If you’re a US citizen, no matter where in the world, start by making sure you’re registered to vote. Many districts are gerrymandered, so you’ll want to register as the party that’s likely to win congressional and/or state legislative districts where you live, and vote in that party’s primary.
In addition to voting, you’ll want to influence politics beyond that. Your local races are a good place to start; cities and states control local land use and things like building codes.
To affect congress, you’ll want to pick swing house districts or swing senate seats. Volunteer and donate accordingly.
For President, the reality is that Biden has done far more than Trump would even consider, starting with the Inflation Reduction Act, and continuing through numerous executive actions. Getting involved in this race means volunteering, and if you can, donating to the Biden Victory Fund. If you’re giving really large amounts of money, and the logistics of it work, go to an in-person event and talk to the candidate or other official about climate:
- 6/18 Winnetka, IL
- 6/18 Washington DC
- 6/18 Cary, NC
- 6/19 San Antonio, TX
- 6/20, Washington, DC
- 6/20, Provincetown, MA
- 6/21 Rehoboth Beach, DE
- 6/26 Bradbury, CA
- 6/27 Essex Junction, VT
- 6/27 Los Angeles, CA
- 6/28 Washington, DC
- 6/28 Park City, UT
- 6/29 Los Angeles, CA
- 7/11 Baltimore, MD
- 7/12 Minneapolis, MN
Thanks for posting this!
I would add that I believe calling or mailing (like with paper) and even faxing your representatives is something that can make a difference. If you do it, tell your friends and maybe they will too!
As someone from outside the US, I just want to say: please do vote again for Joe Biden. He is without doubt the most pro-environment US President there has ever been.
that and convincing Republicans to vote green
Excellent post. I’d like to add to the comparison of presidential candidates.
Trump repealed 112 climate regulations in one term, setting us back over a decade of progress, and left The Paris Agreement.
Biden rejoined the Paris Climate Agreement, revoked the Keystone Pipeline permit, created a 13 million acre federal petroleum reserve for Alaskan wildlife, greatly increased oil site lease cost, signed $7B in solar subsidies, and enacted the Inflation Reduction act to support clean energy.
There’s a much more extensive list of what Biden has done here — but you can’t get it outside the paywall because the last was started before the Washington Post started doing gift links.
Wow. I was going to copy and paste them into my comment, but then I saw there were 98 pages of accomplishments. Well done!
Here’s a link to get around the paywall: https://archive.is/2024.05.20-232047/https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2021/climate-environment/biden-climate-environment-actions/