Blog - Colorado CCL actions and progress

A bird's eye view of how CCL National works

Not too long ago, Citizens’ Climate Lobby and Citizens’ Climate Education consisted of a few fledgling chapters in several states. Today, the organization has hundreds of thousands of supporters in over 480 active chapters around the world. Ever wonder how it all fits together? Here’s a bird’s eye view.

Electric utilities, Colorado regulation, and carbon fee and dividend

In 2019, Colorado established itself as a leader in climate policy by passing HB 1261, the Climate Action Plan to Reduce Pollution, which sets greenhouse gas emission reduction targets. Recently, the Polis administration released the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Roadmap, which lays out the pathway for how we will achieve those targets.

Utilities are busy submitting Electric Resource Plans to detail their renewable energy strategy. Read on for ways you can stay current on their initiatives and advocate for clean energy and lower energy prices! Also, learn what the passage of the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act will mean for Coloradans.

Using Reddit to build support for carbon fee and dividend

The social media platform Reddit offers unique opportunities to build grassroots support for carbon fee and dividend. Reddit is different from other social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Rather than showing content based on the people you know, Reddit shows content based on the topics you’re interested in. Trevor Stone of Boulder CCL shows how we can best use Reddit to boost CCL’s message of bipartisan carbon pricing legislation.

New opportunity to engage your local Chamber of Commerce

Business endorsement of the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act is critical to its passage. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce recently announced strong support for Congress to pass durable market-based climate legislation. Learn how to build on this announcement and reach out to your local Chambers for endorsements!

Young Conservative Fellow making strides towards climate solution

Young CCL Conservative Fellow Nate Hochman shares his experience and advice to find a sustainable climate solution. He is both a conservative and an environmentalist and believes that they are not a contradiction. One of his motivations has been to engage with the communities he grew up with and help them see why climate change is an issue they should be concerned about.

CO CCL’s LTE of the month: Brenda Sabo’s LTE in the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel

Brenda Sabo describes her nostalgia for happier holiday times when we could be together with family and friends — and then segues to another type of nostalgia: for a time before climate change started to impact our world. She says we need a “vaccine for the climate” at warp speed and offers the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act as one such powerful solution.

Celebrating major accomplishments in 2020, a trying year

Most will agree that 2020 was a year they are happy to put in the rear view mirror. It was a year of many lowlights and extreme stress: the Covid-19 pandemic, massive economic disruption, election year chaos, ongoing systemic racism, and complex times related to isolation, missing/caring for loved ones near and far. Despite the trauma, CCL volunteers persisted in moving forward with climate action. It's worth taking time to celebrate our many accomplishments last year.

CO CCL's 2021 strategy: Endorsements are key

In December, a CO Member of Congress suggested that the beginning of the new administration offers the best chance we've had in more than a decade for bipartisan climate legislation. Endorsements from Colorado community leaders are key to making that happen and can build support for action beyond our state borders.

Drowning in (mis)information: Fact check on the climate change and drought connection

Despite claims from some climate deniers, Colorado is in the driest period since the 1500s. And scientists predict the problem will continue to worsen. Learning a few facts about the connection between climate change and water will make you a better climate activist.

Meet Susan Atkinson: CO CCL LTE writer extraordinaire

Durango volunteer Susan Atkinson has been published all over the U.S., but she started out with no professional writing experience. She transformed her passion for spreading the word about climate impacts and solutions into writing effective letters. Here's her story!

Virtual lobbying: A perspective from a first-time lobbyist

One of CCL’s five levers of political will is lobbying our members of Congress (MOCs) to enact bipartisan climate legislation such as H.R. 763. What is lobbying for the first time like? What CCL trainings helped in taking on this crucial task? Robert Joyce from the Parker/Castle Rock chapter shares his experience.

Solar dreams come true

A report from one of our volunteers about his foray into solar: Judd Nutting of the Longmont chapter recently completed a solar panel installation on his home. Getting away from burning coal to generate electricity — the worst carbon emitting fossil fuel — was a prime motivator. He shares how the process went, and how his “house powered by the sun” is working.

CO CCL's LTE of the month: Sue Ballenski’s LTE in the Loveland Reporter-Herald

Sue's letter connects a brief personal story about this summer’s wildfires with what scientists know about the links between climate change and wildfire. In CCL fashion, she wraps up her LTE with our preferred solution.

Colorado’s Senate Strategy, a Report from the United We Move Conference

Elections do have consequences. At the United We Move Conference, Colorado CCLers considered our new Senator, John Hickenlooper, and how having two climate-action Senators shifts our strategy. Take a look at our session summary and list of potential approaches.

Breakthrough Wall Street Journal Letter Supported by Team Effort

Congratulations to Adam Reed of Longmont CCL for getting a letter published in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ)! That was only the first part. Adam, Kelsey Grant and other CCLers stepped up to address negative comments and correct misconceptions.

Connect and Get Involved Through CCL Action Teams

Remember those pre-COVID days when we met in person for our monthly chapter meetings? Back then, there were many opportunities to connect personally with others, get involved in CCL’s work, and stay motivated. But wait! There are still ways for volunteers to connect in smaller group gatherings — check out our CCL Action Teams, at the local, state or national levels.

The Sweet Sound of Success: CCL volunteer and music professor Susan Hess wins an endorsement!

There’s nothing like a good newspaper article to inspire action for CCL volunteers. An August 2020 feature article in the Washington Post (WP) about the impact of climate change on western Colorado inspired CCL volunteer and music professor Susan Hess to solicit an endorsement from a student activist group. Learn her simple recipe for success.

Carbon Pricing vs. Performance Standards

There are really only two policy approaches that are being considered to address climate change by the U.S. Congress. At CCL, we are advocating for Carbon Fee and Dividend (CF&D), but the other policy that’s getting serious attention can be broadly characterized as Performance Standards. What are Performance Standards and how does this approach compare to CF&D? This article provides the answers.