If you’re a conservative in Portland or a progressive in Crowley, you may be used to feeling like your state senator or representative doesn’t share your values and views, and you therefore have less of a voice in Salem. But what if we could change that? “Multi-member districts” could help do just that, providing more candidate … Read more
Migee My son is two-and-a-half years old and very inquisitive. Lately, he’s been talking about and asking about death. It started with the knowledge that his dad’s cat had died and me having to explain to him what “died” meant. He said it so matter-of-factly one time right in front of his dad, it was … Read more
Sightline’s policy director Eric de Place joined KBOO Community Radio‘s Barbara Bernstein this week to discuss how American communities are staying energized and fighting fossil fuels at the local level. Eric detailed how state and local power will play an increasingly important role in protecting regions like Cascadia from coal, oil, and gas projects. He also emphasized how … Read more
On Monday, Sightline’s director of energy finance, Clark Williams-Derry, joined KBOO Community Radio‘s Barbara Bernstein to discuss what the next four years of US energy policy may look like. The two discussed the future of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), legally, politically, and financially, given various divestment efforts around the US. Clark also detailed the … Read more
Donald Trump has repeatedly cast doubt on global warming science. He has threatened to pull out of the Paris Climate Accord. His views on clean, renewable energy sources like wind and solar have mostly been negative. His cabinet picks for top environment and energy posts signal erosion of environmental protections and backing for oil and coal companies over … Read more
As the Trump Administration looks to new federal energy policy, state and local authority, especially the power of regulating land use, will likely play an increasingly important role in protecting regions like the Northwest from the risks of coal, oil, and gas. Indeed, threatened by a tsunami of energy export projects, a number of cities and … Read more
As you may have heard, the Trump administration recently signed orders designed to pave the way for two controversial oil pipelines, Dakota Access (DAPL) and Keystone XL. Surprisingly, though, the main beneficiaries of this move may be Canadian, not American. This seems clear enough the case for the Keystone XL pipeline, which was explicitly designed to move … Read more
In the final weeks of 2016, Portland moved to the forefront of the Thin Green Line—the Northwest’s opposition movement to coal, oil, and gas exports—when its city council voted unanimously to prohibit building new fossil fuel infrastructure in the city. The vote is likely the most aggressive anti-fossil fuel move by any government in North … Read more
This morning, Mayor Charlie Hales and Commissioner Steve Novick joined Commissioner Amanda Fritz in approving Open and Accountable Elections Portland, supported by a broad coalition of Portland groups that came together to support the measure. Starting with the city’s 2020 elections, Portland will join cities and states across the United States and Canada in empowering voters … Read more
When my daughter was four-and-a-half, she asked me point blank about climate change. You’d think I’d be equipped for this conversation. After all, this is what I do for a living! For over a decade, I have studied the communications literature and issued dozens of talking points memos on climate challenges and solutions. But her … Read more