Environment California is a

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

political organization A political organization is any organization that involves itself in the political process, including political parties, non-governmental organizations, and special interest advocacy groups. Political organizations are those engaged in politi ...

that lobbies for

environmental legislation Environmental law is a collective term encompassing aspects of the law that provide protection to the environment. A related but distinct set of regulatory regimes, now strongly influenced by environmental legal principles, focus on the manage ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. It is affiliated with

Environment America Environment America is a federation of state-based environmental advocacy organizations in the United States. The organization researches and advocates for environmental policies through lobbying, litigation, and the mobilization of public suppor ...

and the

Fund for the Public Interest The Fund for the Public Interest is a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization that runs the public fundraising and canvassing operations for politically liberal nonprofit organizations that advocate for issues such as environmental protection, consume ...

("the Fund").

History

Environment California was formed by the California Public Interest Research Group (CALPIRG) in 2003 to take over its environmental work. Environment California supported and campaigned for the Million Solar Roofs Bill in 2006 and the Global Warming Solutions Act in 2007.

Structure and canvassing efforts

Environment California works with the

(FFPIR or "the Fund") to recruit members to the organization and run campaigns across the state of California through

canvassing Canvassing is the systematic initiation of direct contact with individuals, commonly used during political campaigns. Canvassing can be done for many reasons: political campaigning, grassroots fundraising, community awareness, membership driv ...

offices. FFPIR runs canvassing offices in partnership with Environment California to raise money and build citizen support for the group. However, Environment California fires canvassing officers if they don't meet a certain "quota" for the week. Bernadette Del Chiaro, the director of Environment California's Clean Energy Program, defended the political value of the group's door-to-door and street fundraising in a
official website
launched in September 2006. The website was created solely to respond to people's criticism of the organization's methods. She states that, in her experience, this type of canvassing “absolutely elevated the issue in terms of public awareness, which, in turn, made it clearer to decision-makers that they needed to act”. In a contrasting viewpoint, the book '' Activism, Inc.'' by

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

sociologist Dana Fisher, says this particular fundraising model mistreats

idealistic In philosophy, the term idealism identifies and describes metaphysical perspectives which assert that reality is indistinguishable and inseparable from perception and understanding; that reality is a mental construct closely connected to ide ...

young people by using them as interchangeable parts and providing them with insufficient training.Fisher, Dana R. 2006. Activism, Inc. How the Outsourcing of Grassroots Campaigns is Strangling Progressive Politics in America. Stanford University Press. Fisher published this opinion after completing a 2003 study of random canvass offices throughout the entire United States. On May 15, 2009, the

(the funder for Environment California), settled for US$2.15 million in a

lawsuit - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...

over unpaid

overtime Overtime is the amount of time someone works beyond normal working hours. The term is also used for the pay received for this time. Normal hours may be determined in several ways: *by custom (what is considered healthy or reasonable by society), ...

, below-minimum wages, and unpaid training for canvassers and canvassing management and staff. The suit affected canvassers and other canvassing staff working for Environment California.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Environment California at OpenSecrets.org
Climate change organizations based in the United States Environmental organizations based in California Non-profit organizations based in Los Angeles Wilderness 501(c)(4) nonprofit organizations Environmental organizations based in Los Angeles

History

Structure and canvassing efforts

See also

References

External links