With an unpredictable and challenging year at a close, the Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed has continued to adapt in order to advance critical protections for the watershed. During a traditional Statehouse Education Day, organizations across New Jersey would typically make their way to Trenton to meet face-to-face with state senators and assembly members. However, due to Covid-19, Coalition member organizations connected with legislators for a highly successful and first-ever virtual New Jersey Statehouse Education Week.
Federal 2021 Budget Includes $10 Million for Delaware River Conservation
The Delaware River Basin Restoration Program (DRBRP) received $10 million in funding as part of the fiscal year 2021 Interior Appropriations bill approved by Congress and signed by the President, a modest increase from $9.7 million last year. The DRBRP will provide technical assistance and grant funds in 2021 to address the Delaware River Basin’s environmental challenges in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. Early next year, government entities, non-profit organizations, and schools within the basin can apply for funds to implement on-the-ground restoration and conservation projects.
Reflecting on Successful Advocacy: NJ’s Comprehensive Plastics Law
It’s official. New Jersey is now home to the strongest, most comprehensive single-use plastics bill in the nation. When May 2022 rolls around, stores and food service businesses are prohibited from providing single-use plastic bags to customers. Paper bags will be prohibited in stores over 2,500 square feet. Disposable food containers and cups made out of polystyrene foam will also be banned. Additionally, the law also restricts food-service businesses from providing plastic straws, unless requested by a customer, beginning in November 2021.
Building a Trans-Inclusive Workplace
November 13th-19th is Transgender Awareness Week, followed by Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 20th. Transgender Awareness Week is used to raise the visibility of transgender people and address issues members of the community face. Navigating the workplace can be difficult for transgender folks, especially when their colleagues are uneducated on transgender topics.
The 2020 Women in Conservation Leadership Summit
Despite COVID-19 preventing an in-person Women in Conservation Leadership Summit this year, the National Wildlife Federation’s team worked to find innovative ways to learn, connect, and make the event a rich and powerful experience. The shift to a virtual platform also created an opportunity to reopen registration and welcome even more participants. Instead of gathering in Colorado, participants came together for a productive and informative three days online this past October.
Equitable Hiring Practices in the Era of Virtual Interviews
Imagine a #DayWithoutTheDelaware
Organizations within the Delaware River Basin come together every year on October 18 for a social media day of action around the Clean Water Act anniversary in order to raise awareness about the essential resources the river provides. The Clean Water Act is the nation’s foremost law for protecting the irreplaceable life-giving resource of clean, accessible water. The Act’s pollution control programs and surface water protections helped to ensure that we don’t have to go a day without the water, the wildlife, or the habitat of the Delaware River Basin.
CDRW's New Policy Priority Nominating Process for 2021
It’s hard to believe we’re closing in on likely the most unprecedented year of our lifetimes. Although the pandemic posed several obstacles to our work, the Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed was still able to succeed on several fronts. From implementing watershed signage in two basin states to celebrating the enactment of the Great American Outdoors Act, together we remained adaptive and motivated.