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Green Workers Need a Voice in the Climate Change Debate
Sep 28, 2009
Working out on my oyster
boat this week, I've been slurping my catch and wondering what sort of
future lies ahead for those of us who work in industries already being
impacted by climate change.
Some like me will be the first to experience the negative effects: I
run a small organic oyster farm that faces extinction within the next
40 years because my oysters will not survive rising carbon emissions. Friends of mine are firefighters already facing hotter and more frequent wildfires.
Others work in industries that will gain jobs as a result of efforts
to protect the climate: as electrical workers installing solar panels,
steelworkers assembling wind turbines and as government workers being
redeployed as environmental accountants.
Still others work in industries that will be transformed by climate
protection policies, such as coal mining and forestry, who need and
want to be part of the green workforce of the future.
As workers we stand on the front lines of the transition to a new
green economy. Those of us earning our living in industries impacted by
climate change and who believe in the need for both good jobs and
sustainable environmental policy, have a stake in the national and
global climate change debate and in building a greener, more just
economy.
Unlike everyone else, we have both our livelihoods and our planet on
the line, giving us a special interest and role in finding real
solutions to climate change that also address the economic dimension
effectively.
So far, as the politicians fiddle while the world burns, we've
remained on the sidelines. We have a stake in the outcome of this
fight. It's time to come together and play a role in shaping our future.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Brendan Smith
Brendan Smith is an oysterman and green labor activist. He is co-founder of the Labor Network for Sustainability and Global Labor Strategies, and a consulting partner with the Progressive Technology Project. He has worked previously for Congressman Bernie Sanders (I-VT) -- both as campaign director and staff on the U.S. House Banking Committee -- as well as a broad range of trade unions, grassroots groups and progressive politicians. He is a graduate of Cornell Law School.
Working out on my oyster
boat this week, I've been slurping my catch and wondering what sort of
future lies ahead for those of us who work in industries already being
impacted by climate change.
Some like me will be the first to experience the negative effects: I
run a small organic oyster farm that faces extinction within the next
40 years because my oysters will not survive rising carbon emissions. Friends of mine are firefighters already facing hotter and more frequent wildfires.
Others work in industries that will gain jobs as a result of efforts
to protect the climate: as electrical workers installing solar panels,
steelworkers assembling wind turbines and as government workers being
redeployed as environmental accountants.
Still others work in industries that will be transformed by climate
protection policies, such as coal mining and forestry, who need and
want to be part of the green workforce of the future.
As workers we stand on the front lines of the transition to a new
green economy. Those of us earning our living in industries impacted by
climate change and who believe in the need for both good jobs and
sustainable environmental policy, have a stake in the national and
global climate change debate and in building a greener, more just
economy.
Unlike everyone else, we have both our livelihoods and our planet on
the line, giving us a special interest and role in finding real
solutions to climate change that also address the economic dimension
effectively.
So far, as the politicians fiddle while the world burns, we've
remained on the sidelines. We have a stake in the outcome of this
fight. It's time to come together and play a role in shaping our future.
Brendan Smith
Brendan Smith is an oysterman and green labor activist. He is co-founder of the Labor Network for Sustainability and Global Labor Strategies, and a consulting partner with the Progressive Technology Project. He has worked previously for Congressman Bernie Sanders (I-VT) -- both as campaign director and staff on the U.S. House Banking Committee -- as well as a broad range of trade unions, grassroots groups and progressive politicians. He is a graduate of Cornell Law School.
Working out on my oyster
boat this week, I've been slurping my catch and wondering what sort of
future lies ahead for those of us who work in industries already being
impacted by climate change.
Some like me will be the first to experience the negative effects: I
run a small organic oyster farm that faces extinction within the next
40 years because my oysters will not survive rising carbon emissions. Friends of mine are firefighters already facing hotter and more frequent wildfires.
Others work in industries that will gain jobs as a result of efforts
to protect the climate: as electrical workers installing solar panels,
steelworkers assembling wind turbines and as government workers being
redeployed as environmental accountants.
Still others work in industries that will be transformed by climate
protection policies, such as coal mining and forestry, who need and
want to be part of the green workforce of the future.
As workers we stand on the front lines of the transition to a new
green economy. Those of us earning our living in industries impacted by
climate change and who believe in the need for both good jobs and
sustainable environmental policy, have a stake in the national and
global climate change debate and in building a greener, more just
economy.
Unlike everyone else, we have both our livelihoods and our planet on
the line, giving us a special interest and role in finding real
solutions to climate change that also address the economic dimension
effectively.
So far, as the politicians fiddle while the world burns, we've
remained on the sidelines. We have a stake in the outcome of this
fight. It's time to come together and play a role in shaping our future.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
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