It feels like the world changed overnight this week. The results of election on Tuesday, up and down the ballot, will have long and far reaching effects for our environment. We now know that Donald Trump is our President-elect, and we have put in place a Republican Congress. Serious threats to the Clean Power Plan, and the future of the Environmental Protection Agency are a reality, as well as America’s leadership in global climate change solutions.
Closer to home, Minnesota now faces a divided government. Gridlock is not only a possibility, but expected. We face real and serious threats to our state laws and policies that protect our Great Outdoors. So how do we move forward to ensure that Minnesota’s Great Outdoors stay great for generations to come?
Traditionally, this is the time of year when we as a coalition are thinking ahead, planning our strategies, and focusing in on the most pressing environmental issues facing Minnesota. And we are still doing that – with this new world in mind.
Now is not the time to be cynical, decide all is lost, and throw in the towel.
Now is the time to come to together. Now is the time to be a strong, united force.
Today, our determination grows stronger. And our commitment to protecting our Great Outdoors is unwavering. We will continue to stand and fight, and we know we’re not alone. Minnesotans want to protect what they love about living here and want to leave a legacy of clean water, abundant wildlife, robust transportation choices, and clean energy for future generations.
The complex nature of the environmental problems we face today, like climate change, pollinator decline, poor air quality, and agricultural water pollution, require innovation and collaboration. No single person or group can solve these threats on their own. At the Minnesota Environmental Partnership, our core strength is bringing together thousands of Minnesotans together with our diverse coalition of nonprofit advocacy organizations across the state. Our coalition was founded by advocates who knew that we can do more together than we can do alone.
Because we’re Better Together.
We owe it to them, we owe it to ourselves, and we owe it to our children’s children to get up, dust ourselves off, and get to work.
That’s what happens now.
You can help.
So, we don’t go away. We continue to work together, to stay informed, and to contact our elected officials with our concerns and hopes. (And for those of us from a faith tradition, we stay alert to our gratitude / stewardship responses of seeking scriptural insight, doing advocacy, and prayer.)