News Blog

The Angeles Chapter presented its 13th annual Political Leadership Awards on August 23 to an exceptional group of honorees at the first-ever virtual celebration in the Chapter’s history. The event took place on the new Remo conferencing platform. Proceeds from ticket sales for the event will go to the California Sierra Club PAC, which provides financial contributions for Sierra Club-endorsed candidates in state and local elections in California.

This month we’re spotlighting Liliana Griego, a Wilderness Travel Course (WTC) graduate, Forest Committee Volunteer, and ExCom member-at-large working to create a more influential and inclusive Angeles Chapter.

Innovative Policy in L.A. County Could Ignite Just Transition While Protecting Residents From a Legacy of Toxic Emissions

This is part of an ongoing series of articles by the Angeles Chapter Communications Committee to help readers understand how important decisions are made in California - how agencies and boards function, why they exist and how to interact with them. We look forward to your comments and suggestions regarding other agencies you, the reader, would like to learn more about. Here is an introduction to regional water boards and the California Coastal Commission and interview with Commissioner Penny Elia.

On July 15th, for my birthday, I set my alarm to wake up at 3am, even though the day ahead was a marathon of zoom calls. My partner and I left the house at 3:30, and by 4am we were parked on the Mt. Wilson Observatory road, gazing north east and marvelling at the comet NEOWISE.

Calling all shutterbugs! If you have not already, make sure to check out the July ‘20 Issue of Focal Points Magazine -- Premium photography of our natural world presented by the Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club Camera Committee.

Plastic microbeads in 2015. Plastic bags in 2016. Plastic straws in 2018. Banning plastic goods that are constructed without consideration for how they will be reused or recovered is a powerful tool Zero Waste activists have used for years. While these sweeping bans can be incredibly effective, they are useless against one of today’s fastest-growing sources of waste: Personal Protective Equipment.

As Sierra Club members we have all become familiar with zombie development projects that never seem to die, and that we need to stop.  One of the longest-running of these projects is the proposed Poseidon Huntington Beach desalination plant.  This boondoggle has been in the works for twenty years, and the Sierra Club along with a large coalition of environmental and community groups has continually worked to stop this destructive project. But like most zombies, this project just keeps going and now we need your help to stop it for good.

How can you still impact environmental issues and exercise civic responsibilities during the pandemic.

Sierra Club outings leader Bill Vanderberg has been leading youth wilderness programs for over 20 years. His program Building Bridges to the Outdoors (BBTO) provides immersive nature experiences for local high schoolers in Los Angeles. I sat down with Bill to talk about why BBTO is so important. Here’s what he explained to me.

The Wildland Urban Wildfire Committee (WUWC) -- Sierra Club Angeles Chapter’s newest committee – was officially approved Sunday, June 28, 2020, and will be dedicated to addressing the risks associated with building in the Wildland-Urban Interface/Intermix (WUI) and influencing policies to reduce those dangers while protecting the environment.

The multiracial, multigender, multigenerational protestors filling our streets and the highways and by-ways across the world offer a glimmer of hope that this time may truly lead to a path ending systemic racism.  We have an opportunity to listen to the heartfelt words of so many, to demand that our public servants take action, and to take a few small steps toward dismantling a culture that has for too long denied our fellow humans the privileges and opportunities enjoyed by a few.  Some steps we can take:

In this, the second edition of the Directors Desk update, I want to continue to share with you the most interesting bits of the job, give you a sense of what the Chapter is up to, and share a brief story about family and the mountains.

Metropolitan Water District, the water wholesaler that serves 26 local water agencies in the Southern California region, voted for a two-year budget that will raise water rates during the biggest economic downturn in California since the Great Depression.

In this new age of uncertainty, we must demand actions be taken NOW to ensure everyone, including our most vulnerable citizens, can be “Safer at Home.”

We hope that you’ve been staying safe, and finding moments of joy and peace, even though it's hard right now. We also wanted to share opportunities for honoring the 50th anniversary of Earth Day and what would have been Take Your Kids to Work Day next week.

These are moments when our natural instinct is to reach out and offer help.  But how can we offer a helping hand while still being mindful of stay at home policies and social distancing?  Here are a few ideas to inspire you to add your suggestions. These are opportunities to reach out while using best practices to discourage the spread of COVID-19.

We warmly welcome Morgan Goodwin, our new Angeles Chapter Senior Director

Another explosion and fire rages at Marathon refinery in South Bay, home to several large refineries and the worst air quality in the U.S.