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Let’s Get Active!
The pressure is on for population, environment and women’s rights advocates! The current Administration’s anti-envionmental and anti-family planning agenda challenges our long-term goal of slowing global population growth, but also provides us with an opportunity to strengthen our grassroots efforts. Now more than ever, we need you to spread the word in your communities and talk to your friends, families and other Sierra Club members about the connections among population, family planning and the environment - and about the other war the Bush Administration is waging- a war on women.
Remember to contact the Global Population and Environment Program with details about your events, presentations and other gatherings. Send us photographs and your creative ideas. We encourage new activists to reach out and let us know about the great work you are doing. Contact Sarah Fairchild at 202.675.2396 or sarah.fairchild@sierraclub.org. Let her know about what is happening where you are or to plan a population event.
 Welcome Alex Marinov!
Alex came on board the Sierra Club in October 2002 as the International Program Assistant and works half time for the Global Population and Environment Program. Previously, Alex completed a population and environment internship at the National Wildlife Federation, which helped her to cultivate an interest in population, environment and women’s issues. She did her undergraduate research on citizen participation in the binational management of hazardous waste along the U.S.-Mexico border, for which she was awarded a fellowship to attend the 2001 Encuentro Environmental Border Organizations' Conference in Tijuana, Mexico. Alex brings her passion for environmental work, diverse experiences and extensive knowledge of population issues to our program!
 Global Population and Environment Program Activist Award:
The Global Population and Environment Program Committee honored New Jersey Activist Bonnie Tillery with a Population Activist Award for her tireless work on behalf of population issues. Bonnie, the Population Issues Coordinator of the New Jersey Chapter has:
- Helped organize events to educate and activate members;
- Written letters to the editor that have been published both in local newspapers and in her local Club newsletter;
- Lobbied policymakers locally and nationally on EPICC, international family planning and other issues;
- Led the effort to engage local and state Sierra Club leaders to raise the profile of the population issue.
The Global Population and Environment Program wishes to express its thanks and gratitude for Bonnie's activism, her commitment and her energy! Congratulations!
Activist Notes From the Field Fall 2002/Winter 2003:
University of Buffalo, New York October 2nd-3rd
Program Director, Annette Souder, traveled to Buffalo, NY this past fall to speak on a panel at the University of Buffalo. About thirty people attended the forum, including some local Sierra Club members. Annette later met with Club members over dinner and had the opportunity to delve into a more detailed discussion about the Population Program and how Club members can become more involved. Finally, she met with a group of local religious leaders that supported environmental and family planning programs – a thoughtful coalition of powerful messengers that we should seek to work with more regularly. Many thanks to Jim Hufnagel, National Global Population and Environment Program Committee member, and Frank Mendel for all of their hard work in organizing these outreach opportunities!
College of New Jersey, October 14th
From left to right: Annette Souder, Global Population and Environment Program, New Jersey activist, Liz Noyes, Planned Parenthood New Jersey, Rashidah Khalifa and Sandeep Bathala, Planned Parenthood, Southern New Jersey.
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Rashida Khalifa, College of New Jersey student and Sarah Fairchild, Global Population and Environment Program |
On October 5th, Conservation Organizer Sarah Fairchild began her fall outreach in New Jersey by presenting at the New Jersey Chapter’s Conservation Meeting. Following her outreach to Executive Committee members, she organized an event on the College of New Jersey’s campus. (Alma Mater to Representative Chris Smith, a staunch opponent of family planning programs) With the help of New Jersey Population Coordinator Bonnie Tillery and students from the College of New Jersey, Sarah put together a Panel Discussion- "Women’s Health and the Environment-Global Challenges, Global Changes" with Sierra Club, NOW New Jersey and Planned Parenthood Global Partners of Southern New Jersey. This college forum drew a diverse crowd of over 25 participants that included students, professors and Sierra Club and Planned Parenthood members.
Princeton University was the next stop on the New Jersey tour. Sarah presented to a Princeton student environmental group and partnered with Planned Parenthood of Trenton to address population, family planning and environment issues.
