How to volunteer with Environmental Voter Project
By Juliet Freiheit
Now more than ever, it is essential to bring climate to the forefront of election issues. As people concerned about climate, making our voices heard at the polls is a simple, yet important, step in enacting real change. Here at Citizens’ Climate Lobby, we’re working with the Environmental Voter Project (EVP) to help others do the same.
The Environmental Voter Project’s goal is to increase the turnout of millions of non-voting environmentalists. Whether it’s alongside your chapter or individually, volunteers can help by phone banking or sending postcards from anywhere in the United States to the 17 key states that EVP has identified as playing a crucial role in elections. Volunteers make a great impact by highlighting the importance of climate policy and encouraging non-voters to stay active in all elections. EVP had a massive impact on the 2020 election as their work helped put climate higher on the national agenda.
EVP’s founder and Executive Director Nathaniel Stinnett explained in CCL’s July monthly call that EVP doesn’t endorse politicians or policies or engage in mind-changing: EVP engages in behavior changing.
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In reference to CCL’s partnership with EVP, CCL Executive Director Madeleine Para emphasizes that it’s important for environmental voters of both parties to be consistent voters. Madeleine says, “That would create an environment where every Republican and every Democratic candidate has to have a strong position on climate change in order to be viable.”
Hundreds of Citizens’ Climate Lobby volunteers have worked with EVP during previous election cycles by canvassing door-to-door, placing phone calls, or sending postcards to potential voters. With 2022 being a midterm election year, this is the perfect time to get involved and begin volunteering. EVP specifically focuses on drop-off voters: those who vote in the presidential election but do not vote in midterms.
Do you want to get involved?
Individually, you can easily volunteer without any prior experience or knowledge ahead of time. Phone banking is a simple way to begin your own efforts. To find a time that works for you, visit EVP’s available opportunities page and register for a virtual session. Untrained EVP phone bankers will be offered brief training, and trained EVP phone bankers can jump right on the phones. A phone bank will typically be an hour and a half long. All you’ll need to participate in phone banking is a landline, cell, or internet-based phone and a web-enabled computer or tablet.
Do not be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and kindly reach out to voters to spread awareness on climate and encourage them to exercise their right to vote in all forms of elections. Your work will make a difference, and every little bit counts.
Does your chapter want to get involved?
When it comes to making a difference, the more help, the merrier! Getting your chapter involved in volunteering as a whole is a very proactive move. Collaborate with your chapter to find a date on EVP’s available opportunities page that works best for everyone to participate in phone banking. Power in numbers!
When you register, be sure to select “CCL” in the pull down menu “How did you hear about this opportunity?” so that CCL can keep track of the number of people doing amazing work with EVP.
To read, watch or listen to CCL’s training on how to volunteer with EVP, see below.
You can also sign up to receive updates on EVP’s website.
Juliet Freiheit is the CCL Summer 2022 Communications Intern and a student at Trinity College. As an individual who is interested in environmental policy, Juliet is ecstatic to further her experience and impact by working with CCL.
