Photo credit: Paloma Ayala
By Lauren Goldberg, Columbia Riverkeeper Executive Director
Originally published in Columbia Riverkeeper “Currents” Issue 2, 2024
As a Columbia Riverkeeper supporter, you make an impact. From partnering with Tribes to secure a historic agreement for salmon recovery, to activating people across the Northwest to stop climate-wrecking fossil fuel infrastructure, you win critical victories for clean water, healthy communities, and our climate.
This work is more important than ever. In 2025, we will:
- Fight the fossil fuel industry because our climate and the Columbia depend on it.
- Work in solidarity with Tribes to restore the Columbia’s iconic salmon using science, the law, and community organizing.
- Push back on government proposals to shortcut cleanup at the most toxic place in America, the Hanford Nuclear Site.
- Stop toxic pollution by taking polluters to court and advocating for laws that protect everyone who relies on locally caught fish, clean air, and clean water.
- Monitor water quality at popular swim beaches and lead dynamic, bilingual environmental education along the Columbia.
President-elect Donald Trump, an avowed climate change denier, made campaign promises to roll back environmental regulations that protect our air and water. As a local nonprofit with a strong track record of making a difference no matter what political party is in power, our team will continue to fight the good fight.
Our commitments in the wake of the election:
Be relentless. Now is not the time to sit back and watch. It is time to double down on our efforts to fight the fossil fuel industry and enact strong climate policies. Listen, reflect, and navigate together. We will pause, evaluate, and ask for feedback.
Listen, reflect, and navigate together. We will pause, evaluate, and ask for feedback. And own our mistakes. We will center our values in how we work, including our commitments to advance justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion.
Keep it local. We are 100 percent focused on local and regional issues. We live here, raise our families here, and build long-term relationships here. While our victories may have national implications, our mission is centered on the Columbia River and all life connected to it.
Be grateful. What better job is there than to advocate for environmental and climate justice while connecting with incredible people who share a common connection to the river? We will always be grateful to our supporters for your trust and donations as we put every dollar to work
