Thanks to all the participants, presenters, and organizers for a successful Advocacy Workshop for a Resilient Valley held on January 17 at the Massanetta Springs Conference Center!
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When: Saturday, January 17, 2015 8:30 AM- 5:30 PM Where: Massanetta Springs Camp and Conference Center, 712 Massanetta Springs Rd, Harrisonburg, VA 22801 You are invited by the Climate Action Alliance of the Valley (CAAV) and the Virginia Sierra Club to attend a workshop to share and sharpen the skills we all need to help mobilize our friends and neighbors to influence environmental policies at every level of government. The rising pressures on Virginia and the Valley are two-fold: (1) from the fossil fuel industry dumping CO2 into the atmosphere for free and old-fashioned electrical utilities building pipelines and discouraging wind and solar power, and (2) from the impacts of the climate disruption they cause. We may not feel our climate change as much as other areas but we will certainly feel higher food prices for livestock and for ourselves, a growing influx of people moving from more vulnerable areas, and natural ecosystems increasingly stressed not only by rising temperatures but habitat loss if development isn’t carefully managed. We must be aware of these pressures and be prepared to meet them before they overwhelm all that we value here: the beauty of mountains and streams filled with healthy wildlife and a resilient regional economy, both agricultural and non-farm, based on clean, renewable energy. Agenda items include:
- The Big Picture – Our common goals
- Messaging and Audience: Having good conversations about the challenges facing us
- Introduction to Advocacy: Engaging local public officials
- The EPA’s Clean Power Plan–Carbon Reduction Goals for Virginia
- Earning Media Attention: How to get local press coverage of your actions and results
- Building an Effective Team
- Developing Action Plans: Exercises to put into practice what you have learned
Presenters will include Dr. Les Grady of CAAV’s Speakers Bureau and Kate Addleson, Conservation Director for Virginia Sierra Club and state lead for the Climate Action Campaign in Virginia. Lunch (and dinner, if you choose to stay for it) will be provided by Virginia Sierra Club. Dinner will also be held on site starting at 6 pm. Space is limited to 35 participants: pay your $10.00 registration fee now at our EventBrite page to save your place. Don’t miss this opportunity to meet other people working for what you believe in and to become a powerful advocate for a resilient and sustainable future for the Valley. For more information contact Joni Grady, Climate Action Alliance of the Valley, contactcaav@gmail.com or 540-209-9198
Climate Action Alliance of the Valley 