The Washington Green Amendment campaign is working to pass a state constitutional amendment codifying the right to clean water and air, and a safe and healthy environment. In this info session for members of the PNW Forest Climate Alliance, we’ll hear from Maya van Rossum (Green Amendments founder & Delaware Riverkeeper) and David Kipnis (WA Green Amendment campaigner) about the growing Green Amendment movement and how it can transform the paradigm of environmental protection. It will also provide an update on the ongoing effort to pass a Green Amendment in Washington State and how activists and organizations can get involved. There will be time for Q&A with the speakers following the presentation.
What is a Green Amendment?
The money and political power amassed by big polluters means communities often feel powerless when it comes to preserving the quality of their water, air, public parks, and special natural spaces. Environmental Justice communities find themselves particularly hard hit; while there is increasing recognition and awareness when it comes to considering environmental justice issues, the fact is that People of Color, Indigenous Communities, low income communities, and communities with high immigrant populations continue to be disproportionately targeted for placement and expansion of polluting industrial operations and environmentally degrading activities. The goal of Green Amendments For The Generations is to advance a national, state by state, Green Amendment movement and to ensure that governments across the nation at the local and state level honor the rights of all people to pure water, clean air, a stable climate and healthy environments in the laws they enact, the decisions they make, and the actions they take by securing the passage of enforceable environmental rights amendments in the Bill of Rights section of every constitution – state and federal – and ensuring their strong and meaningful enforcement. Three states already have Green Amendments and are putting them to work – Washington State needs and deserves one too!