Resource Library

There are major gaps in the Environmental Impact Statement issued by the Army Corps of Engineers about the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) impacts. The NDN collective has produced a special report on the impacts of the DAPL in light of the D.C. District Court decision on June 22, 2021 dismissing tribe’s case against the Army Corps of Engineers. The purpose of this report is to provide a comprehensive summary of the DAPL project in the context of critical environmental, engineering, social, economic, and climate justice issues that continue to plague the construction and operation of the pipeline.             

69% of Americans believe we should prioritize developing renewable energy alternatives. Just 30% believe the U.S. should prioritize increased fossil fuel production. However, 67% believe we should keep a mix of renewables and fossil fuels, as compared to phasing out fossil fuels completely (31%). Democrats are far more in favor of renewables—as compared to fossil fuels—than Republicans, although both sets of voters have internal divisions within them, too. 75% of Americans support America playing a role in international climate negotiations. 72% of Americans support the U.S. government encouraging wind and solar production, compared to 51% for electric vehicles, 35% for nuclear power, 33% for oil and gas drilling, and 20% for coal mining. 69% of Americans favor the U.S. taking steps to become carbon-neutral by 2050. This survey includes lots more related questions.

This report offers a series of “climate jobs” recommendations for Maine. These recommendations that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and pollution at scale, create thousands of high-quality jobs, and build more resilient, equitable communities in Maine. Regarding transportation, install 25,000 public EV charging stations by 2030; transition 50% of Maine’s school bus fleet to zero-emission electric vehicles by 2025 and 100% by 2030; double and electrify city bus operations by 2030; and construct high-speed rail to Bangor, Maine. Regarding carbon-free healthy schools, retrofit and install solar on all k-12 public schools by 2035. Regarding buildings, net-zero emissions for new construction by 2030; retrofit 50% of residential units by 2040; and build 19,000 affordable units by 2040. Regarding energy, provide 100% renewable electricity by 2035. Regarding labor, ensure high-quality, union jobs in Maine. all of this will ensure a just transition for Maine.

Americans believe climate change is happening and the government should take action. 76% of adult Americans believe there is solid evidence that temperatures on the planet have risen over the last four decades. This is the highest level of acceptance recorded since the inception of this survey in 2008. 59% of Americans think that there is solid evidence of global warming and that the warming is being at least partially caused by human activity. A majority (57%) of adult Americans agree that they have personally felt the effects of climate change. 61% of Americans disagreed that “Instead of trying to stop global warming from occurring we should focus on adapting to a warmer climate.”

“Impact storytelling” is an important political tool, but it needs more coordination, training, talent, research, and funding. This report argues that “narrative and cultural strategy” are important tools of social change and should be further invested in, in many ways. The actors involved in the impact storytelling ecosystem include strategic communicators, grassroots and field organizing, legal and public policy advocacy, and artists and cultural organizers. More important people and groups are engaging in impact storytelling, but challenges remain: people don’t always lead with an impact storytelling mindset, there are too many vague reports and not enough actionable research, there is a looming leadership and staff crisis, there aren’t great ways to measure progress, and there are hurdles to collaboration. Therefore, this report includes recommendations for how to strengthen impact storytelling—there needs to be more: formal coordination and distribution of impact storytelling, training to boost the talent pipeline, practical and useful research and measurement, and more abundant and strategic funding.

Deep canvassing increases support for climate change action in rural British Columbia. The Neighbours United Project, an initiative of the West Kootenay EcoSociety, has shown that deep canvassing and storytelling can persuade on climate in a frontline, rural, industrial community in British Columbia. Successful deep canvassing requires the right script, trained canvassers (staff or volunteers), and a supportive organizational culture. When knocking on doors to have conversations with people, canvassers followed six steps: surface conflicted feelings, connect and acknowledge identity, share a personal story, make the case and help the voter process, understand the impact of the conversation, and make the campaign ask. One overall conclusion is that increasing a sense of government efficacy and support for government action on climate change could be key to moving citizens on climate change.

Our understanding of social movements is shaped by the images we see of them, and there are some key ways to create the images we need to win. A cohesive visual strategy translates disconnected technical skills from visual storytelling crafts into a plan to meet our movements goals. It brings together graphic design, printmaking, illustration, puppetry, theater, photography, set design, digital content, and more. A successful visual strategy does three specific things: contests public and media assumptions about who you are and what is possible; creates unity in your base though increasing access, commitment, resiliency, wellbeing; and maximizes your threat to power by swaying how much power your targets think you have. This resource includes one 90-minute recorded presentation and accompanying PDF slides of the presentation. These also include practical how-to exercises for movements building visual strategies, from what specific visual tools to use, how and when to employ them, and more.