Two Things: Sharing our recently published Annual Report, and asking you to take action to protect our pollinators (and more!) as the legislative crossover deadline approaches.
Stay informed, stay connected – two things.
Our 2023 Annual Report
In case you missed it, we recently sent out our 2023 Annual Report, a publication that reflects on the past year and our work dedicated to safeguarding Vermont’s natural resources, fostering coalitions, and strengthening our membership after 60 years of environmental leadership. If you’re curious what we’ve been up to over the past year and how we’re continuing to support and work alongside many great partners in all of our coalitions, please enjoy reading our Annual Report and share your thoughts with us via our member survey (more information below).
Legislative Crossover is Here: Help Protect Our Pollinators and More!
Thank you to all of our members who have been staying engaged with our legislative updates on the key bills we’re advocating for this session to help Vermont mitigate flooding, deliver more clean energy, build smart growth housing, and more. As the legislative crossover deadline approaches (this Friday, March 15th), we will keep you posted as timely opportunities for action arise. In the meantime, you can listen to this podcast episode from our partners at Vermont Conservation Voters for a status update on all of the key bills we’re working on.
This week, we’re anticipating action on a bill to protect our pollinators, H.706, and hope you can let your Representatives know that you support this important policy. This bill would phase out the use of neonicotinoid pesticides in Vermont. These harmful pesticides are applied to seeds that are widely used by farmers, despite research showing they provide little to no benefit to those who use them. Meanwhile, the evidence continues to mount that these chemicals are contributing to pollinator loss and pose potential risks to public health. Unfortunately, more than 30% of Vermont’s native bee species are “critically imperiled or imperiled.” Pollinator health is crucial to our broader ecosystem health and food security, so we must act now.
P.S.VNRC’s 2024 Member and Activist Survey will be live through the end of March, and your feedback is important! The survey should take no more than 10 minutes to complete, and all respondents will be entered to win a $100 gift certificate to Onion River Outdoors. Thank you for weighing in and helping to shape the future of our work.