Our Shared Vision for the District…and the Planet!
DC Environmental Network Supporter Allison Archambault, EarthSpark International:
DC Environmentalists:
As the President of EarthSpark International, I spend a lot of time working to empower communities in Haiti by addressing energy poverty. I have also invested a lot of my personal time in the District working to make sure that the poor in our nation’s capital city have options and access to clean and affordable energy. I see strong connections between both my work in Haiti and the District. These connections are what make it possible for me and my colleagues to engage in the world as global citizens.
- DCEN helps all of us become better global citizens.
The District of Columbia is extremely lucky to have the DC Environmental Network (DCEN). DCEN strives to look at the world like I do. I feel connected to DCEN because they have created a framework that makes it easier for all of us to engage at the local level on possibly the most important issues of our time including global warming.
DCEN understands the importance of addressing the mounting environmental ills that threaten the health, safety and economic viability of our planet. By helping the citizens of the District engage on these issues at the local level, DCEN makes it easier for all of us to do our part for the planet.
- DCEN helps bring us together, in coalition, for change.
DCEN does a lot to set the stage for sustainability in the District. With monthly networking opportunities, webinars, trainings and the engagement of communities and decision makers through shared campaigns, DCEN creates the space necessary to influence the issues we all care about.
Central to all of their activities is the notion that the broader green community (and any group or individual who shares a concern) can do more, even create meaningful change, when we work together in coalition.
- DCEN has a track record of success.
Over the years I have watched DCEN use this model for success. I watched DCEN lead the environmental community in the creation and growth of the District Department of the Environment (DDOE) and the DC Sustainable Energy Utility (DC SEU).
DCEN led legislative efforts to bring clean energy to our neighborhoods, protection for our trees, standards for the Anacostia River, Potomac River and Rock Creek and numerous other policy changes that are making true sustainability in DC possible. (See recent report by Brent Blackwelder.)
- DCEN looks to a sustainable future for our region.
DCEN is working hard to make sure DC Mayor Gray’s Sustainable DC plan integrates the values of environmentalism, diversity and inclusion and does so in a manner that results in the reduction of poverty in the District of Columbia. That is why I feel a connection between my work and DCEN’s.
It’s not an easy path for any one individual or organization to take but if we pull together in coalition, like DCEN strives to do each and every day, we might all be pleasantly surprised by what we can accomplish together.
Allison Archambault
DC Environmental Network Supporter
President
EarthSpark International