FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 1, 2021
Contact: Sandy Bahr, 602-999-5790, sandy.bahr@sierraclub.org
Doug Bland, AZ Interfaith Power & Light, 602-312-0324, doug.bland@azipl.org
Columba Sainz, Moms Clean Air Force, 520-664-8324, csainz@momscleanairforce.org
Ulisses Correa, Mi Familia Vota, (602)263-2030-EXT 118, d.ulissesj@mifamiliavota.org
With Country on Road to Recovery, New National Coalition Says We Need to #ACTNow to Build Better Future With More Jobs, Justice and Climate Solutions for Arizona and Nation
The ACT Now Campaign, composed of 14 groups operating in 12 states with 10 million members between them, launches multi-platform campaign in support of President Joe Biden’s #BuildBackBetter Plan and Infrastructure Investments
Phoenix, Arizona -- On the heels of President Joe Biden’s national economic address in Pittsburgh, a powerful coalition of climate, environmental and public health advocates, 10 million strong, launched the #ACTNow campaign in Arizona and 11 other states across the country.
ACT Now campaign organizers say that, now that we have taken the first step to provide the tools for us to recover from the pandemic through passage of the American Rescue Plan, it’s time to create a plan that puts people to work, tackles the climate crisis, and rebuilds our economy -- now. They want to engage Arizonans and others around the country in charting a path toward rebuilding our economy to get this nation back on its feet, while doing so smartly and with an eye toward a just and cleaner future that promises:
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New economic opportunity and jobs for all;
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Equitable access to those opportunities, particularly in communities that have long borne the brunt of the impacts from a dirty economy; and
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Solutions to the climate crisis facing us and future generations by creating a clean economy that can protect us and grow our economy.
“Families in Arizona are facing devastating changes due to climate impacts, and these impacts are not equitably distributed,” said Columba Sainz, Arizona state organizer of Moms Clean Air Force and Ecomadres with the Latino community. “We need to prioritize Latinos and communities of color in responding to the climate crisis. This is the moment for the Biden administration to ensure that we protect the most vulnerable, who are disproportionately affected by climate change in urban and rural areas in Arizona. Investing in clean energy infrastructure and environmental justice right now will help build back our economy while safeguarding the health and future of our children.”
Targeted investments in clean energy infrastructure have the ability to reduce pollution, fix bridges and roadways, jumpstart the electric vehicle economy, build out equitable housing and public transportation for all communities, improve public health, while providing millions of good-paying union jobs for American workers, and improving the quality of life for all Americans, particularly in the marginalized communities that have borne the brunt of unsustainable development, pollution, and climate disasters. These investments can help with a just and equitable transition in communities on the Navajo Nation and with the Hopi Tribe as they move away from coal.j
“Arizona needs bold investments in clean energy and the associated infrastructure, helping to create thousands of good-paying local jobs, improve public health, and work towards environmental justice for communities across the state, especially those most affected by the climate crisis,” said Sandy Bahr, chapter director for Sierra Club’s Grand Canyon (Arizona) Chapter. “Arizonans need Senator Sinema and Senator Kelly to help lead this important effort to address the climate crisis.”
“The decisions we must make in this time of killing summer heat, deadly wildfires, bad air and economic despair are not just scientific, economic and political---they are moral and spiritual,” said Rev. Doug Bland, Interfaith Power & Light. “Prayers and good intentions are not enough. We need courageous action. To truly love our neighbor, we need ACT Now.”
“The Latino Community is facing many climate impacts here in Arizona,” said Ulisses Correa, Environmental Justice Organizer with Mi Familia Vota. “We must focus on the Latino Community embracing all available tools to reduce carbon emissions to help abolish worsening climate change. The moment has come for Biden to show his plan into action to help the Latino community to make a change for the better of our community in the future of our environment and helping the most affected.”
In Arizona, Moms Clean Air Force, Sierra Club, Mi Familia Vota, and Arizona Interfaith Power and Light are leading the ACT Now Campaign, encouraging both Senator Kyrsten Sinema and Senator Mark Kelly to support President Biden’s call to tackle the climate crisis, make our infrastructure cleaner and more resilient, and drive growth for our state and national economies, in the form of his Rebuild America Plan.
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