Election day is just two weeks away and Global Exchange is working hard on an electoral campaign in California challenging the oil industry over a measure that has significant national and global implications.

Big polluters, Koch Industries and Texas oil companies Valero and Tesoro, are spending millions promoting a deceptive initiative on California’s ballot, Proposition 23, trying to kill the state’s Global Warming Solutions Act. A recent editorial in the Sacramento Bee stated “If Proposition 23 were to pass on Nov. 2, it would be a major setback to state, national and international efforts to fight global warming.”

“The Stakes are High”
Recognizing California’s importance as a bellweather state that leads the nation to new environmental standards, economist Thomas Friedman recently wrote in the New York Times about the Prop 23 battle and quoted George Shultz stating that “if we get something that is working here to clean up the air and launch a clean-tech industry, it will go national and maybe international. So the stakes are high.”

We must stop the oil industry’s Prop 23 from blocking our environmental legislation and prevent Prop 23 from harming the burgeoning green economy, green jobs, clean tech and renewable energy investments.  During the current economic downturn, the clean tech sector has been the only sector adding jobs.

Help Global Exchange defend and advance the green economy by defeating Prop 23! Take action today!

If you’re in California, you can volunteer with the campaign by distributing campaign materials, making phone calls to voters and assisting at events. For more on volunteer opportunities, e-mail June [at] globalexchange [dot] org.

California residents should also check out the Climate Energy Tour (a fiscally sponsored project of Global Exchange) that is traveling the state utilizing solar powered hip hop concerts to motivate and inform people to vote NO on Prop 23. The tour kicked off on 10/10/10 in Oakland and will visit Santa Barbara (Oct 16), Los Angeles (Oct 19), San Diego (Oct 21), and Sacramento (Nov 1) to inspire audiences to join with Communities United Against The Dirty Energy Prop.

Not in California? You can still get involved to spread the word about this important proposition.

  • Tell your family and friends in California why they should vote NO on Prop 23.
  • Phone from your home to California voters to urge them to vote NO on 
Prop 23.  To get plugged in, call June at 415-575-5542.
  • Write a letter to the editor of a California newspaper. See letter writing tools.
  • Use your social media tools like Facebook and Twitter.
  • DONATE! We’re up against Big Oil’s deep pockets and we count on donations from people like you to succeed.

With oil interests spending millions to confuse voters, the polls indicate that the vote is likely to be close.  To defeat Prop 23, we need all the help we can get in the last weeks before the vote on November 2nd.

For more information about the No on Prop 23 campaign, contact June at 415-575-5542 or email June [at] globalexchange [dot] org. Also visit the websites of Global Exchange’s coalition partners: 
Communities United Against The Dirty Energy Prop & Stop the Dirty Energy Prop.