Trip to DC to Save the Planet
Donation protected
My name is Frankie, and I'm a Nashville, TN native and current resident. I work full time in the mental health field. I am married and have a twelve year old stepson. For as long as I can remember, I have been passionate about environmental problems that we face -- climate change in particular. As I've gone about my life, making plans, enjoying milestones, and observing the world around me, I have periodically felt sucker-punched by the looming reality that - lest we act and act soon - the world as we know it will quite literally be transformed in a nightmarish way. As I think about the certainty of natural disasters, coastal flooding, whole cities disappearing, food shortages, droughts, fires (the list goes on) increasing and crippling our economy and civilization, I have felt - for so long - helpless, angry, and ashamed of my complicit participation in the world of fossil fuel addiction and self-destruction. Watching hurricanes ravage Texas and Louisiana in 2017 felt like portents of the future as storms intensify in a warming world.
Three years ago, everything changed for me when I became involved with an organization called Citizens Climate Lobby (CCL) - a volunteer advocacy group with a goal to create the political will for a livable world. They do this by empowering citizen volunteers like me to lobby congress in support of a revenue neutral carbon fee. A carbon fee that returns all of the money to households has been supported by economists (conservative and liberal) for decades as the fastest, most efficient method for combating climate change – much faster and more efficient than regulatory solutions like the Clean Power Plan. What's better - it would help, not hurt, the economy. This is the message that I bring to my Tennessee representatives in the Senate and the House. I never would have dreamed that I'd be scheduling multiple meetings with Lamar Alexander's office, but now I do it easily and confidently.
Climate change aside, my life has been transformed by the experience of speaking directly with the staff of my representatives in congress. It's empowering to culture an ongoing relationship with individual people working for me on a national level and see noticeable changes happening in government because of those relationships. I truly wish that everyone could experience this! It’s been exciting to see the nation discovering more of this truth since the surprising results of the 2016 presidential election. A lot of people have been propelled out of passivity and into action to try to make our democracy work by using our voices.
I do CCL work all year long, and though my time invested per week has decreased since starting a Ph.D. program in addition to working full time and supporting my family, I still attend monthly meetings regularly, help maintain our membership list, schedule and attend local meetings in Nashville with Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker’s offices, and participate in outreach activities and presentations on CCL advocacy in the community.
Once a year, CCL holds a conference in Washington, D.C. The conference starts this year on Sunday June 10th extending through Tuesday June 12th with lots of education to help inform and empower the citizen volunteers from around the country (like me) coming to D.C. The conference concludes with a "lobby day" (Tuesday) where everyone (always more than 1000 people and growing each year) descends on Capitol Hill and meets with their representatives. Two years ago, I had six meetings on lobby day where I spoke about why a policy like a revenue neutral carbon fee makes so much sense for our economy and the future of our world. It was an incredible day. There's also nothing that demonstrates to my D.C. representatives how committed and serious I am about this issue and this solution like traveling a significant distance just to see them. As a constituent in a red state, my voice is extra important. Even before the sweeping GOP victories in November 2016, CCL’s strategy has always been to get a piece of bipartisan legislation passed through congress that can’t be redacted by a change in executive power. Though democrats in congress have, at various times, introduced a similar bill - in order to gain any traction, the bill MUST be bipartisan with a republican co-sponsor. CCL works tirelessly towards the goal of getting a republican co-sponsor and enough republican support to pass this monumental legislation. CCL is “betting the farm on relationships” as its leader, Mark Reynolds, has said, and CCL’s methodology has taught me how to build relationships with members of congress that aren’t in “my” political party. It has brought me out of tribalism and into my own power as a human being, an American citizen, and a real actor for change and solutions to the massive problems that we face worldwide.
In the last couple years, CCL’s basic policy structure (with some key differences to what CCL proposes) has achieved public support from a group of Republican statesmen. A revenue-neutral carbon fee has even been talked about in the Trump White House and is supported by many large corporations, including oil companies, who benefit from a predictable carbon fee rather than the economic and political chaos that the consequences of unfettered climate change create for us all. CCL volunteers have been the impetus behind the creation of the Bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus in the House of Representatives – a caucus that accepts members in a Noah’s Ark style, with every democrat that joins bringing with them a republican so that it is truly, equally bipartisan. The caucus is up to 62 members, with the power now to block policies harmful to the climate and support those that will save our one home. Every year, CCL gathers data on the content of constituent meetings with members of Congress, and every year, republican offices show significant movement towards supporting a revenue-neutral carbon fee, above their positions in the previous year. I volunteer my time with CCL because I truly believe that this bipartisan solution is our best hope to save our one, beautiful world.
This would be my third trip to D.C. to lobby and my second time asking for help with funding the trip. The difficult part of attending this conference boils down to money. I do everything with CCL on my own time and dime, including traveling to D.C. I keep my expenses at a bare minimum. This year, I am planning to have my first experience at a well-rated but cheap hostel, for $30 per night. I may be able to share car rental/gas expenses with a group of people traveling from Nashville. If not, airfare will be no more than $400 round trip. I am using money given to me at Christmas to fund my meals on the trip. I'm not sure what the trip will wind up costing in total, but any help that I can receive towards it will be extremely valuable. It would be used for lodging and/or travel expenses, and knowing how much I am working with will help me make decisions about both. I would like to finalize my plans by sometime in April. If, by chance, I am over-funded, then I will invest that extra money into the trips of my fellow Tennessee CCL volunteers or into the CCL organization itself as a donation.
