Public Employee Press

At the union
Conference on Climate Crisis,
Energy Alternatives and Union Growth
Global warming is real. Climate change is here. It’s time to take action!

May 7 and 8, 2007
UFT, 52 Broadway, New York City

“Global warming” — it sounds almost cozy. But Al Gore’s movie, “An Inconvenient Truth,” shows instead that massive climate change threatens everyone living on planet Earth with extinction as rising temperatures melt the polar ice caps, seas rise and food and water supplies dwindle.

The movie delivers its message with graphics, photographs, cartoons and Gore himself explaining the critical issues in terms non-scientists can grasp.

Ever since the first Earth Day, on April 22, 1970, great strides have been made towards building ecological awareness. Terms such as “recycled paper,” “gas-guzzling” cars, “tree huggers” and “energy-efficient” appliances resulted from the growing “green” movement.

Yet the greenhouse gases that cause global warming still issue from exhaust pipes and billow from power plants. More must be done. The first step in any organizing campaign is to educate yourself. To celebrate Earth Day, “An Inconvenient Truth” will be shown at DC 37 at 6 p.m. April 30. Following the film, environmental specialists will discuss the movie and its implications.

On May 7-8, Cornell University’s Global Labor Institute will sponsor a conference on “Climate Crisis, Energy Alternatives and Unions.” The sessions will be held at the United Federation of Teachers, 52 Broadway; more information is available at 212-340-2840 or by visiting
www.ilr.cornell.edu/globallaborinstitute/events/climateChangeConference/.

Climate change is a core union issue, because our jobs, our communities and the world we leave our children are at stake. At the conference, unionists and allies will focus on the challenges of global warming and the job-creating potential of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power.

Everyone has a role to play in saving planet Earth. Start by celebrating Earth Day at the union’s free showing of this award-winning film.

— Jane LaTour