Advocating for Our Interdependent Web of Life!

May was one very active month for climate justice. The May 9th Advocacy Day was informative and exciting. Interfaith Impact provided information packets and had lined up visits with leadership in the senate and assembly. We spoke with staff of Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, the head of the Senate Energy Committee, the Senate Chair of Crime and Corrections, and many others. When we asked what we can do to help move clean power legislation forward, we were told, “Do more of what you are doing now,” i.e., Advocacy. So keepabreast of advocacy efforts and join in!

The May 14th Break Free Albany Climate Action Day was another exciting day. This event was organized by http://350.org/, Bill McKibben’s organization, working with local environmental activists as part of international week of breaking free from fossil fuels. If you’ve never participated in a major activist event, we’re sorry you missed this opportunity. It’s a really remarkable feeling to be participating with such a large crowd of people in something for which you share a passion. Listening to speakers, meeting up with old friends, making new ones (totally amazing people from all over the Northeast),
marching, chanting and singing together, agreeing on rules of civil disobedience and sharing the spirit. Did we do civil disobedience? Yes and no. The goal was to blockade the tracks where the oil trains (bomb trains) run, which we did. However, the authorities had already put a chain link fence blockage across the track, not keeping us out, but blocking the trains from running for the weekend. Either they agreed with us or they wanted to avoid a confrontation. …. What do you think?

Saturday, June 18th is the date of our spring/summer outing. Anyone in our congregation interested in coming is welcome. CRUUNY members are all invited, and please feel welcome to bring family. Our outing this year will be at Peebles Island, a very scenic State Park at the confluence of the Mohawk and Hudson rivers. Arrival time is between 11:30 and 12:00. Early arrivals claim picnic tables and start set-up. This is a potluck picnic,
so please bring something to share as well as your own picnic ware. After the picnic we’ll hike the scenic trails which should take about an hour and a half, so you can figure on finishing by about 2:30.

ENJOY A GREEN SUMMER, HOPEFULLY NOT
RECORD-BREAKING HEAT!!