In 2006, a number of labor unions and environmental groups formed a national coalition under the banner of the BlueGreen Alliance. It was meant to serve as an example of how climate groups and unions could work together to tackle global warming. In practice though, it was mostly a “green jobs” initiative, and it steered clear of a lot of the more controversial climate fights over the last decade.
But this past summer the BlueGreen Alliance took a big step forward, and released an eight-page document outlining their concrete vision to tackle both climate change and inequality. It’s a fascinating and important development, especially given the clout and influence of some of the coalition members, like the Sierra Club, the SEIU, the League of Conservation Voters, the Communications Workers of America, the National Wildlife Federation and others.
The platform also brings into relief some of the competing visions for climate action that leaders, and perhaps especially Democrats, will have to navigate going forward. For example some aspects of the BlueGreen Alliance platform stand directly in opposition with parts of Bernie Sanders’s climate plan, released last week.
As I write in the piece:
While the report’s focus on public investment, good jobs and justice shares much in common with the federal Green New Deal resolution introduced in February, it also stands in tension with environmentalists who demand the U.S. work to transition more quickly away from oil, coal and natural gas. “We’d really like them to be stronger and more concise about what it means to move away from fossil fuels and transition to renewables,” said José Bravo, executive director of the Just Transition Alliance and speaking on behalf of the Climate Justice Alliance. Members of the BlueGreen Alliance say the ultimate goal should be to decarbonize the economy—to reduce CO2 emissions, but not necessarily end the fossil fuel industry itself, with its tens of thousands of high-paying jobs. Other climate groups say that won’t be enough, and humanity cannot afford to preserve industries that have caused so much environmental harm. This difference in vision will stand as one of the most fundamental political questions facing progressives in the next decade.
Here’s what a top official at the BlueGreen Alliance had to say about the story:
You can read the full In These Times story here.
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