Weekly Briefing: We’re Headed to D.C.! Call Congress to Support our Lobby Day Message

June 5, 2024

Get excited — CCL’s biggest annual event is upon us! In just a few days, more than 1,000 volunteers from all around the country will pour into D.C. for “Making Moves and Moving Congress,” our 2024 Summer Conference and Lobby Day.

Conference attendees will hear powerhouse speakers, go to transformative trainings, and hold climate conversations with D.C. locals. On Tuesday, they will have hundreds of lobby meetings on Capitol Hill, talking to lawmakers about climate solutions. 

CCLers back at home can lend their voices to this effort, too! If that's you, in the days leading up to our D.C. lobby meetings, you can call your members of Congress with a message about the bipartisan PROVE IT Act, which is our primary ask for this lobby day.

Between thousands of phone calls from constituents at home, and hundreds of in-person lobby meetings on Capitol Hill, Congress will be sure to hear our message loud and clear.

In other news this week:

• New, major study on carbon pricing: Over in the Nerd Corner, we’ve been breaking down a newly published, comprehensive study of carbon pricing that confirms its effectiveness. Ready to get into the weeds? Dive in here.

Take action this week

If you have a little time: Follow CCL on social media to see conference photos. Want a behind-the-scenes peek into conference activities? Follow CCL on Instagram, Facebook, X, Threads, and LinkedIn to see snapshots and video clips from our social mixers, post-lobbying reception, and everything in between. Remember, you can always stop by our “Spread The Word” page to see and share recent social posts from CCL’s national accounts. 

If you have more time: Tune into our June meeting and conference sessions virtually. Starting with our June monthly meeting on Saturday, we’ll be live streaming a selection of our conference programming throughout the event. Catch the official kickoff on Sunday morning; presentations by outside speakers from Environmental Voter Project, the Bipartisan Policy Center, and the Brookings Institution; and breakout sessions all along the way. RSVP for the Zoom live stream or just go to our YouTube channel during the conference to tune in.

Featured chapter: CCL NY Westchester

CCL’s New York Westchester chapter has a unique setup — it’s led by high school students! Since 2020, some of the most passionate and inspirational youth in CCL have kept this chapter thriving, passing the baton along as each young group leader graduates. 

Natasha P., a Scarsdale high school senior, has co-led the chapter since her sophomore year. Natasha calls CCL her “most rewarding extracurricular,” where she has been able to “nurture the activist side” of herself. Her co-leader this year, Adam R., has said taking on this leadership role has sparked self-development. He feels more confident in his ability to be a leader. The young co-leaders depend heavily on the expertise, guidance and support of the chapter’s older members, like Ed Wechsler.

Together, these young leaders and their chapter are making big moves in their community. In late April, they tabled at a local Earth Day festival and distributed infographics about climate disasters. Last month, they delivered climate presentations to middle schools and high schools in the local areas. Natasha and Adam have also made an effort to expand their chapter’s social media presence, using design platforms such as Canva to make informational posts. 

CCL Westchester is an excellent example of how a new generation of youth can inspire others and make change within their communities. Congratulations to Natasha on her high school graduation, and good luck to Adam for his next year of leading CCL Westchester!

Want to chat with the NY Westchester chapter about how they keep the chapter thriving with regularly changing leadership? Join The Conversation on CCL Community.

Today's featured chapter story was provided by CCL intern Sophie Yang.

Upcoming trainings

There are no live trainings this week or next week due to CCL's Summer Conference, but there’s still plenty to learn. 

Catch up on the recordings of these recent trainings to understand what we’re lobbying Congress for next week and why, as well as the Lobby Day logistics you’ve always wondered about:

• Lobby Training #1: Primary & Secondary Asks

• Lobby Training #2: Legislative Plan and Q&A 

• Conference & Lobby Days Q&A session 

To see other topics and past trainings, visit the Training Topics page of CCL Community.

Nerd Corner Chart of the Week

Number of extra extreme heat days over the past year

Join the discussion about how 6 billion people experienced a month of extreme heat in the past year.