February 2024 update from Sierra Club Hoosier Chapter
February 26, 2024
Join us on the trail!
In this issue, we are pleased to introduce to you our new Chapter Director, Robyn Skuya-Boss! Read more about them below. Plus we have updates on our work, all our regular features, and much more!
Rebecca Dien-Johns
Chapter Coordinator.
Introducing our new Chapter Director, Robyn Skuya-Boss!
We are so excited to announce our new Chapter Director, Robyn Skuya-Boss.
Robyn (he/they) has been a longtime advocate for the role of nonprofit and issue-based organizations in civic life. They are steadfast in their commitment to building collaborative communities: “We’re all in this together. It takes a strong connected community to be good stewards of our human-built and natural worlds.”
Read more about Robyn and our team on our website.
The Sierra Club at the Statehouse
The Hoosier Chapter and Indiana Beyond Coal were well represented at Renewable Energy Day 2024.
Over 200 Hoosiers from around the state turned out at the Indiana Statehouse to support renewable energy in Indiana. Chapter staff and volunteers took full advantage of the opportunity to engage with attendees and meet with legislators. Read more on our website: Renewable Energy Day at the Indiana Statehouse.
Joab Schultheis
Executive Committee and Energy Committee Chair
A well-attended Renewable Energy Day at the Statehouse .
Photo by Amanda Shepherd.
On Conservation Day at the Indiana Statehouse, the Hoosier Chapter partnered with Indiana Forest Alliance so that we could reach more people about Indiana forest issues and to promote federal legislation S.2990: The Benjamin Harrison National Recreation Area and Wilderness Establishment Act of 2023 that will expand the Deam Wilderness area and protect a huge part of the Hoosier National Forest and the watershed.
Present to promote action for this Deam Wilderness expansion legislation are: Lora Kemp, Vice-Chair Hoosier Chapter ExCom, Steven Surette, Mountain Bike Indiana, Jennifer Christie, Director of Development, IFA, and Neil Goswami, IFA staff and Hoosier Chapter Political Comm Chair and ExCom member. Photo: Julie Lowe.
The 60th anniversary of the Wilderness Act and
Indiana Wilderness Areas
On September 3, 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Wilderness Act into law – establishing a National Wilderness Preservation System -- “for the use and enjoyment of the American people.” The Act provided for Congress to add new areas to the system.
During 2024, as the Wilderness Act turns 60, we reflect on the historic value of this major American cultural and environmental landmark. Sierra Club, other wilderness groups, and the four federal wilderness management agencies will use the big anniversary to publicize wilderness values and to educate a broader public about the benefits of wilderness.
We have the perfect remedy. Visit our online 2024 Native Plant Sale catalog and begin planning your Spring garden today!
Winding Waters Group is excited to announce that our annual native plant sale has begun!
We are thrilled to once again be sharing in the creation of personal as well as community pollinator habitats. Plants will arrive as 3 inch plug sizes that are easier to plant.
Again this year we will offer an online brochure, printable order form and an online order option. We have lowered the price of our plants to $3.50 a piece. This sale will last until April 1st and all orders will need to be turned in by that date so we can finalize the full order in time. Our pick up day will be May 3rd, and as always, it will be held at the Bartholomew County 4-H Fairgrounds in building #3 from 2- 5:00 pm.
If you have any questions, please email Julie Lowe at j_lowe66@yahoo.com
The Twisted Tale of Indianapolis’ White River (Sierra Magazine): Testing should be done daily, says Sierra Club Heartland Group chair Jesse Kirkham, as the pollution levels can vary wildly day-to-day. But water-quality testing by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management in the White River and its tributaries has dropped precipitously over the years for lack of funding. Volunteers with the Sierra Club, White River Alliance, and other groups have picked up some of that slack.
He says: "This article shows how a Majority of America’s underground water stores are drying up, and the study finds many of America’s critical sources of underground water are in a state of rapid and accelerating decline. More evidence that the LEAP pipeline pumping 100,000,000 gallons of water from the underground aquifers is a disaster waiting to happen."
What have you been reading, listening to, or watching lately? We'd love to hear from you! Email rebecca.dien-johns@sierraclub.org
That's all for this month! We hope you've enjoyed this newsletter.
