Milestones: Organizers learn by making a difference

When you hear the words “training” or “education,” you imagine a classroom.

For sure, Green Corps trainings over the years took place in classrooms in Boston, Washington, D.C., Denver and other cities. Yet Green Corps training never stopped at the classroom door.

As part of their training, Green Corps organizers developed their skills through guided practice in the field. Environmental groups, including The Wilderness Society, Greenpeace, Defenders of Wildlife and dozens of others, partnered with Green Corps to organize campaigns on conservation, climate change and more. Here are some Green Corps “greatest hits”:

Stop the Rollbacks (1994-95)

In March 1995, congressional leaders were seeking to eviscerate federal environmental protections including the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act. Green Corps organizers were tasked with moving several first-term members of Congress to stop the rollbacks.

Green Corps organizer Jeanne Merrill was instrumental in convincing first-year U.S. Rep. Sue Kelly (R-N.Y.) to buck her party’s opposition to environmental protections. Jeanne organized news conferences and a petition drive that helped bring Rep. Kelly on board. Similar efforts across the country helped hold the line against the worst anti-environmental measures in Congress.

The Paper Campaign (2000-2005)

By the year 2000, paper production was destroying 5 million acres of forests in the U.S. each year.

Green Corps partnered with the Dogwood Alliance to launch the Paper Campaign, an effort designed to shift the office supply industry toward recycled paper products.

Green Corps organizers kicked off the drive to convince industry leader Staples to adopt an environmental sustainability policy. The Green Corps team trained 150 activists and conducted demonstrations at Staples stores, which gained the attention of regional managers across the country. That same year, Staples agreed to phase out paper products made from endangered forests and ensure 30% post-consumer recycled paper content for all of its paper products.

Between 2003 and 2005, Green Corps organizers, including Eva Hernandez, helped convince Office Depot and the Bowater paper company to adopt policies to better protect America’s southeastern forests.

Beyond Coal (2008-2015)

In 2008, the coal industry had proposed the construction of 150 new coal-fired power plants across the country, despite the growing peril of climate change. Green Corps partnered with Sierra Club to help launch the Beyond Coal campaign, activating thousands of citizens to beat back this “coal rush.”

Green Corps organizers were instrumental in convincing the Houston-based coal giant Dynegy to drop its proposals to build six new coal plants in communities from Michigan to Louisiana.

Later, Green Corps organizers worked to retire existing coal plants on campuses and in communities. Green Corps organizing helped win coal-free commitments from Penn State University, SUNY Binghamton, UNC-Chapel Hill, Ohio University, Clemson University and Miami University. In 2011, Green Corps organized more than 2,000 volunteers and gathered nearly 30,000 petition signatures, urging eight cities and 12 university campuses to reduce their dependence on coal.

In addition to these campaigns, the Green Corps list of greatest hits includes:

• 2004: Green Corps organizers convinced the Royal Caribbean cruise line to clean up its fleet of ships and stop releasing sewage into our oceans.

• 2011-2014: Organizers undertook the Clean Air Indiana campaign to win a long-term clean energy commitment from Indiana’s largest utility company.

• 2018: Organizers successfully convinced Tyson Foods, the largest chicken producer in the nation, to clean up water pollution in its supply chain.

The organizers who worked on these campaigns and others picked up invaluable skills and experience while winning changes that improved the quality of the environment and people’s lives.

About this series: PIRG and The Public Interest Network have achieved much more than we can cover on this page. You can find more milestones of our work on Green Corps below. You can also explore an interactive timeline featuring more of our network’s Green Corps milestones.