Westminster College, St Louis Missouri October 22nd-23rd
The Global Population and Environment Program’s summer intern Jennifer Swan continued her commitment to the Club through her efforts to bring Annette Souder to Westminter's campus as one of the year's featured speakers. Considered a rather conservative campus, Annette’s evening discussion brought about 100 people out to learn more about the population-environment connections and dispel myths about family planning. Annette also spoke to two classes and to a women's health group while on campus. Though sparking a bit of controversy, Annette’s visit clearly brought students a clearer vision of why population is an environmental issue and what we can do to support the solutions!
 World Population Awareness Week 2002- October 20-26, 2002
World Population Awareness Week (WPAW) 2002 focused on the issue of "Population and the Next Generation: Youth and Adolescents". WPAW 2002 attracted a record participation from 257 organizations worldwide, spanning 71 countries. Within the US, 31 governors and 276 mayors also officially proclaimed October 20-26, 2002, as World Population Awareness Week. For more information go to the Population Institute's website. View the WPAW 2002 bulletin. Look for Sierra Club activists!
Sierra Club Celebrates World Population Awareness Week:
The Population-Environment Committee of the Ohio Sierra Club held their annual World Population Awareness meeting on October 23rd. The gathering was a huge success thanks to the crowd Werner Fornos of the Population Institute was able to draw. The meeting and presentation was sponsored by the Population-Environment Committee of the Ohio Sierra Club and co-sponsored by the Audubon Society of Greater Cleveland and the Cleveland Council on World Affairs. The theme of the evening was "Overpopulation- A threat to the Environment and Our Security." For more information about World Population Awareness Week in Ohio, please contact Alan Kuper, chair of the Population-Environment Committee at alankuper@earthlink.net.
In conjunction with WPAW 2002, the Oregon Chapter of the Sierra Club invited Dr. Sharon Stash, Program Officer in the HIV/AIDS and TB program at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to give a presentation on "Youth, Education, Health and HIV/AIDS: Recent stories of Southeast Asia." The Planned Parenthood of Columbia/Willamette presented with Dr. Stash and spoke about their "Rights, Respect and Responsibility" program, aiming to reduce teen pregnancy and violence. For more information about Oregon World Population Awareness Week events, please contact Greg Jacob at jacobg@pdx.edu.
A World Population Awareness Week Symposium was held by Sierra Club's Wisconsin Population Committee. Topics included population and global warming, environmental impacts of population growth and public policy and politics of population. For more information about population events in Wisconsin, please contact Population Chair Lacinda Athen at lathen@farin.com.
Population and Environment Conference -Science Museum of Minnesota, October 25th-26th, 2002
During World Population Awareness Week, Sarah Fairchild traveled to Minnesota to present to Sierra Club's Minnesota Chapter about the Global Population and Environment Program and work with Laura Kelnhofer, National Global Population and Environment Program Committee member. Laura helped organize the Chapter presentation and she and Sarah both participated in the Population and Environment Conference at the Science Museum of Minnesota. For more information about the Minnesota Chapter’s Population efforts, go to:http://www.northstar.sierraclub.org/POPULATION.htm or contact Laura Kelnhofer at laurakelnhofer@juno.com.
The Izaak Walton League's Sustainability Education Program co-sponsored the two-day Population and Environment Conference with the Science Museum and other local and national groups including National Wildlife Federation and Population Connection. Sierra Club’s Global Population and Environment Program co-facilitated a workshop on grassroot media efforts.
Airlie Campaign Planning Retreat, December 8th-11th
From left to right: Karen Gaia Pitts, Joan Holtz, Ned Grossnickle and Chris Kennedy |
The Global Population and Environment Program Committee (GPEPC) gathered at the Airlie Conference Center in Virginia in the beginning of December. With the help of Sierra Club staff, the committee solidified the Global Population and Environment Program Campaign Plan for 2002-2004. The weekend retreat took place soon after the 2002 November elections and was a time for all Sierra Club program committees to meet and plan defensive strategies for the next two years.
From left to right: Sarah Fairchild- Conservation Organizer, Wendy Balazik- Media Team, Kirk Koepsel, Laura Kelnhofer, Chris Kennedy and Karen Gaia Pitts. Front: Joan Holtz, George Klein- corresponding member and Jim Hufnagel |
New GPEPC Chair Ned Grossnickle with former Chair George Klein. |
The GPEPC welcomes three new outstanding volunteer members to the committee- Jim Hufnagel, Niagara Group Population Chair and Ex Comm member, Greg Jacobs, Population Issues Coordinator of the Oregon Chapter, and Laura Kelnhofer, member of the North Star Chapter International Issues Committee. George Klein stepped down as chair, and passed the leadership role to Ned Grossnickle, former Population Chair of the Wisconsin Chapter. Ron Weisen, George Klein and Todd Daniel will all remain on the committee as corresponding members!
