Each year, more than 500 million plastic bags are discarded. Most people do not think about where this plastic goes, but the truth is, it never goes away. The amount of plastic on the planet is growing. It clogs up the rivers and oceans, chokes animals, enters the air, and contributes to pointless mass production. A simple 5 cent tax on single use plastic bags may seem like a small effort, but it would benefit the environment greatly. It would help people to only take what they really need, and stop over production ie double bagging, if there is a price involved.

Allowing students to park on campus offers a myriad of benefits that enhance their overall college experience. First and foremost, convenient parking facilities alleviate the stress and time constraints that commuting students often face, or even UK's classified 'residential students' due to how large our campus is. By providing ample parking spaces, educational institutions create a more accessible and inclusive environment, enabling students to attend classes, participate in extracurricular activities, and engage with campus resources without the hassle of off-campus parking. Moreover, on-campus parking fosters a stronger sense of belonging and community, as students can easily connect with peers and engage in impromptu discussions or collaborative projects. It also contributes to campus safety, as students don't need to walk long distances in potentially unsafe areas or during unfavorable weather conditions. Allowing students to park on campus ultimately promotes student well-being, academic success, and campus vibrancy by facilitating seamless navigation and engagement within the university environment. Further, not all apartments, houses, townhouses, etc. around Lexington offer parking for their residents, let alone visitor parking. Lex park is no longer available around UK South campus, only closer to downtown. If students need to work, drive to class, go to the store, and other basic living necessities, where are they able to park their cars overnight without being towed, or ticketed by UK? Furthermore, what about our out-of-state student population that makes the commitment of high tuition but has no parking accommodation? What about our working students that need vehicle accessibility to pay towards their tuition and/or rent? How do these students efficiently commute to their place of work in order to sustain income for their education and living? Why are these students forced to struggle as UK transportation refuses to accommodate with any type of local parking availability on campus? Why is student parking not prioritized? Why are the STUDENTS that need to park NOT prioritized?

Only sign this petition if you care about this beautiful planet and how we want to leave it for our future generations.

The Boundary Waters region in northeast Minnesota is a vast wildland refuge critical to people and the planet. The Boundary Waters Wilderness is a rare treasure: a million acres of pristine lakes and forests, unmarred by roads, development, and most motorized use. Yet uniquely accessible to people of all backgrounds and abilities - making it the most visited Wilderness in the entire U.S. and the backbone of the sustainable regional economy. Anishinaabe people (also known in this region as Chippewa or Ojibwe) have lived in the area for countless generations and have a deep relationship to these lands and waters. Indigenous people continue to harvest wild rice in the Boundary Waters region and maintain treaty rights to hunt, fish and gather. As sovereign nations, tribes play a central role in protecting the Boundary Waters. This wild and beautiful place is threatened by copper mining, but we can protect it forever if people take action and “speak loudly for this quiet place.” Visit www.SavetheBoundaryWaters.org to learn more.

Congress needs to push for climate action that will shift our country to stop relying on greenhouse gasses and invest in 100% renewable energy. This includes supporting working-class people and creating green jobs and infrastructure that will boost our economy, invests in working people, and create a more sustainable future. Photo credit: Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

The Green New Deal for Cities would provide local governments the funding to create good-paying, union jobs repairing their infrastructure, improving water quality, reducing air pollution, cleaning up our nation's parks, creating new green spaces We need to give our local communities the funding and support to act to prevent even further environmental collapse. The Biden administration's Inflation Reduction Act is a great start, but the scale of the the climate crisis and the threats that it poses to the health, safety, and livelihoods of our communities demand that we go further to rapidly de-transition from fossil fuels to a green economy. Source for image: Growing Together by James McInvale (left), Breathing New Life Into America by Caitlin Alexander (center), The Green New Deal by Jordan Johnson (right). From the Green New Deal poster series by Creative Action Network.

National forests in the United States are essential and irreplaceable. They preserve precious habitat for a wide diversity of plants and animals, provide health and enjoyment to recreationalists, and play a key role in fighting climate change. But now the U.S. Forest Service is planning to allow carbon waste dumping in national forests. We can't allow the nation's forests to be used as a dumping ground for fossil fuel companies and other industrial polluters. Not only would carbon storage require the buildout of dangerous pipelines, injection wells and roads — it would also pose potentially deadly risks to people and wildlife. Carbon dioxide leaks are highly hazardous and can lead to suffocation and even death. We need to stop this dangerous proposal in its tracks. Tell the Forest Service to scrap its upcoming proposal to allow carbon waste dumping in U.S. forests.

