The Sierra Club Foundation Annual Report 2011

ANNUAL REPORT 2011 | THE SIERRA CLUB FOUNDATION
THE KEY TO KEYSTONE: COALITION BUILDING
Leading a tar sands coalition including dozens of environmental and public health groups, the
Sierra Club, with funding from The Sierra Club Foundation, showed the power of the people by
successfully questioning TransCanada’s environmental responsibility in building a pipeline through
the U.S. With support from our Environmental Law Program, the Club convinced public officials,
the EPA, and the State Department that TransCanada had not done its homework, warranting
a ruling that more must be done to ensure the safety of our people and lands.
In November, the Club’s grassroots organizers and environmental partners rallied an
estimated 12,000 people. As one of the biggest gatherings at the White House in decades, these
passionate activists surrounded the White House to voice their opinion against the Keystone XL
pipeline. Sierra Club’s efforts succeeded: in early 2012, President Obama denied Keystone XL’s
permit—a victory hailed as one of the major environmental wins of 2011.
The Sierra Club and The Sierra Club Foundation remain committed to fighting pipeline
expansion, and we will continue to integrate grassroots organizing, communications,
administrative advocacy, and litigation to prevent extraction of oil from tar sands, which
creates three times more carbon emissions than conventional oil extraction.
“There is something
contagious about
young people leading
fights against inequity
and injustice. Evident
through the Keystone
rallies, the Sierra Student
Coalition is a powerful
force.”
– QUENTIN JAMES
NATIONAL DIRECTOR, SIERRA
STUDENT COALITION
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