feel good about buying just about any type of rockfish, flounder or sole caught off the West Coast,” said Shems Jud, Pacific coast director, Oceans, Environmental Defense Fund. “There’s been a dramatic turnaround from the days when the fishery was declared a federal disaster. Trawl fishermen should be commended for embracing conservation and supporting smarter regulations,” continued Jud.

Catch shares take the science-based catch limit for the fishery and divides the total sustainable amount of fish that can be caught into individual quotas that each fisherman can catch throughout the year. Once implemented, catch shares ensure fishermen stay within the fishery’s sustainable limit while giving them a direct stake in its success and the flexibility to fish when it make sense for them.

Approximately 70% of West Coast flounder and sole, and 60% of rockfish got the top rating of ‘Best Choice,’ which marks a dramatic change from prior ratings. On the “Best Choice” list among trawl-caught rockfish are widow, aurora, yellowtail, splitnose, and shortspine and longspine thornyheads. Other delicious “Good Alternative” choices include chilipepper rockfish, petrale sole and sablefish (aka black cod). Five species of flatfish improved to a “Best Choice” from a “Good Alternative” including Dover sole, English sole, Pacific sanddab, rex sole and starry flounder.

“My business and reputation rely on sustainable seafood – plain and simple,” said Rick Moonen, Executive Chef and Owner of rm seafood and Rx Boiler Room in Las Vegas, Nevada “I’m thrilled by the remarkable turnaround of this fishery. The Seafood Watch ratings give people extra assurance that when they see West Coast rockfish or sole on menus, it’s a responsible choice.”

Fishermen are using innovative ways to avoid catching overfished species and protect the marine habitat. Some trawlers are using gear that has a reduced impact with the sea floor. Because of the incentives inherent in the catch share program, bycatch and the amount of wasted catch, often called discards, are plummeting. Fishermen are sharing information with one another about where overfished species are congregating so they can be avoided. Many fishermen have even entered into joint agreements to voluntarily stop fishing in certain areas. 

”Every fisherman I know cares a lot about the long-term health of the oceans and fish populations. Many trawlers are going beyond what has been done before to make trawling more environmentally-friendly. I am using trawl gear now that only minimally touches the sea floor,” said Joe Pennisi, a fisherman who works out of Monterey Bay, California.

“Though we have made significant progress, there is still more work to do to address challenges fishermen face as they work to rebuild this major American fishery,” said EDF’s Jud. 

New technical analysis from expert staff at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) adds to the growing body of evidence that our current health-based ozone standard must be strengthened to protect Americans from the dangerous pollution more commonly known as smog, according to Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).

The report by EPA staff recommends Administrator Gina McCarthy tighten the national health-based standard for ground-level ozone from its current level of 75 parts per billion to a health protective standard that ranges between 60 to 70 parts per billion. An independent panel of scientists made a similar recommendation to EPA earlier this year.

“We know that ground-level ozone, or smog, is a dangerous air pollutant that is linked to asthma attacks and other serious heart and lung diseases. Scientific evidence continues to mount demonstrating that we need to strengthen our nation’s ozone standard in order to protect public health,” said Dr. Elena Craft, EDF Health Scientist. “We urge EPA to move forward with a more protective health-based standard without delay.” 

EPA finalized the current national ground-level ozone standards in 2008 at 75 parts per billion – which contradicted unanimous advice from the statutorily-established Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) and from the nation’s leading medical societies. 

According to a 2010 analysis by EPA, a standard of 60 parts per billion would, when met:

• Prevent up to 12,000 premature deaths
• Prevent up to 21,000 hospitalizations
• Provide $100 billion in associated economic benefits

EPA has a court deadline of December 1^st to propose a national ozone standard that protects the health of America’s communities and families.  EDF, together with public health and environmental associations, has taken legal action to compel EPA to carry out these responsibilities under our nation’s clean air laws. 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contacts:
Timothy O’Connor, (916) 549-8423, toconnor@edf.org
Eric Steen, (612) 466-4488, erics@bluegreenalliance.org
Julie Dixon, (415) 302-6089, julie@resourcemedia.org

Today, the California State Legislature passed groundbreaking legislation to reduce methane pollution caused by leaks in the state’s aging natural gas pipelines. Methane is the primary ingredient in natural gas and is a potent climate-destabilizing pollutant. SB 1371, authored by Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), will now head to the Governor’s desk.

“In order to protect public health and the environment, we must keep natural gas in the pipes where it belongs as opposed to letting it leak into the air,” said Sen. Mark Leno, the author of the legislation. “SB 1371 serves this dual purpose by ensuring that leaking gas pipes are repaired quickly and in a cost-efficient manner for consumers.”

California is the nation’s second largest consumer of natural gas, with over 100,000 miles of pipes and other equipment delivering natural gas to customers across the state. Given the documented widespread nature of leaks within the vast system, today’s vote reinforces California’s leadership in reducing emissions that contribute to climate change, with the added benefit of eliminating waste of a critical energy resource. So-called “fugitive” emissions equate to millions of dollars of lost gas that Californians end up paying for in their monthly utility bills. 

