For an idea of what we accomplished together in 2014, consider the numbers:
47: That’s how many letters, petitions and other advocacy actions we produced together this year to push for smart policies at the federal and state levels. This includes E2’s biggest action alert ever, our EPA Clean Power Plan petition and comments that more than 350 of you signed on to in November.
62: That’s how many business roundtables, EcoSalons and other events we hosted. They ranged from our recent military/clean energy webinar featuring top brass from the Pentagon and the White House, to first-of-their-kind business roundtables held with mayors and other local officials in Michigan, Virginia, Florida, Iowa and elsewhere.
450: That’s approximately how many news articles and radio and television stories E2 appeared in nationwide, including outlets such as Bloomberg/Businessweek, The Washington Post and USA Today.
41: That’s how many new members we added in 2014. Our newest E2 chapter, the Midwest, added a dozen members, the most of any chapter.
Of course the numbers tell only part of the story.
With your support and help, we successfully staved off the latest attempts to roll back California’s landmark low-carbon fuel standard, and we prevented the Keystone XL Pipeline from threatening our nation’s heartland and expanding the disastrous growth of tar sands development in Canada. We defended renewable energy and energy efficiency standards that are creating jobs and driving economic growth in solar, wind and energy efficiency. We continue to illustrate how clean energy works for the U.S., using our quarterly jobs reports, our www.cleanenergyworksforus.org site and groundbreaking research produced with our partners at NRDC.
Thanks to your membership and your generous contributions, we hired our first-ever E2 Midwest Advocate, Gail Parson, who is building a critical base of business voices in our nation’s heartland. We created new advocacy tools such as our new www.cleanenergyworksforus.org/military web page showing how the military is leading our country in solar, wind and energy efficiency. We took our stories – your stories – directly to members of Congress; to governors and other state leaders in Iowa, Illinois and Virginia, and to communities all across America.
We also embarked on the biggest campaign in E2 history: Pushing for smart implementation of the federal Clean Power Plan, which sets standards to reduce carbon pollution from existing power plants by 30 percent by 2030. Not only is the Clean Power Plan the most significant climate policy in recent history, it also can be a huge economic catalyst, driving growth in renewable energy and energy efficiency to replace dirty energy from today’s power plants. Through our “More Jobs, Less Carbon” campaign, E2 is leading the charge to get this smart policy implemented in the states.
As great as our accomplishments were in 2014, our work is cut out for us in 2015.
Shifting political headwinds will make our work tougher. Opponents to smart environmental policies continue to open their wallets and ramp up their support. We need new members in states and regions where E2 is little known, and we need to provide more opportunities and support for current members in traditional E2 states.
We couldn’t have done all we did in 2014 without your help.
And we can’t do all we need to do in 2015 without your continued support.
Please take time before the end of December to renew your E2 membership by going here, if you haven’t done so already. With E2’s 15th anniversary upon us in 2015, it’s a great time to consider increasing your (tax-deductible) contribution and your support of our work.
Please help us expand our ranks and our influence by reaching out to your business allies and friends and encourage them to join our growing community.
Please get involved, through E2 advocacy trips in your state and in Washington, D.C.; by participating in our events; by adding your name to our action alerts.
Seven months after taking the helm as E2’s Executive Director, I’m thrilled at what we’ve been able to accomplish in 2014. I’m excited about what we will do in 2015.
And I’m forever grateful for your support, your help and your continued confidence in E2.