When I speak to my representatives, I don't just speak for myself. I am a living, breathing piece of evidence in the halls of congress that support for this planet-saving and job-growing legislation exists in the hills of Tennessee. I speak for everyone but especially for those that might support a revenue-neutral carbon fee but not to the extent that they are heavily involved with Citizens' Climate Lobby themselves. If that sounds like you, would you consider helping me on this journey? I am so grateful to you for reading about my quest and for your consideration in donating. I do not take the request for funds lightly, and anything that is given would be received with tremendous gratitude! Please feel free to contact me with questions.
Thanks for reading, everyone!
Three years ago, everything changed for me when I became involved with an organization called Citizens Climate Lobby (CCL) - a volunteer advocacy group with a goal to create the political will for a livable world. They do this by empowering citizen volunteers like me to lobby congress in support of a revenue neutral carbon fee. A carbon fee that returns all of the money to households has been supported by economists (conservative and liberal) for decades as the fastest, most efficient method for combating climate change – much faster and more efficient than regulatory solutions like the Clean Power Plan. What's better - it would help, not hurt, the economy. This is the message that I bring to my Tennessee representatives in the Senate and the House. I never would have dreamed that I'd be scheduling multiple meetings with Lamar Alexander's office, but now I do it easily and confidently.
Climate change aside, my life has been transformed by the experience of speaking directly with the staff of my representatives in congress. It's empowering to culture an ongoing relationship with individual people working for me on a national level and see noticeable changes happening in government because of those relationships. I truly wish that everyone could experience this! It’s been exciting to see the nation discovering more of this truth since the surprising results of the 2016 presidential election. A lot of people have been propelled out of passivity and into action to try to make our democracy work by using our voices.
I do CCL work all year long, and though my time invested per week has decreased since starting a Ph.D. program in addition to working full time and supporting my family, I still attend monthly meetings regularly, help maintain our membership list, schedule and attend local meetings in Nashville with Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker’s offices, and participate in outreach activities and presentations on CCL advocacy in the community.
Once a year, CCL holds a conference in Washington, D.C. The conference starts this year on Sunday June 10th extending through Tuesday June 12th with lots of education to help inform and empower the citizen volunteers from around the country (like me) coming to D.C. The conference concludes with a "lobby day" (Tuesday) where everyone (always more than 1000 people and growing each year) descends on Capitol Hill and meets with their representatives. Two years ago, I had six meetings on lobby day where I spoke about why a policy like a revenue neutral carbon fee makes so much sense for our economy and the future of our world. It was an incredible day. There's also nothing that demonstrates to my D.C. representatives how committed and serious I am about this issue and this solution like traveling a significant distance just to see them. As a constituent in a red state, my voice is extra important. Even before the sweeping GOP victories in November 2016, CCL’s strategy has always been to get a piece of bipartisan legislation passed through congress that can’t be redacted by a change in executive power. Though democrats in congress have, at various times, introduced a similar bill - in order to gain any traction, the bill MUST be bipartisan with a republican co-sponsor. CCL works tirelessly towards the goal of getting a republican co-sponsor and enough republican support to pass this monumental legislation. CCL is “betting the farm on relationships” as its leader, Mark Reynolds, has said, and CCL’s methodology has taught me how to build relationships with members of congress that aren’t in “my” political party. It has brought me out of tribalism and into my own power as a human being, an American citizen, and a real actor for change and solutions to the massive problems that we face worldwide.
In the last couple years, CCL’s basic policy structure (with some key differences to what CCL proposes) has achieved public support from a group of Republican statesmen. A revenue-neutral carbon fee has even been talked about in the Trump White House and is supported by many large corporations, including oil companies, who benefit from a predictable carbon fee rather than the economic and political chaos that the consequences of unfettered climate change create for us all. CCL volunteers have been the impetus behind the creation of the Bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus in the House of Representatives – a caucus that accepts members in a Noah’s Ark style, with every democrat that joins bringing with them a republican so that it is truly, equally bipartisan. The caucus is up to 62 members, with the power now to block policies harmful to the climate and support those that will save our one home. Every year, CCL gathers data on the content of constituent meetings with members of Congress, and every year, republican offices show significant movement towards supporting a revenue-neutral carbon fee, above their positions in the previous year. I volunteer my time with CCL because I truly believe that this bipartisan solution is our best hope to save our one, beautiful world.
This would be my third trip to D.C. to lobby and my second time asking for help with funding the trip. The difficult part of attending this conference boils down to money. I do everything with CCL on my own time and dime, including traveling to D.C. I keep my expenses at a bare minimum. This year, I am planning to have my first experience at a well-rated but cheap hostel, for $30 per night. I may be able to share car rental/gas expenses with a group of people traveling from Nashville. If not, airfare will be no more than $400 round trip. I am using money given to me at Christmas to fund my meals on the trip. I'm not sure what the trip will wind up costing in total, but any help that I can receive towards it will be extremely valuable. It would be used for lodging and/or travel expenses, and knowing how much I am working with will help me make decisions about both. I would like to finalize my plans by sometime in April. If, by chance, I am over-funded, then I will invest that extra money into the trips of my fellow Tennessee CCL volunteers or into the CCL organization itself as a donation.
When I speak to my representatives, I don't just speak for myself. I am a living, breathing piece of evidence in the halls of congress that support for this planet-saving and job-growing legislation exists in the hills of Tennessee. I speak for everyone but especially for those that might support a revenue-neutral carbon fee but not to the extent that they are heavily involved with Citizens' Climate Lobby themselves. If that sounds like you, would you consider helping me on this journey? I am so grateful to you for reading about my quest and for your consideration in donating. I do not take the request for funds lightly, and anything that is given would be received with tremendous gratitude! Please feel free to contact me with questions.
Thanks for reading, everyone!
Organizer
Frankie Elizabeth
Organizer
Nashville, TN