Dear CCL community,
I write this on Friday after a whirlwind of activity in the wake of the introduction of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. When passed, this package will include the biggest climate measures ever adopted in the United States. This is major climate legislation that independent assessments suggest will lead to 40% emissions reductions by 2030. It is, and will be, a huge achievement.
Earlier today, we held a meeting of our leadership with over 360 of our volunteer leaders participating in the middle of the work day, to launch our campaign to get a flood of supportive phone calls to Democratic offices in the Senate and House. In just a few hours, almost 1500 calls have been logged. [Editor’s note: Keep up with the campaign’s progress on this action page.]
Later, I had a few minutes in which to call some of the staff who worked so hard to launch the tools and communications needed in just 24 hours. A number of them worked late into the night to do it, and the results were spectacular.
I’ve never been prouder of our organization, our volunteers, and our staff.
In my 11 years as a volunteer and member of the staff, I’ve served in many roles. I’ve been a group leader, a state coordinator, a liaison, a regional coordinator, the program director, the President, and since the beginning of the year, I’ve had the honor to be your Executive Director. I’ve loved every single one of those roles and learned much from being in them.
And now I’m adding one more role to that list: Climate Guardian. I’ve always deeply appreciated all our donors at all the different levels you give. And now that I am the chief steward of those gifts, I value that even more deeply because we cannot possibly do what we need to do without those precious resources. My husband Glen and I have just become Climate Guardian donors by making a gift of $10,000. It’s a stretch, and we’ve never given to any other organization at that level, and yet it feels wonderful to be able to do that.
Our work is not done. Assuming this climate legislation makes it all the way to President Biden’s desk, it still won’t be done. There is not a carbon price in it, and even if there were, our work would still not be done. So my husband and I feel strongly that CCL/CCE should have the resources it needs in order to build on this momentum and get us all the way to net zero emissions. I am glad to be able to join with our Climate Guardian donors and support the organization in this way.
I love that people give to CCL/CCE in many different ways and levels of their time, money, skills and connections. If these economic times are not too hard on you, and you have the capacity to join Glen and me as Climate Guardian donors, we would love for you to join us in this new role. In fact, we’re hoping to find 10 new Climate Guardians to step forward and join me and Glen, just like those that came forward at the June conference. I recognize that all of our financial situations vary widely, and that our personal stretch gift amounts vary just as much. But if you, or someone you know, could possibly support our work at the $10,000 or more level, please reach out to my colleagues at .
Whether you’re donating, volunteering your time, or both, please know that I am deeply grateful for all of your generous, thoughtful contributions. It’s what got us this far, and I can’t wait to take the next steps with you.
In gratitude,
Madeleine Para
You can also attend our upcoming Citizens’ Climate University training on August 18 at 5 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. ET to connect with our development staff and receive hands-on mentorship about helping us recruit Climate Guardians and major donors to support our work at the national level. Event and Zoom details will be available on the CCL Community event calendar here.