Activism Coast to Coast:
California
The Sustainable Population and Consumption Committee of the Sierra Club Angeles Chapter has been hard at work. Their "Population, the Global Picture" slide show, adapted from the Global Population and Environment Program's PowerPoint Presentation, has appeared at four regional group meetings, inspiring new activists to join the committee. There are plans for upcoming outreach events to other Sierra Club California Groups as well as civic and church groups. According to Michael Beck, Co-Chair of the Sustainable Population and Consumption Committee, "the Synergy of combining sustainable population AND sustainable consumption is paying off! Everyone who attends our presentations, whether for population or consumption, winds up being highly motivated on both." For details about the Angeles Chapter Sustainable Population and Consumption Committee, their Simply Sustainable newsletter and Simplicity Circles, contact Michael Beck at michaelbecksc@yahoo.com.
Florida
Kathleen "Sulli" Sullivan took action during World Population Awareness Week and sent Letters to the Editor to local Florida papers. She got her name in the paper and was published in both the Naples Daily News and the Marco Island Eagle. Way to go Sulli! In January, Sulli was invited to be on a call-in radio show to discuss the defunding of UNFPA and the 34 Million Friends Campaign. (Link to www.unfpa.org/support/34million.htm) The host of the radio show saw an LTE Sulli wrote and found her email address through the Sierra Club website. As Sulli says, " yet another good reason to keep writing those letters!"
Georgia
The Georgia Population and Sustainability Coalition, comprised of members from Sierra Club, National Wildlife Federation and Population Connection, is hosting a variety of events this winter and spring. On January 27th, folks from the coalition gathered to launch their 2003 program series, beginning with a presentation on Population Education. Pauline B. Washington from Atlanta Systemic Initiative, gave insight about population education in our schools. She listed many courses where there is an opportunity to educate young people about population, yet the opportunities are seldom seized.
On March 17th, Laurie Mignone, former Conservation Organizer for Sierra Club’s Global Population and Environment Program will give a talk on fertility trends and health issues in Africa. Looking ahead into May, the 5th annual Georgia Population and Environment Training will be held on May 10th. Read more about it! For more information about population events happening in Georgia, please contact Todd Daniel at todddan@earthlink.net.
New Jersey
Bonnie Tillery, Population Issues Coordinator for the New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club, hit the road this past fall and gave presentations to both the New Jersey Central and the Shore groups in October. She partnered with Conservation Organizer Sarah Fairchild and helped to organize the Global Population and Environment Program presentation at the Chapter’s Conservation Meeting on October 5th. As a member of the New Jersey Choice Coalition, Bonnie represented the Sierra Club at the Choice New Jersey Legislative Day on December 9th. There was a standing room only crowd at the event. Forum discussions included contraceptive coverage and equity in New Jersey. New Jersey is one of thirteen states with Contraceptive Equity Bills pending. Find out more about the work Sierra Club does on this issue. Contact Bonnie Tillery for more New Jersey population news.
Oregon
The Population Committee of the Oregon Chapter continues to strengthen its outreach efforts by showing population-environment PowerPoint presentations at local highschools. This fall, the committee mailed 108 letters and World Population Awareness Week proclamations to Mayors in Oregon. In November, activist Ramona Rex was invited by Alternatives to Growth Oregon to participate in a program entitled "Popping the Population Question: The Issue No One Will Tackle." This was part of a "Sustainability Now!" series of lectures offered by Ecotrust, an environmental organization in Portland. There were over 35 people who attended the Population and Environment Program PowerPoint presentation Ramona presented. She received very positive feedback from the group. Keep up the excellent work Ramona, Greg Jacob, National Global Population and Environment Program Committee member and other Oregon population activists! Contact Greg Jacob jacobg@pdx.edu
or Ramona Rex rexhoops@msn.com, for more Oregon population news.
