OAKLAND, CA – Today, California Environmental Voters (EnviroVoters) celebrates 50 years of environmental leadership, impact, and partnership and refocuses itself on the next seven years to solve the climate crisis.

“Science tells us we have until 2030 to act before there are catastrophic climate impacts. We know California is capable of the powerful leadership required in this moment, 2022 proved that. And we know that when California acts it moves global markets and creates international models. We have an outsized responsibility to prove we can solve the climate crisis, and define how we do it with equity and justice at the center,” said Mary Creasman, CEO, EnviroVoters. “Our work as a state is just starting. We have the solutions to the climate crisis, to transition to clean energy and make our landscapes and communities resilient, now we need massive political courage from our elected leaders to fund and scale these solutions. The time to turn the tide is running out, it’s now or never.”

EnviroVoters is California’s voice for bold climate action, statewide and nationally. Our mission is to build the political power to solve the climate crisis, leverage investments and policies to advance justice, and create the global roadmap for action. We won’t stop until we have resilient, healthy, thriving communities, and a democracy and economy that is just, and sustainable for all. Anti-racism is central to our theory of change and our approach ensures that Black, Indigenous, and all communities of color, who have been historically left out of the political process, will be included. Our efforts aim to rethink and build an economy that is based on clean energy, the creation of new good-paying union jobs, and sustainable land-use policies and transportation systems.

“Serving over 20 years on EnviroVoters’ board, I’ve seen firsthand the difference that happens when we organize and educate voters, elect and train climate champions, and hold lawmakers accountable – from defending California Environmental Quality Act to passing the most aggressive climate legislation in the country,” said Fran Diamond, President and Chair, EnviroVoters Board of Directors. “EnviroVoters has been pivotal to making this happen. That’s why it’s so important that we are still here pushing California to lead.”

“EnviroVoters has shaped our state and nation for half a century. They have been critical in the fight against climate change,” said Anthony Rendon, Speaker of the California State Assembly and former Interim Executive Director of EnviroVoters (formerly CLCV). “It has been an honor to work alongside EnviroVoters during my time in the State Assembly. From electing leaders to advocating for strong climate action, they truly are a powerhouse for California climate legislation.”

EnviroVoters PAC entities help to elect climate justice champions at each level of government and build a pipeline of candidates in battleground regions. We hold politicians accountable to their constituents utilizing our regional leagues and pushing climate justice solutions to the front of public discourse. We advocate for, pass, and implement progressive environmental policies that shape a just climate future for California. These 50 years have been decorated with endorsed candidates winning elections, priority bills signed into law, dozens of California Environmental Scorecards, and partnerships with pro-environment coalitions, policy makers, and board members. EnviroVoters’ full 50 years of impact and legacy spans from its founding in 1972 to passing the most aggressive climate package in history in 2022 and includes the following highlights:

    -1972: California League of Conservation Voters (CLCV) is founded when two groups of activists, from Los Angeles and San Francisco, are brought together by Marion Edey to combine their common efforts to elect environmental champions.

    -1974: CLCV releases the first known California Environmental Scorecard (then known as the Voting Chart), rating state legislators on their votes in 1973 and 1974. 

    -2001: CLCV joins Consumer Attorneys of California and California Nurses Association to form the CA Alliance -a pro-environment, pro-public health, and pro-consumer PAC that evens the odds against corporate polluter-backed candidates

    -2016: Thanks to CLCV supporters and climate activists around the world, the United States, along with nearly 170 other countries, signed on to the Paris climate agreement on Earth Day. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change commits member countries to taking national actions to reduce emissions by 2020, with the collective goal of limiting global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius.

   -2021: CLCV changes its name to EnviroVoters.

The experts in environmental advocacy, environmental justice, workforce development, and the public and private sectors all agree we need bold, transformational, and intersectional leadership to achieve climate stability and advance economic, racial, and gender justice. To that end, EnviroVoters has identified the following seven policy areas which are interconnected and depend on successful action on all fronts to realize our vision for a climate-safe future: clean energy economy, job creation with workforce standards and protections, transportation and land use, pollution elimination, sustainable agriculture, natural resources and climate resilience, and strengthening democracy.

The organization has only been able to accomplish so much thanks to partners, donors, and board members who bring invaluable expertise in state climate policy, philanthropy, worker’s rights, and voting rights. This year’s Badass in Green Awards will not only celebrate leaders and innovators in the climate justice movement but also mark the special occasion of EnviroVoters’ 50th anniversary. This annual celebration for community to gather and celebrate trailblazers will be returning to SmogShoppe in Los Angeles on May 12, 2023.

Learn more about EnviroVoters’ 50 years here and check out our socials all year long for resources on climate stewardship.

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CONTACT:

Erika Guzman Cornejo

310-755-1615

erika@envirovoters.org

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California Environmental Voters (formerly the California League of Conservation Voters) believes the climate crisis is here and this moment requires transformative change. California has the policy solutions to stop climate change but lacks the political will to do it at the rate and scale that’s necessary. EnviroVoters exists to build the political power to solve the climate crisis, advance justice, and create a roadmap for global action. We organize voters, elect and train candidates, and hold lawmakers accountable for bold policy change. We won’t stop until we have resilient, healthy, thriving communities, and a democracy and economy that is just and sustainable for all. Join us at www.envirovoters.org and on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. See more press releases.

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