JUUstice Washington

A Unitarian Universalist State Action Network

Work with Faith Action Network on Census 2020! Training Provided

by Leave a Comment

We are only 40 days out from the launch of Census 2020 on March 12, as postcards will begin to arrive inviting households to participate. Official Census Day is April 1. In the State of Washington, $16.7B in tax dollars for our communities are at stake, along with our democratic representation in Congress. We cannot afford to miss counting anyone in this census, especially traditionally undercounted communities of color, immigrants, tribes, rural areas, and young children. You can help in three ways right now:

Save the date for a Faith-based Census training on February 19 in Tukwila. Let us know if you’d like to attend by responding to the survey below.
Respond to our survey indicating ways you would like to help with the Census in your faith community and beyond. There ARE people in your faith community who may not be counted without our extra efforts.
Share our part-time Census Coordinator job description – we are accepting applications through February 9. Please download the job description and share with your communities. We see this as a statewide effort and are excited to join a powerful coalition for the Census.

HB 2311, Emissions Limit Bill, Signed by Governor

by 2 Comments

For Background:

In 2008, Washington enacted legislation (RCW 70.235) that set a series of limits on the emission of greenhouse gases within the state: quote:

  • By 2020, reduce overall emissions of greenhouse gases in the state to 1990 levels;
  • By 2035, reduce overall emissions of greenhouse gases in the state to twenty-five percent below 1990 levels;
  • By 2050, the state will do its part to reach global climate stabilization levels by reducing overall emissions to fifty percent below 1990 levels, or seventy percent below the state’s expected emissions that year. End quote.

In 2019, HB 2311 was introduced to modify these state greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets to

  • 45 percent below 1990 levels by 2030,
  • 70 percent below 1990 levels by 2040, and
  • 95 percent below 1990 levels by 2050, with the goal of net zero emissions. This would mean that any remaining emissions would be offset by sequestration.

The bill has passed the House and the Senate , and was signed by the governor. It is one of the two priorities of environmental groups that passed this session. (The other is 5811, the Zero Emissions Vehicle (ZEV) bill. See separate post on this.)

Arguments for and against the bill are summarized below.

[Read more…]

Panel Discussion: Bringing Social Values to Life in Our Cities, Our Communities and Our Conscience, January 5th, 2020, Seattle WA

by Leave a Comment

The Mount Holyoke College Club of the Puget Sound invites you to a panel discussion. Speakers:
Dr. Serin Houston, Professor of Geography and International Relations at Mount Holyoke College, and author of Imagining Seattle: Social Values in Urban Governance.
 Dr. Anu Taranath, Principal Lecturer, Comparative History of Ideas at University of  Washington, and author of Beyond Guilt Trips: Mindful Travel in an Unequal World.
Ms. Sarah Mayes. Sarah has worked for four lawmakers, most recently at Seattle City Council. A transgender woman and single mother, Sarah produces and co-hosts a new podcast, By the Sound.

Free and open to the public.  Download flyer here.

Faith Action Network-sponsored Candidate Forums, Oct. 5-23, many locations

by Leave a Comment

As we prepare for November elections, Candidate Forums are an opportunity to hear from candidates about the issues that matter most to you. We hope you will join us for a FAN-sponsored candidate forum in October, and share the flyers in your community:

 

 

You may also be interested in these candidate forums hosted by our partners:

Free Skill-building Workshops for Public Policy Advocacy in Seattle, Olympia and Tacoma

by Leave a Comment

Join the Statewide Poverty Action Network for our Communities in Action advocacy program, a FREE series of workshops that will focus on how to use your voice to influence public policy and create the social change you want to see!

Our Communities in Action program is a series of three workshops that will focus on skills-building for people interested in advocacy, policy, community organizing, and social justice. Participants will leave with the tools, knowledge, and resources to enter the 2020 Legislative Session as anti-poverty and racial justice advocates for their own communities. All participants will receive a $20 travel reimbursement for each session, as well as food and childcare! Note: As our work has traditionally been centered around the experiences and voices of low-income communities and communities of color, we ask only those to attend who self-identify as low-income.

[Read more…]