By High Garst, State Policy Advocate, Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed
Budget season in Harrisburg, PA is often marked by the busy hustle and bustle of the Capitol Building filled with advocates, lawmakers, citizens, and staff. Significant budget surplus in this year’s budget has left room to ensure funding of a number of projects in the state, but on June 8, people in Harrisburg turned their attention to the necessity of clean water funding in this year’s budget.
What Rainbow-washing Means:
Every June, in honor of Pride, companies and organizations are quick to turn their logos rainbow to express their “allyship” of the LGBTQ+ community (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Plus).
This passive gesture, however, isn’t showcasing how brands actually support and advance LGBTQ+ rights, or promote inclusivity in their marketing, programmatic efforts, overall structure and more. This empty proclamation has a name, rainbow-washing, which alludes to promoting “equality” online while demonstrating minimal commitments to reducing oppressive policies posed onto marginalized communities.
Hello CDRW community!
My name is High Garst, and I am so excited to be coming on as the new State Policy Advocate for the Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed! As a lover of the outdoors, I am thrilled to begin working together with you all to advocate for the watershed’s protection in an inclusive and proactive way.
PA joins the other Basin states (NY,NJ,DE) and eight others in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI/”Reggie”). “Reggie” is a multi-state cap and investment program designed to reduce carbon emissions generated by fossil-fuel fired power plants. Under this program, power plants pay "allowances" for the amount of emissions they create, and the revenue generated from those allowances gets reinvested in local communities impacted by power generation.
May is Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month- a time to uplift voices in the AANHPI communities. In celebration of the month, CDRW is highlighting AANHPI environmental leaders and environmental organizations. Join us in celebrating and acknowledging the impact the AANHPI communities have on the environmental movement this month and every month!
New Jersey Audubon, the Department of Environmental Protection’s Division of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Natural Resources Conservation Service continue their collaborative mission to save New Jersey’s official state reptile: the bog turtle. The bog turtle was once abundant in New Jersey but are now listed as endangered and are currently only located in the southern and northwestern areas of the state.
April 4th - April 8th, 2022 is National Wildlife Week - a time to celebrate the colorful and fascinating animals that inhibit environments across the country and to inspire continued protection by advocating for conservation legislation, such as the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act. To raise awareness for wildlife conservation within the Delaware River Basin states, CDRW is highlighting seven endangered or threatened species that are native to the watershed. These species, and many more, all play a role in creating a harmonized ecosystem that is vital to a healthy watershed.
By: Erica J. Rossetti (she/her), Urban Waters Coordinator, Partnership for the Delaware Estuary
Many of our cities and developed areas across the United States face similar issues affecting the health of humans, habitats, and communities: pollution, flooding and erosion, disconnection from waterways and nature, environmental injustices, housing and economic disparities, and the brunt of climate change impacts. To combat such sweeping issues, it is crucial to center the voices of those impacted, empower communities, and prioritize the revitalization of our urban environments.
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