Previous blog commenters mentioned that having the U.S. government involved in the green movement gives it a push and stamp of approval that no other organization in this great country can give it. This September as it did forty years ago with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the Senate will review revolutionary environmental legislation, that could change the way we live and do business. The current Act will be negotiated, poked, prodded, and harangued; going green has indeed gone governmental!Two significant questions are: Will individual voices from communities all over the U.S. make Senators aware of how they feel about this bill? Will people tell their hometown politicians what they need from this legislation?
The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 sponsored by Henry Waxman (D-CA) and co-sponsored by Ed Markey (D-MA) was passed by the narrow margin of 219-212 in the House of Representatives on July 24, 2009. This might signal a governmental tipping point for reforming how we do “green” business in America.
This bill is a serious issue. Some of its different subsections will affect various industries that we come into contact with daily. The banking, automotive, and energy sectors are all headliners in this piece of sustainability legislation. Every politician will need to hear from their constituents to stay clear on what is important to the people. For this, there are several organizations around the country dedicated to the green movement and to ensuring that individual voices are supported and heard throughout these processes.
Greenpeace is one of those organizations. Under the “Take Action” section of their website (www.greenpeace.org), people can submit a story of how they are involved in the environmental movement. Greenpeace will forward the story along with a photo of the story’s author and a quick blurb from the organization to one of the writer’s Congressional Representatives.
We can all work to make monumental strides towards a sustainable planet. Let the people in tandem with the U.S. Senate guide America on this important part of our journey towards going green!
Lorraine Lyman, MS, is the founder of Savvy Success Unlimited, (http://www.savvysuccessunlimited.com), and the author of several papers on global sustainability, consciousness, and community. A business and life coaching company, Savvy Success Unlimited, specializes in the organizational embodiment of the green movement’s values and practices as well as utilizing our inner strength to transform the world around us.
It really is a challenge for legislators and society to see how important being green can be. It is ashame that political pressure cause the advisor over green jobs to have to resign. The most important thing should be how can we sustain our planet while doing the things we need to do as a society.
ReplyDeleteYes, seeing about the planet and our society are HUGE pieces of the sustainability puzzle fro all of us and for our government. Van Jones wanted the focus to stay on those pieces, so he decided to step aside. With regard to his knowledge of the green occupational landscape, he will be missed. Thanks for the comment, Tokiwa!
ReplyDeleteVery informatiive, professional , and precise......like always
ReplyDeleteThank you, André.
ReplyDeleteSeems that the government is providing "followership" rather than "leadership" on the green front, so we shouldn't wait to take action in our own businesses and communities
ReplyDeleteGreat point, Patrick. It seems that in certain cases different businesses and local communities are the fuel for the U.S. government's current round of green actions. With this in mind, how might the passage of more sustainable legislation persuade more people to consider green living, which could benefit some of the leading edge businesses and communities that you are referring to?
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