Rhode Island
Barry Schiller and his wife Libby reported their successes in Rhode Island this fall. Libby, who produces public access cable TV shows, did two programs with Planned Parenthood of Rhode Island (PPRI) on sex education for teens. She is also a volunteer escort at the PPRI clinic. All of Libby’s efforts resulted in her being designated PPRI Volunteer of the Year at their annual meeting. She linked Planned Parenthood to population-environment connections in her acceptance remarks. Barry had a letter to the editor on population printed in the Natural Resource Defense Council Magazine, On Earth. Kudos to the Schillers for all of their great work! To get the scoop on population issues in Rhode Island, contact Barry Schiller at bschiller@ric.edu
Texas
Gayle Loeffler is doing incredible work getting things organized in Texas. This fall, she re-established meetings of the Dallas Group Population Committee and has recruited a handful of activists to get involved with the National Global Population and Environment Program. Her fall campus outreach began when she gave a population presentation to an ethics class at Texas Women’s University. In December, she presented to a bio-ethics class as well. Gayle is working with the director of the Environmental Center at the University of North Texas to arrange speaking opportunities in the upcoming months. For details about the Dallas Group Population Committee, please contact Gayle Loeffler at gloeffler@VENUS.TWU.EDU.
An Activist’s Adventure:
Karen Gaia Pitts, a member of the Global Population and Environment Program's National Committee, journeyed to Africa for three weeks in January to observe the culture, environment, wildlife and scenic landscape of Ethiopia. She traveled as a tourist over much of the country, witnessing the beautiful rural areas and rich and varied cultures of the Ethiopian people.
Ethiopia, From an Activist’s Lens:
By Karen Gaia Pitts
Ethiopia is a mostly mountainous or plateau country, with deep gorges cutting through the tablelands. No matter where we traveled, to what seemed the most remote of areas, people appeared as if by magic whenever we stopped the car. In most regions, there was a constant stream of people walking alongside the roads. When we stopped in different towns or villages, we were surrounded by young people who wanted to befriend us. In many villages, young children 3-4 years old came along and grabbed our hands or a couple of fingers, offering to become 'instant' grandchildren, calling us 'mama' or 'papa'. Nearly every town or village had one or more AIDS, Family Planning, Reproductive Health or women's health promotion sign. For more information about Karen's trip, please contact her at karen@GAIA-S.NET.
Family Planning Efforts in Ethiopia:
Planned Parenthood of Golden Gate & Ethiopian Evangelical Church MeKane Yesus (Ethiopia)
Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus (EECMY), the largest Protestant church in Ethiopia, has for decades struggled to provide maternity care, family planning, HIV prevention and other health care services. Their partnership with Planned Parenthood Golden Gate (PPGG) infuses their efforts with new resources, expertise and energy. These partners are working on a project to reduce maternal mortality and promote family planning among the rural villages in the Hossana area, and simultaneously, make progress on a variety of other health needs. The project has two major activities: a new birthing and maternal waiting village, and a promoter program that employs trained volunteers who provide health education and deliver health services like family planning to their rural neighbors. Read more about Planned Parenthood’s international efforts in Ethiopia and in other countries.
A Call to Action! Recruitments and Reminders:
Hey population activists, if you don’t see your state listed above and you have stories from the field to share, please remember to send them to the newsletter editor, Sarah Fairchild at sarah.fairchild@sierraclub.org.
If you want to get more involved and help inspire future activists, please consider the Global Population and Environment Mentor Program. For those of you who are interested in becoming a population mentor or want to know what being a mentor is all about, please contact Todd Daniel at todddan@earthlink.net or look on our website.
Dates to Remember:
2003 National Population Activist Training:
Why is March such a special month? Besides being Women’s History month and celebrating International Women’s Day on March 8th, our annual Population Activist Training is taking place in Washington DC from March 28th- April 1st, 2003. We don’t have space available for more activists this year, but please contact Sarah Fairchild if you are interested in training details at 202.675.2396 or sarah.fairchild@sierraclub.org. Check out pictures from last year’s event.
March 8th- International Women’s Day
April 22nd- Earth Day
Start planning your outreach events now! Please contact Cristina Mestre at alex.marinov@sierraclub.org
if you need fact sheets, brochures or other materials. Ask about our new activist resource- The Global Population and Environment Program Video!
Back to Winter 2003 Population Report
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