SB 1371 specifically directs the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to develop and implement a comprehensive natural gas pipelines leak reduction strategy that ensures the quick and efficient repair of leaks.

“Repairing and preventing leaks in our natural gas pipelines will create family-sustaining jobs and local infrastructure investment while reducing emissions that contribute to climate change,” said JB Tengco, California Director of the BlueGreen Alliance, a national partnership of labor and environmental organizations. “SB 1371 will benefit not only workers but the state as a whole.”

If the bill becomes law, California would join other state and federal efforts to mitigate methane emissions. Colorado adopted direct methane regulations in February, while earlier this year the White House released a national methane reduction strategy. As part of this strategy, EPA is on track to decide this fall how to best pursue additional methane reductions from the oil and gas sector, and the California Air Resources Board is also considering new methane regulations for oil and gas development.

According to Tim O’Connor, Director of EDF’s California Climate Initiative, “Today’s vote is a huge step towards the build-out of a comprehensive strategy in California to reduce methane pollution. Implementing policies to curb the loss of a valuable resource is good for both California’s environment and our economy.”

(SACRAMENTO – August 27, 2014) The California Assembly and Senate voted this week in favor of Senate Bill 1414 (Wolk). This vote will accelerate the use of demand response, a voluntary and cost-friendly tool that relies on people and technology, not power plants, to meet California’s rising electricity needs.

With a unanimous 79-0 vote from the Assembly and 36-0 vote from the Senate, elected officials made it resoundingly clear that California prioritizes clean energy technologies and seeks to make the state’s power grid more reliable and economical through the use of demand response.

“Today marks a turning point for the state of California. This bill will help Californians enjoy more choices that help lower monthly electricity bills and help electric utilities greatly expand their use of demand response to serve the needs of California residents and businesses,” said state Senator Lois Wolk, D-Davis, who authored the bill.

Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) sponsored the bill because demand response is a proven technology that empowers participating families and businesses to lower their electricity bills and carbon footprints, improve air quality, allow for more renewable energy, and enhance electric grid reliability.

“Demand response is low-hanging fruit in California; it’s clean and flexible, and cost-effectively helps address the state’s rising energy needs, especially in light of fossil fuel power plant closures in Southern California. EDF applauds the state’s elected officials for their leadership and foresight to secure cleaner energy and a safer climate for Californians for generations to come,” said Lauren Navarro-Treichler, EDF attorney and California senior clean energy manager.

Senate Bill 1414 directs the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) and electric utilities to consider demand response, not just fossil fuel power plant investments, as a partner in planning how to balance and ensure reliability for the state’s power grid. Further, the bill requires the PUC to properly value demand response and establishes a mechanism for the PUC to value certain types of demand response for their ability to help with energy system and reliability needs as well as to support the state’s goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

California’s Energy Action Plan already lists demand response, along with energy efficiency and renewable energy, as a first-choice resource because of its low-cost, low-carbon nature. However, most other states and regions rely far heavier than California on demand response. For instance, New England’s programs enable more than double the demand response participation than those of California. Only Texas and other states in the Southwest lag behind the Golden State.

Demand response helps create a viable pathway for Californians to lower their electricity bills and to cement California as the leader in the nation’s clean energy economy. “The State Legislature has affirmed the importance of this technology in modernizing and enhancing California’s outdated power grid,” said Navarro. “Now it is up to Governor Jerry Brown to stand with the legislature and clean energy champions and sign the bill into law.”

(Washington, D.C. – August 26, 2014) Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) today announced the launch of a major new campaign, Defend Our Future, which will focus on motivating young voters to show their support for climate action at the ballot box.

The campaign will begin with a two million dollar voter turnout effort in Colorado aimed at demonstrating the power of young voters who care about solving climate change.

“Young voters of both parties understand climate change is a threat to their future. This campaign is about showing them they have the power to make politicians listen,” said Dr. Alicia Kolar Prevost, who is running the effort for EDF. “Polls show that more than 80 percent of Millennial voters understand that we need to deal with climate change, but they don’t always turn out to vote — especially in midterm elections. We believe that climate change can motivate these voters, and that will make candidates take notice.”

The Colorado effort is in part a test run for a larger national effort going forward. Defend Our Future will combine on-the-ground organizing with a mix of new and proven technologies in digital, social and data targeting honed in the 2012 campaign. The effort aims to collect 100,000 pledges to vote in Colorado this year. The campaign’s website is defendourfuture.org. The campaign will also be releasing a series of videos.

“Voter turnout efforts have become highly scientific in the last few election cycles,” said Mitch Stewart, lead consultant for Defend Our Future and former Battleground States Director for President Obama’s 2012 campaign. “Combining the strong feelings young voters have about climate change with the latest get out the vote tactics will be a powerful combination.”

The message of Defend Our Future will focus on empowerment for voters under 35. Younger voters represent the leading edge of a growing demographic wave that is far more supportive of climate action than older cohorts of voters.

“There’s a lot at stake for young voters. This is their chance to make a difference for their future,” said Dr. Prevost. “Success for us is when elected officials realize that doing the right thing on climate change is also smart politics.”