[Notes: Our new website is currently under construction!] 2017 FEBRUARY -Event(s)/action(s) TBA. MARCH -Event(s)/action(s) TBA. APRIL -29th: The People's Climate Mobilization march in Washington, D.C. This march will be the culmination of the climate movement's work during the first 100 days of the new Administration in fighting the President Trump's intention to dismantle climate protections. Time/location: specific info will be posted in future. For general info, see People's Climate Mobilization March. -Event(s)/action(s) TBA. MAY -Event(s)/action(s) TBA. JUNE -Event(s)/action(s) TBA. RESOURCES Sierra Club, Maryland - Maryland chapter of the nation-wide organization, the Sierra Club. Chesapeake Climate Action Network - When it was formed in 2002, the Chesapeake Climate Action Network was the first grassroots, nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to fighting global warming in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. 350.org - A climate group that was founded by author Bill McKibben and a group of university friends that now has supporters all over the world. Citizens Climate Lobby - A fast-growing grassroots, nonprofit organization that advocates for national policies to address climate change, in part by training and supporting volunteers to engage with elected officials and the media. ‎ Grist - A hard-hitting blog with daily posts on the environment, including climate and energy issues. Think Progress - An award-winning blog with in-depth information on energy and climate issues. EcoWatch - A web-based environmental news service that leverages enviro news for maximum publicity. Climate Central - A website that features independent leading scientists and journalists who engage in research, and report about climate change issues. Board of Directors 1. Carrie Biggs-Adams, Treasurer (CA) 2. Jean Boucher, Secretary (NY) 3. James Collins (DE) 4. Ted Conwell, President (MD) 5. Sasan Dehghan (MD) 6. Brian Higgins, Vice-President (MD) 7. Barbara Skinner (CA/NJ) 8. Molly Snyder (NY) Contact Info Climate First! P.O. Box 5815 Takoma Park, MD 20912 USA (301) 589-7598 (mobile) tconwell@climatefirst.us www.climatefirst.us Facebook Twitter . Mission In view of the threat to the stable climate that Earth’s inhabitants have enjoyed for the last 10,000 years, Climate First! strives to quickly reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and promote the use of clean energy in the Mid-Atlantic region, primarily through grassroots organizing and peaceful direct action against corporations and related entities. Urgency There is little argument among reasonable people that the Earth’s climate is changing largely due to the ever-growing concentration of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the upper atmosphere. Some scientists, including Dr. James Hansen, a highly respected climate scientist who recently retired from NASA, have been warning that the world may not have more than a decade or two to dramatically reduce GHG emissions; otherwise the climate will exceed various ecological tipping points, thereby subjecting the world’s inhabitants to an unstable climate for centuries. Other researchers, including some from the well-respected Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, support a somewhat more conservative view that dramatic emission reductions spread-out over three or four decades will be sufficient to avoid the worst of climate change. Climate First! believes that the U.S., far and away the leader in historical GHG emissions, must immediately take a leadership role and significantly reduce its GHG emissions, if the world is to have any chance of preserving a stable climate for future generations. Campaigns Current: "Hey Citibank & TD Bank: Stop Financing the climate-wrecking Dakota Access Pipeline!” Citibank and TD Bank are two of the main U.S. lenders bankrolling the construction of the $3.8 billion Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), a pipeline which could carry up to 570,000 barrels of crude oil per day from North Dakota to Illinois. Native Americans in North Dakota oppose the 1,100 mile long DAPL due to possible drinking water contamination, and damage to their sacred lands. More broadly, building a new pipeline that will deliver massive amounts of low-cost oil to market will undermine the emission goals which the U.S. agreed to in the climate agreement in Paris just last year. In solidarity with the Native Americans and with peoples everywhere concerned with climate stability, Climate First! will continue organizing nonviolent direct actions against TD Bank and Citibank in an effort to convince the lenders to end their funding of DAPL. If Q’s, contact Ted at tconwell@climatefirst.us. Terminated: "Hey Morgan Stanley - Get Your Money Out of Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining!" Climate First! ended its campaign against the U.S.-based investment firm, Morgan Stanley, due to the bank issuing a new policy in late 2015 that will dramatically reduce over time its financial involvement with mountaintop removal (MTR) coal mining in the Southeastern U.S. This was a VICTORY! Terminated: "Stop Keystone XL pipeline!" Climate First! terminated its campaign against the building of the KXL pipeline due to the U.S. President rejecting the climate-wrecking project. This was a VICTORY! Terminated: "PNC Bank - Stop Funding the Blowing-up of Mountains for Dirty Coal Mining!" Climate First! ended its campaign against the large eastern lender, PNC Bank, due to the bank deciding in late 2014 to phase-out over time its financial involvement with mountaintop removal (MTR) coal mining in the Southeastern U.S. This was a VICTORY! TBA. Recent Actions and Photos Please see our Facebook page. Articles Please see our Blog. Climate First!'s History/Future -On February 20, 2016, Climate First! held its 3rd Annual Meeting. -On July 26, 2015, Climate First! held its 2nd Annual Meeting. -On December 7, 2014, Climate First! held its 1st Annual Meeting. -On August 4, 2014, the Internal Revenue Service awarded tax-exempt status to Climate First! under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The IRS further determined that the organization was a public charity under Code section 170(b)(1)(A)(vi). Finally, the Agency established that the effective date of tax exemption was November 16, 2012. -On November 16, 2012, Climate First! became a corporation in the State of Maryland. Donations/Gifts Monetary gifts, which are tax-deductable to the full extent of the law, can be given via the PayPal link (vendor deducts a %) on this website.  Or, monetary donations can be sent via USPS to Climate First!, Inc., P.O. Box 5815, Takoma Park, MD 20912. Non-monetary gifts (such as furniture, computer, etc.) are welcome as needed. The organization's current need: computer. Financial/Corporate Documents -Annual Report for 2013 -Letter from IRS awarding tax-exempt status to Climate First! Remarks by President Obama on Climate Change at Georgetown University - June 25, 2013 "...science, accumulated and reviewed over decades, tells us that our planet is changing in ways that will have profound impacts on all of humankind." the President's speech on youtube. the President's speech in text form. Former Vice President Al Gore hailed President Barack Obama's climate change speech as "historic" and "the best address on climate by any president ever." "I applaud the new measures announced by President Barack Obama this afternoon to help solve the climate crisis -- particularly the decision to limit global warming pollution from existing as well as new power plants. "Following the important pledges he made in both his inaugural address and State of the Union speech earlier this year, and the historic gains in renewable energy and fuel efficiency that the President delivered in his first term, the policy changes he announced today represent important steps forward in the battle to halt catastrophic climate disruption. "This action -- if followed by skillful and thorough execution of the plan -- has the potential to fundamentally alter the course of our nation's energy infrastructure development and help to promote a sustainable future. On the international front, this action will bolster U.S. credibility and moral authority in negotiations with other countries." Please make a secure contribution via PayPal