TAKE ACTION: Speak up for the Vermont Climate Resilience and State Wildlands Act

The Vermont Climate Resilience and State Wildlands Act will protect cherished public lands like the Tinker Brook Natural Area in Coolidge State Forest.

Things are heating up for Wildlands at the Vermont Statehouse. The House Environment Committee could soon begin discussing H.276, the Vermont Climate Resilience and State Wildlands Act. This visionary bill will protect 268,000 acres of Vermont state land, putting core public forests on the path to grow old and protecting the irreplaceable sanctuaries of wild nature that we rely on for ecosystem services, climate resilience, and spiritual renewal (for more on the bill, check out the webinar we put on about it last week).

We invite you to take three timely actions for H. 276, the Vermont Climate Resilience and State Wildlands Act.

1. For Vermont Residents: Write to your legislators expressing your support for the Wildlands Act. Visit the legislature's website to find your legislators' contact information and biographies, and check out our blog, fact sheet, and the bill itself for more information to help craft your outreach. It is great to make a personal connection, but your message can also be as simple as the following:

Dear Senator or Representative    ,

My name is     and I’m a resident of    . I am writing to share my strong support for the Vermont Climate Resilience and State Wildlands Act, a bill that would reduce flood risks, promote climate resilience and ecological function, and support the long-term health of our communities, at almost no cost to taxpayers.  I am curious to hear what you think about this exciting bill, and hope you’ll support it as it moves forward. 

2. Again, for Vermont residents: Contact Representative Amy Sheldon (D-Middlebury), Chair of the House Environment Committee, to thank her for introducing this forward-looking bill, and encourage her to bring the bill up for discussion in committee. 

3. Regardless of where you live, sign on to be a citizen co-sponsor of the Vermont Climate Resilience and State Wildlands Act. This will add your name to a letter of support that will be delivered to legislators later in the session, and keep you in the loop for action updates as the bill moves forward. 

If you want to take your Vermont Wildlands advocacy a step further, consider writing a letter to the editor in support of the bill, and spreading the word about the Wildlands Act among your friends and networks. If you’d like Standing Trees to talk with the community groups you are a part of about the Wildlands Bill, or have questions about taking any other actions in support of this bill, please reach out.