As the climate crisis intensifies, so too will the impacts to all of Pennsylvania's communities, but especially to those that have been suffering disproportionately at the hands of polluting industries for generations. In fact, experts like Pennsylvania's Dr. Michael Mann have been warning us for years that conditions will only get worse, that there is no "new normal." And since what happens in Pennsylvania doesn't stay in Pennsylvania, our outsized contribution to the crisis will impact everyone. Nothing is going to improve without aggressive action by our state government. Nothing is going to make state government act without pressure from all of us.

This petition is to help keep our children, elderly, and property safe from by mindless and/or reckless drivers/motorists.

The summer heat will soon be here and farm workers and other outdoor workers desperately need a federal heat standard. The need is more urgent than ever, with the way the government has shifted to the right. In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis just signed a bill which bans local ordinances giving workers water and shade breaks. It also bans local governments from requiring that employers conduct heat- exposure training programs. It takes away protections for employees who report heat exposure issues and removes record-keeping requirements. The new law takes effect July 1. Texas - already first in work-related heat exposure deaths - passed a similar law last summer. The “Death Star Bill” limits local governments from establishing ordinances for mandatory water and shade breaks for outdoor workers. These state bills are examples of why all farm workers and outdoor workers desperately need federal heat protections. Heat risk is real. Climate change is happening and outdoor workers are more and more in danger every year. Extreme temperatures could make thousands of workers seriously ill – and even suffer heat stroke and die. Farm workers are as much as 35 times more likely to die from heat than any other civilian occupation. Only a handful of states – California, Oregon and Washington – have policies on farm work in extreme heat. This lack of regulations puts farm workers in an impossible situation where they are forced to choose between making a living and taking care of their health. Currently, OSHA is relying on the "general duty" clause that says the general duty of an employer is to provide safe working conditions. That's not enough. Instead, workers need enforceable protections and penalties – including criminal proceedings – so dangerous incidents never happen. The men, women and children working in our fields can't wait. A Department of Labor committee recommended OSHA pass permanent rules, but this can take years. Workers need immediate heat standards to be put in place – before more people die. Heat deaths are preventable tragedies. The prevention is nothing complicated: shade, cool water, rest, education and monitoring. Sign our petition today and demand OSHA enact immediate heat regulations!

The West County Road Ops Yard is an industrial operation that houses many large trucks and hazardous materials that are inconsistent with the surrounding residential communities. The development will require significant deforestation and destruction of the environment and the natural buffer between the communities and the landfill. It will cause additional traffic to an already heavily congested single lane road and creates a safety risk for the children's bus stop at the entrance to the community. The community was not consulted during the planning of the relocation and it has been hidden from the public view due to loopholes used by the county. The county needs to halt the relocation planned, and find a suitable location that does not negatively impact the community residents. A proposal was made and submitted to the county with little to no response on several of the issues outlined. To find out more information and see the proposal you can access the google drive linked here. https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1nWtu3i8NY5NB7pXFsLh3vfiQOSI6wTxE?usp=sharing

Huff Park is one of the City of Grand Rapids' most biodiverse parks. It houses over 180 different species of birds as well as countless other animals. The rich biodiversity of the plants, wetlands and animals contribute to the significant need for natural "filters" for our environment to keep the human population healthy. Thousands of people and families each year enjoy the benefits of Huff Park from the ball fields to the boardwalk, plants and animals. An encroaching development of apartment complexes adjacent and backing up to Huff park will significantly negatively impact the biodiversity of the park. While the city wants to increase development growth, this reduces green spaces making the city less desirable for living. Preserving green spaces makes the city more desirable for living in the long run. There are other spaces that do not encroach on important wetlands that can be developed. The proposed multiple unit development adjacent and backing up to the Huff Park will also significantly increase traffic around the area and proposed parking spaces for these units have not been discussed. Please sign the petition to let the Grand Rapids Housing Commission and CNA know you want to keep the area surrounding Huff Park wild and undeveloped for both its plant and animal inhabitants and for humans to continue to enjoy for the benefit of all of Grand Rapids.